Chemistry of Materials Unit

In Science the Zips just wrapped up their first unit:  Chemistry of Materials.  This was a lab based unit where students had the opportunity to study materials, their properties and make decisions about them based on their environmental impact.  Students created circuit boards and then used the copper chloride produced to answer the question of how best to dispose of the toxic waste produced.  Students diluted, incinerated and precipitated out the copper and analyzed each method.  The final step in the unit is to write an mini argumentative paper where they have to choose a computer proposal and support it with evidence collected in our unit.  Students will use the CERR framework, just like they did in English, as the basis of their mini argumentative paper.  The labs were fun, engaging and relevant to our students lives.