High School Science Lesson Plan: Chemistry

High School Science Lesson Plan: Chemistry
Introduction
Each lesson in the Adolescent Literacy Toolkit is designed to support students through the
reading/learning process by providing instruction before, during, and after reading/learning.
Note that lessons incorporate the gradual release of responsibility model. When this model is
used within a single lesson and over several lessons, students are provided with enough
instruction and guidance to use the literacy strategies on their own. The following lesson
includes some examples of explicit instruction and modeling, guided practice, and independent
practice, but students need more practice and feedback than is possible within the context of a
single lesson.
Bold print indicates a direct link to the Content Area Literacy Guide where readers will find
descriptions of literacy strategies, step-by-step directions for how to use each strategy, and
quadrant charts illustrating applications across the four core content disciplines.
The following lesson plan and lesson narrative show science teachers how they can incorporate
the use of literacy strategies to support high school students to learn science content and
concepts. The lesson is designed for one block period (8090 minutes) or two traditional
classes (50 minutes).
The content for this component of CCSSOs Adolescent Literacy Toolkit was provided by Public Consulting Groups Center for 1
Resource Management, in partnership with the Council of Chief State School Officers (August 2007). The content was informed by
feedback from CCSSO partners and state education officials who participate in CCSSOs Secondary School Redesign Project.
Instructional Outcomes
ISTE standards: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry: Identify questions and concepts
that guide scientific investigations.
Content Learning Outcome: Students will activate prior knowledge, make predictions, and
then use the text to identify key concepts and synthesize information about chemical
reactions that involve heat.
Literacy Support Strategies and Instruction
Before reading/learning: Anticipation/Reaction Guide (explicit instruction and teacher

modeling)
Materials: Teacher-created Anticipation/Reaction Guide based on text material for
heat in chemical reactions
During reading/learning: Anticipation/Reaction Guide (guided practice)

Materials: Text material (chapter, section, or pre-selected online text) related to heat in
chemical reactions
After reading/learning: Anticipation/Reaction Guide (guided practice)

Materials: Individual students Anticipation Reaction Guides
Before Reading/Learning (20 minutes)
Literacy outcome: Students will use an Anticipation/Reaction Guide to set a purpose for
reading and stimulate interest in the topic of heat in chemical reactions.
Teacher preparation: Create an Anticipation/Reaction Guide with statements connected to

major concepts in the chapter students will be asked to read. See the Anticipation/Reaction
Guide Template example (below) related to heat in chemical reactions. (Note there are only
six statements, not many highly technical terms, a mix of true and false statements, and
conceptual questions and statements related to real-life applications. The goal is to create a
guide that matches the content of the reading assignment, but contains interesting statements
that will provoke interest and thought on the part of students.)
Anticipation/Reaction Guide Template Example
Directions: Discuss each question with your group. Then fill out the A/R guide on your own, as you may disagree with
your group members. Put a check under True or False if you are sure of your answer. Put a ? under True or False if you
are guessing.
Before Reading Statements about heat in chemical reactions During/After Reading

Page #
True False A. Scientific concepts True False
relevant info
Heat results from the motion and vibration of particles of matter.
The amount of heat a reaction absorbs or releases varies according
to the conditions under which the reaction is carried out.
The heat transferred in a reaction is always the difference in the
energies of reactants and products.
The size of a temperature increase depends on how much heat is
released, not on the surroundings where the reaction takes place.
B. Real-world applications
A blast of cold air will freeze something more completely than long
exposure at a low temperature.
More heat escapes from certain areas than othersthats why hats
keep you warmer than gloves or socks.
Teacher facilitation: Begin by introducing the topic of heat in chemical reactions using the
Anticipation/Reaction Guide you have prepared. Tell students the purpose of an
Anticipation/Reaction Guide is to activate prior knowledge and predict what they will be
reading about. Pass out the Anticipation/Reaction Guide and model it using a Think-Aloud
on how to fill in the boxes in the before reading columns.
Tell students they will fill out the before reading section of the Anticipation/Reaction Guide
by discussing each question in groups of three and then marking their individual responses
for each statement. Tell students they will then read the text as a way to find out if their initial
thoughts were on target, given the information in the chapter.
Ask students to break into groups of three. Ask them to discuss the next statement in their
group and then individually mark their statement true or false. Then ask students to raise their
hands if they marked the statement true. Ask for some students to share their rationale.
Then ask students who marked the statement false to raise their hands. Again, ask for some
reasons why they did this. Do not share the correct answer. Ask students to discuss the rest
of the questions in their small groups and to individually finish selecting true or false for the
rest of the statements on the guide.
During Reading/Learning (35 minutes)
Literacy outcome: Students will use the statements in the Anticipation/Reaction Guide to
help identify key concepts in the text about chemical reactions that involve heat. Students will
practice finding textual evidence for the statements in the guide.
Teacher facilitation: Read the first part of the text aloud and ask students to listen for evidence
related to the first statement (note: in the guide you create, make sure the first statement is
related to the text in the first few paragraphs). Model how to record the page number and
where on the page they heard evidence related to the first statement.
1) Tell students that some of the statements are literal or in the book statements, and
others are text and me statements that require inferential thinking. Remind them how
to make an inference by discussing a simple statement, such as: it is cloudy today, so
it may rain.
2) As students read to refute or confirm each statement, ask them to record the page
number where relevant information is found in the Reaction section of their
Anticipation/Reaction Guide.
3) When they have finished reading the text selection, ask students to record in the last
two columns of the guide what they now feel are the correct responses to each of the
statements.
Ask students to continue to read the assigned text, focusing on finding the evidence that
supports or refutes the statements in the Anticipation/Reaction Guide.
Circulate as students work, quietly observing their Anticipation/Reaction Guide entries.

