Integrating Maths into the Unit of Inquiry

As the grade 5 move into the How The World Works unit of inquiry and begin to investigate properties of matter, it seemed like a natural fit to start a mathematics unit on measurement.

During their first trip to the science lab, with the help of Mr. Johnson, the lab technician, students set about to investigate the question, 

"Does mass change as a material goes through a phase change?” 

Students carefully measured the mass of a beaker with ice and sent the ice through a phase change using a hot plate. When the ice was melted, students remeasured the mass to find if their was any difference.  

After completing the first investigation, students reflected on their results. Many students were surprised to find that the mass of the water was less than the mass of the ice. It seemed the answer to the question was, "Yes, mass is lost during a phase change." Upon further reflection, many students wondered if their measurements were accurate enough. Perhaps there is a way to get more reliable results? Students then designed another experiment with more variables controlled and a more precise method of measuring the mass of the water- in all its phases.


Most groups concluded that some of the water was being lost as a vapour so they were unable to measure its mass. Students know that one property of a gas is that it wants to spread out and fill the open space. Groups came up with a variety of ways to trap the gas so it could be measured along with the liquid water.  In Rosa and Limie's experiment, they used a balloon on top of a beaker to trap the gas. Based on their results, a tiny bit of gas may have escaped. They found a difference in mass of 0.2 grams. Not bad for only the 2nd try.

Here is Jian, Tanatswa and Sunaina talking about their investigation.

In addition, students did a bit of research into this topic on the conservation of mass. We watched a short- yet very dramatic- video about Antoine Lavoisier. Widely considered the father of modern chemistry, Antoine Lavoisier is credited with proving the conservation of mass. Students were surprised to learn he did over 1,000 experiments before he was confident his measurements were correct. We're hoping 2 is enough for us! 
Click here to watch the dramatic video. 

Besides the practical application of measurement through science investigations, students are also working on measuring the different attributes of shapes and events- specifically perimeter, area and volume.

After spending some time constructing a definition of area and perimeter, and developing a method for calculating the area and perimeter, students were given the following 2 questions to investigate:

Students worked out the answer in a variety ways and explained the thinking and process in their notebooks. However, being scientists, we need proof!

Method 1                                                                Method 2     

After working individually and conferring with a few partners, students reflected on this activity by consulting their deep mathematical thinking checklist in their notebooks. As a class, we have been exploring the concept of growth mindset and what that looks like in a maths class. We came to the conclusion that getting the correct answer isn't nearly as important as testing out ideas, persevering, making connections to previous learning, and defending your position-to name just a few. As class we decided which of these attributes we were using while investigating these questions. 

For an overview of growth mindset, the science of learning math, the importance of perseverance, the multiple ways to 'see' math, visit the youcubed.org website. This comes from the research of Jo Boaler from Stanford University. It is filled with great information for parents, students, and teachers.