How can the periodic table help us predict the properties and behaviour of elements?
This story of practice took place in an interdisciplinary Grade 9 classroom and focused on English language arts and science. It could easily be adapted for a team approach with distinct English language arts and science classes and teachers. If science and English language arts are offered as stand-alone courses, this could be a good opportunity to partner with a colleague in the English language arts department.
Learners learned about chemistry by answering the driving questions, “Why do elements behave the way they do?” and “How can the periodic table help us predict how elements behave?” As the learners were new to the inquiry process and it was early in the year, the driving questions were teacher-generated. As learners developed their skills later in the year, driving questions became co-created.
In the first phase of this project, learners discussed what they needed to understand to answer the driving questions well. With the teacher, they co-constructed a variety of deep and shallow questions that guided the first few weeks of learning. In the first two weeks, the teacher facilitated a variety of lessons, labs, and discussions to make sure that all learners were familiar with some fundamental concepts such as the structure of atoms, the periodic table, and the importance of subatomic particles.
Each learner was assigned an element that they would be responsible for learning about. They applied the foundational learning about Bohr diagrams, characteristics of metals and non-metals, reactivity, and the rest to their assigned element during whole-class lessons and activities, and then dove deeper into individual research later in the process. They knew from the beginning that the class was working toward a superhero periodic table art installation that they would construct as the final product. In this art installation, each of the elements was characterized as a hero, villain, sidekick, or civilian, based on the learners’ previous three weeks of learning about the structure and behaviour of their element. Once a learner knew whether their element was heavy and unreactive and not used for many practical purposes (for instance), they might decide that their character was going to be a blob who lived in its basement in the dark and never interacted with others.
In the process of developing their element characters, learners undertook individual inquiry into the particulars of their given element, building and organizing their own inquiry questions and learning how to recognize reliable, level-appropriate sources to help them understand their element on a deeper level.
Learners conferenced with peers and teachers throughout the project to help them consolidate their learning, recognize gaps in their understanding, and decide on next steps. They also thought critically about how character traits are sometimes visually communicated, what makes an engaging image, and how to best use symbolism in order to share as much relevant information about their elements as possible in their final art piece.
Partway through their individual research process, learners used Flipgrid to conference with science experts about their science learning and their ideas for their characters. Volunteers for this conference included medical professionals, marine biologists, geologists, professors, researchers, and many others. To prepare for this conference, learners drafted a script, got feedback before they filmed, revised the script, and then created a video to explain what they knew about chemistry. They received feedback on their symbolism and characterizations, and asked clarifying or extending questions of their science expert.
In the last stage of the project, learners considered all the feedback they had received and the information that they had learned as they created their final art piece.
The type of art that they created was entirely up to them—some learners drew something by hand using a variety of media, some used tracing and collaging techniques, and some used digital art tools that they had been familiarized with in other courses or in their own artistic pursuits. The art itself was not the emphasis; rather, the focus was on communicating their learning about their element, thinking symbolically, and seeking and applying feedback to continuously refine their design.
On the day their final pieces were due, the class assembled a giant periodic table on a glass wall in the common area of the space. On the front of the table were the characters that the learners had created, and on the back were the “character cards” that explained key characteristics of their elements that were symbolized in their images. There was also a QR code to access their artist statements, which explained why they selected these characteristics to highlight and describe their design process.
Once the display was assembled, learners and their families had a chance to explore the completed visual periodic table, looking for patterns in the characteristics of the elements that helped learners more concretely understand the organization of the periodic table. As a part of this exploration, they also considered the design elements that caught their attention as viewers and how they might incorporate those elements in future visual projects. The display stayed up for a couple of weeks to give other learners and the wider community a chance to engage with and celebrate the engaging and creative thinking of the Grade 9 learners.
Flipgrid is an especially useful platform because it allows learners the chance to practise working through the writing process, and it allows experts to respond to learners’ thinking in a flexible manner.
This project was designed so that many components were learner-led, allowing the teacher to be free to support, challenge, and extend learners’ thinking throughout the process on an individual basis. The teacher coached learners through the process rather than delivering lessons from the front of the room, especially after the foundational concepts were taught.
Providing a lot of options for how learners create their characters led to widespread learner success, especially for learners who were reluctant to or who worried about communicating visually.
This project has been run with 60 to 100 learners, and decisions about which elements to assign were made according to the number of learners participating. Rarer or less-useful elements were the first to be cut when there were fewer learners, and elements were assigned based on the academic skill, motivation, and interests of the learners. If this project were completed in a single-subject classroom, selection could be made from fewer families or they could be randomly assigned. In that instance, time would need to be added for learners to explore how the elements surrounding theirs are similar or different than the ones they learned about.
The inquiry phase of this project could be scaled down to fit different timelines.
As part of an outcomes-based assessment process, component parts of the project were assessed for the depth of understanding of relevant concepts. For instance, if learners could describe their observations in the lab by thoroughly explaining the malleability and lustre of the materials they were working with, they demonstrated an understanding of the characteristics of metals and non-metals. Learners were regularly able to demonstrate their understanding long before the creation of the final product.