When errors are seen, ask probing questions to help them realize why a mistake was made
and have them re-read and clarify the textual evidence.
After Reading/Learning (25 minutes)
Literacy outcome: Students will communicate their thinking and synthesize information by
discussing their after reading responses for the Anticipation/Reaction Guide.
Teacher facilitation: Ask students to combine two of the original small groups of three (youll
now have groups of six) and share their After Reading Reactions along with the evidence they
found.
1) Encourage students to carefully re-read text when there is disagreement about the
statement and remind them science concepts should be evidence-based. Remind
them science continually evolves but their responses should be based on the answers
found in the chapter. Students should note if they think information might be incorrect.
2) Ask students to query other classmates about their true/false choice and have them
skim the text to locate evidence that supports their answers.
3) If time allows, ask students to return to their original group of three to further
synthesize the chapter information by working together to write two additional
scientific concept statements and two additional real-world application statements.
Encourage students to write statements that, at first glance, might be true or false.
Ask each original group of three to work together to complete one Exit Slip. An Exit Slip is a
quick written response that provides feedback to the teacher about students experiences
during the lesson. Ask the students to discuss and respond to three questions:
1) How did the Anticipation/Reaction Guide change how you read the text?
2) What are two other real-world applications you can think of for something you learned
today about heat in chemical reactions?
3) What additional questions do you have about heat in chemical reactions?
At the end of the class:

Collect the Anticipation/Reaction Guides, review student responses, and any new
statements that groups generated.
Collect the Exit Slips and review carefully to determine where additional emphasis is
needed the next day.
Like all student-completed literacy strategy templates, these completed

Anticipation/Reaction Guides and Exit Slips provide valuable data for teacher reflection.
The Anticipation/Reaction Guide should not be graded. The student responses should be
used to assess student learning and make decisions about next steps in teaching.
Suggested Subsequent Lessons
Students can complete several small group laboratory experiments to see how the principles
of heat apply to chemical reactions. Students can write lab reports that explain the heat
reactions for the major concepts that were summarized in the Anticipation/Reaction Guide,
e.g., exothermic reactions, endothermic reactions, enthalpy changes, Hesss Law,
calorimetric, and kinetic theory. Other Anticipation/Reaction Guides can be used with
subsequent text chapters, demonstrations, and/or media presentations. The teacher can
gradually transfer the responsibility for creating the statements to groups of students,
modeling how they can use text headings, graphics, and other concept clues to predict and
confirm scientific principles.
High School Chemistry Lesson Narrative: Heat in Chemical Reactions
Teachers: As you read the lesson narrative, think about the following questions. You may want
to discuss them with fellow science teachers.
What does the teacher do to support students literacy development and content learning
before, during, and after reading/learning?
What challenges do you anticipate if you were to implement this lesson in your own
classroom? How would you prepare to meet these challenges?
How would you make improvements to this lesson?
Mrs. OLeary wondered what might hook the students interest in the upcoming unit on heat in
chemical reactions. The textbook chapter was pretty dense and reading the chapter and
answering the questions was not working well for students in the course. The ping-pong
reading that occurred when she asked students to do assigned reading and answer questions
did not support close reading of the text or real comprehension, and she knew it was boring. But
the textbook had good information in it and she wanted students to read the text and get
information from it.
Mrs. OLeary decided to use an Anticipation/Reaction Guide because it is a useful strategy to

activate prior knowledge and connect students with the text they will be reading. The students
can reflect on their initial choices and make changes to their responses after reading if
necessary. Mrs. OLeary developed the statements for the guide, deliberately including ones
that reflected important text concepts, as well as some more general real-life applications
students might already know about
Before Reading/Learning
Today were going to begin the unit on heat in chemical reactions, she said. She pointed at the
new bulletin board where pictures of fires, volcanoes, chemistry lab testing, food calorie charts,
cloud formations, movie posters featuring race cars and explosions, smog-filled cities, ice
storms, and some really odd looking bugs emitting light were tacked up. I want you to pair up
and select one of the images on the board, bring it back to your seats and brainstorm some
words that connect to the image. Students immediately went to get images and began to talk.
After a few minutes, Mrs. OLeary asked the students to connect with another pair who selected
a different image and brainstorm words that relate to both of the images you selected. After
another few minutes, Mrs. OLeary asked each foursome to report out one or two words related
to both images. Students shouted out answersheat, explosion, chemical reaction, cold,
emissions.
Okay, said Mrs. OLeary, collecting the images. So I guess you can see how heat in chemical
reactions has relevance to your lives. Now we need to get into the nuts and bolts of how heat
and chemical reactions are related. There is a lot of information in the text, but this time, instead
of just assigning the reading and the questions at the end of the chapter, Id like to introduce you
to a literacy strategy that helps you assess your current knowledge, stay focused when you
read, and check how your knowledge has deepened after reading and discussion.
As she passed out the Anticipation/Reaction Guide, several students started reading and
answering the statements before she had time to explain what to do. Have you seen this
strategy before? A few students nodded, so she asked if someone would like to explain to the
class what needed to be done and what purpose was achieved by using this strategy. A few
students contributed, describing the template and how to fill it out, but none of them explained
the purpose of using it. Whoa! Slow down! Mrs. OLeary laughed. If you know what the
purpose of a literacy strategy is, you have a better chance of having it be helpful! I have noticed
that when I assign reading and ask you to answer questions, many of you do not read the text.
That means you are missing a lot of information. An Anticipation/Reaction Guide is a good
way for you to monitor your own knowledge and learning. When you use it before you read, it
helps you set a purpose and activate your thinking. This is not a test. Lets do the first statement
together.
Mrs. OLeary read the first statement aloud. Then she modeled her thinking to the class: I know
that when I rub my hands together when I am cold, I get warmer. But that is friction, isnt it? So
that means this must be true. But I cant see particles in motion. If things that are warmer are in
motion, does that make them less stable? But when it is hot, I sure dont feel like moving around
much. I think this is false, but I really am guessing, so I am going to add a question mark.
Okay, to help you out a bit, youll first talk over the statements in groups of three. Listen
carefully, then answer the Anticipation questions on your own because you may not agree with
your groups ideas. The key is to be honestif you know the information, use checksbut if
youre guessing, use question marks.
The students moved into groups of three and began to discuss the statements on the guide.
Mrs. OLeary moved to a group of boys who made no move to begin and sat down next to them.
Tony, you like to snow board, right? So whats worse, being out for half an hour with a gusting
50 mph wind, or being out for four hours on a really cold day with no wind? When Tony said
being in the wind was worse, Alvarez said, Man, youre crazy. Half an hour versus four hours
outside? Thats what this is about! said Mrs. OLeary. Go ahead and start working on the
statementsmaybe they are not as irrelevant as you think! Groaning a little, the boys began to
discuss the statements.
Moving on to another group, Mrs. OLeary reflected briefly on how students often seem
unmotivated when asked to do their own thinking. She reminded herself that, like anything else,
this kind of work takes practice.
During Reading/Learning
Now youre going to find out if you and the chemistry book agree. The purpose of the reading
were about to do is to find the evidence in the text about whether the statements are true or
false. Remember, some of the answers are literal and are right there in front of you; they will be
directly stated in the chapter. Others may require you to put two and two togetheryour
knowledge and the authors knowledge. Youll have to read between the lines. Use the clues in
the text and be sure to read the charts and graphs, too, in order to find the evidence you are
looking for. She waited a moment to let the directions sink in as students pulled out textbooks
and pencils and rearranged their chairs. Lets try the first one together. Put your hand up to
stop me as soon as you hear evidence in the text related to the first statement. Mrs. OLeary
read the first three paragraphs of the chapter, pausing only to explain some vocabulary terms.
When she was halfway through the fourth paragraph, Tamara and Chaz both raised their hands
and Mrs. OLeary stopped. It was what you said right there about the particles in motion, said
Tamara. Yeah, so your first answer was wrong Mrs. O! said Chaz.
Okay, good, lets look at that and how to fill in the guide to keep track of what we just learned.
Mrs. OLeary explained how to fill in the remaining columnsthe page number where the
evidence was found and then how she recorded that she changed her mind, based on the text,
about whether she thought it was a true or false statement. Students nodded.
Mrs. OLeary wanted students to see the reason for continuing to use the Anticipation/
Reaction Guide as they read the text. Now were moving into the Reaction part of the
Anticipation/Reaction Guide. You thought about what you already know in anticipation of the
reading. Now youre going to be reacting by making decisions, questioning and maybe changing
your earlier thinking, and looking for the printed evidence to help you do that. This is how the
guide helps you set a purpose and stay focused. You have to be active, engaged readers to do
this. Ready? I want you to work in your groups of three. You can read independently and
discuss your answers afterward or you can read together, taking turns reading aloud. Either
way, be sure to listen to what the text is saying, stop when you hear or read something that
seems like evidence for one of these statements, and record the location on your guide.
The students settled down into their groups to read the chapter. Some groups read silently to
themselves and waited to discuss the statements once they finished. Other groups had one
student do all the reading, while the other two listened and recorded evidence. Two groups
chose to share the reading, taking turns by paragraphs. Students did seem to focus more than
usual when given the task to look for specific information. She noticed Tonys group seemed to
be struggling with the reading. She volunteered to take a turn reading, and she modeled again
her own thinking aloud for them when she came to something that helped confirm or refute one
of the statements on the guide. The fact all three in this group were struggling with the reading
helped explain some of their off-task behavior. She looked around the room as she listened to
Alvarez read, thinking about how she might change the groupings the next time she did this
activity.
She got up to circulate, chatting softly with some of the groups to answer questions. Craig
asked, Mrs. O, why didnt you put a question about cloud formation on the Anticipation/
Reaction Guide? Thats a good real-life application, isnt it? She replied, Save that thought
towards the end of the period youll be inventing some statements on your own. Another group
needed help. We cant figure this one out, Mrs. OLeary. The chapter doesnt explain what a
reactant is, and we dont know what it means either. She stopped the class for a moment and
asked if any other groups had experienced difficulty with reactant. Several students nodded
and Mrs. OLeary asked if they could help by sharing a strategy they used to find out the
meaning of the word. Beth asked, Did you try the index? Someone called out, Theres a
science dictionary on the desk. Its okay to use it? asked an anxious Patrice. Sure, Mrs.
OLeary replied, Wouldnt a detective go look up something on the Web or in the police files?
The key is you have to find evidenceno guesses and no opinions as you fill out the Reaction
part of the Anticipation/Reaction Guide.
After Reading/Learning
Mrs. OLeary asked students to reflect on their learning and discuss their responses for the
Reaction column in the Anticipation/Reaction Guide by getting together with another group.
She asked students in each group of six to just go around the group and report each persons
response and where they found the evidence, and then to discuss in the group any
disagreements. Students arranged chairs to pull into groups of six, they went to work on their
reactions, sharing results, and comparing page numbers for evidence.
She went on, Now, after reading, we actually come back to the Anticipation part of this guide,
where you do your own predicting and questioning. In your original groups of three, each group
will review the chapter and create two additional scientific concept statements. This is how you
will move to the next level of thinking. Instead of my making statements that you try to confirm or
refute, youll make your own anticipation statement. You do this by coming up with a question.
For example, a few minutes ago, Craig asked me about cloud formation. Lets see if we can
make up a statement together about how temperature affects cloud formation. Craig, you take a
stab at it. Lets start with a question: How might temperature affect cloud formation? She wrote
that on the white board. Now, Craig, can you turn this into a true or false statement that well
need to find evidence to confirm or refute? Craig thought for a minute, Warm air holds more
water than cool air? Mrs. OLeary wrote the statement on the board under the question about
cloud formation. Great, she said, Thats how you go about making your own statements. Start
with a question or a prediction about the topic, then turn it into a statement.
Back in small groups, students moved onto making their own statements. Some groups easily
came up with two. Others had more difficulty with the synthesizing activity and Mrs. OLeary
circled the room showing them how she had used the textbook features to create her
statements by asking a question about the bold print topics, or using the pictures and charts on
the side of the pages to generate ideas about real-life applications.
Before the students left, Mrs. OLeary asked each group of three to fill out an Exit Slip to provide
her with feedback about how the use of the Anticipation/Reaction Guide influenced their
reading, what they had learned about heat in chemical reactions, and what questions remained.
She collected the Anticipation/Reaction Guides and the questions the groups had generated,
and felt pretty pleased about what had been accomplished during the period. She looked
forward to reading through the Exit Slips and to refining her introduction to Anticipation/
Reaction Guides with the next class.

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High School Science Lesson Plan: Chemistry

Before reading/learning: Anticipation/Reaction Guide (explicit instruction and teacher

During reading/learning: Anticipation/Reaction Guide (guided practice)

After reading/learning: Anticipation/Reaction Guide (guided practice)

Teacher preparation: Create an Anticipation/Reaction Guide with statements connected to

Anticipation/Reaction Guide Template Example

Before Reading Statements about heat in chemical reactions During/After Reading

Circulate as students work, quietly observing their Anticipation/Reaction Guide entries.

At the end of the class:

Like all student-completed literacy strategy templates, these completed

Mrs. OLeary decided to use an Anticipation/Reaction Guide because it is a useful strategy to

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