UNLV/Department of Teaching & Learning

Elementary Lesson Plan Template

UNLV Student: Julia Katz Preservice Mentor Mr. Quinn

Teacher’s (PSMT)
Name:
Lesson Plan Title: Concentration using Lesson Plan Topic: Concentration and
Kool-Aid Saturation of Liquid
Mixtures/Solutions
Date: 03/12/2021 Estimated Time: 60 minutes
Grade Level: 5th School Site: Doral Academy -
Cactus Campus

_____________________________________________________________________________________________

1. State Standard(s):
a. P.5.A.3- Students know materials can be classified by their observable properties and
chemical properties (e.g., magnetism, conductivity, density, and solubility)
b. P.5.A.4 - Students know that, by combining two or more materials, the properties of that
material can be different from the original materials.
c. SL.5.1 - Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups,
and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 5 topics and texts, building on others’
ideas and expressing their own clearly.

2. Teaching Model(s):
a. Mirroring/Echoing
b. Modeling
c. Discussion
d. Journaling

3. Objective(s):
a. SWBAT determine which solution is concentrated, diluted, and balanced.
b. SWBAT explain what makes a solution concentrated or diluted.
c. SWBAT identify the differences between a concentrated, diluted, and saturated solution.

4. Materials and Technology Resources:

a. Student Science Journals
i. Printed Copies of data tables (optional)
b. Teacher’s Manual with discussion questions, answers, and experiment procedures
c. Pencils to write observations.
d. 3 cups with equal amounts of water.
 e. Kool-Aid powder or any drink mix powder.
f. Spoon
g. Scale

5. Instructional Procedures: (60 minutes total)

a. Motivation/Engagement: (5 minutes)
A. Gaining Attention:
a. The teacher will ask students to put away their math materials and get out
their science journals/notebooks. They will then ask students to recall what
mixtures and solutions are.
i. Teacher should anticipate students using examples to explain what
previous vocabulary words are when asking students to share the
definitions of them.
1. Some may say salt and water is a solution, others may say
mixing water and gravel is a mixture.
b. Before beginning the lesson, the teacher will prompt a discussion about the
terms students brought up in the previous section.

B. Objectives:
a. Students should be familiar with the idea that a mixture is two or more
substances combined.
b. Students should be familiar with the idea that a solution is a mixture that
cannot be easily separated, such as water and salt from previous experiments.
Students should also be able to identify the solvent and solute in these
mixtures.

b. Developmental Activities or Learning Experiences:

C. Review: (10 minutes)
a. The teacher will then go through the vocabulary words that will be found
throughout the lesson. Students will copy the definitions and any examples
into their notebooks for future reference.
i. Concentration: the amount of material dissolved in a measure of
liquid.
1. Teacher should review the concepts of solute and solvent
here. Concentration can also be defined as the amount of
solute dissolved in a solvent/solution.
ii. Concentrated: a large amount of a substance in a mixture.
1. Teacher can bring up the discussion of students having
poured too much of a powder or mix into a drink. Did the
drink taste funny afterwards?
 iii. Dilute: A small amount of a substance dissolved in a mixture.
1. Teacher may describe this as being “watered down”.
iv. Substance: a pure material that is not mixed with anything else.
v. Solubility: whether or not something will dissolve in water
vi. Soluble: dissolves in water
1. Have the class generate examples of substances that are
soluble. Some may say sugar, salt, or even Kool-Aid.
vii. Insoluble: does not dissolve in water
viii. *Saturated: state in which substance will no longer dissolve in a
mixture due to having a high concentration of the substance in it.
1. This word is introduced if the concentrated cup
experiences the phenomenon.

D. Checking for Understanding (Guided Practice): (30 minutes)

a. The teacher will then introduce the day’s experiment: determining the
concentration of mixtures through observation.
i. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the teacher will be the only one to
drink the solutions of Kool-Aid and explain what each of them taste
like. Students are encouraged to do the experiment at home with their
families. In an ideal situation, the teacher would have large pitchers of
water to make enough for all the students to sample and experience.
b. Procedures for the experiment:
1. The teacher will then show students the three separate glasses
of water with equal amounts of water in them, the Kool-Aid
powder, a scale, and the spoon.
2. The teacher will then explain to the students that they will be
observing a diluted, balanced, and concentrated solution. The
students are encouraged to pay close attention to physical
properties such as color to determine the concentration of
them.
a. In glass 1, the teacher will create a balanced solution
i. Put 2-3 spoonfuls of the Kool-Aid into the cup.
ii. Ask students to share what they noticed when
the powder hit the water. Did the color change?
Did the powder dissolve?
iii. Stir the solution and hold it up for students to
see.
iv. Students will note the color as being vibrant but
not overwhelming.
b. Glass 2 is the diluted solution.
 i. The teacher can open the floor to discussion so
that students can predict what will happen when
kool-aid is added to this solution.
1. Add about ½ a spoonful into the cup.
2. Ask students to share what they noticed
when the powder hit the water. Did the
color change? Did the powder dissolve?
3. Stir the solution and hold it up for
students to see.
4. Students will note the color as being
lighter and still quite translucent.
c. Glass 3 is the concentrated solution.
i. The teacher will ask the students to tell them
how many spoonfuls of Kool-Aid they should
add to the cup. Then ask the students what they
think the color will look like, giving them time to
predict and write their predictions down.
1. Add the designated amount of spoonfuls
into the cup.
2. Ask students to share what they noticed
when the powder hit the water. Did the
color change? Did the powder dissolve?
3. Stir the solution and hold it up for
students to see.
4. Students will note the color as being dark
and impossible to see through.
a. If students put enough powder in
the mixture, there may be Kool-
Aid on the bottom that isn’t
dissolved. Introduce saturation
here.
3. Once the glasses have been mixed, the teacher will then weigh
the solutions on a scale so that they can see the differences in
the masses. Students may recognize the different water levels
prior to this.
a. If students recognize it, have them explain why they
think the water changed levels.
b. Review the concept of mass and adding mass to volume
here regardless of whether or not students provide the
 right definitions. Refer back to the balance beam
experiment done earlier in the unit.
c. Once the review is complete, write the masses of each
of the solutions on the board. Students will notice that
the diluted has the smallest mass and the concentrated
has the highest mass.
4. The teacher will then drink a sip of each solution and explain
what they taste and what it feels like. Consider a rating scale
for students to understand just how much of the Kool-Aid can
be tasted in each.
a. The diluted solution will taste watered down.
b. The normal, balanced solution will taste like an ideal
drink.
c. The concentrated solution will be overwhelmingly
sweet, and if it is saturated, the teacher may feel the
powder as they’re drinking it.

E. Assessing Outcomes (Independent Practice) (10 minutes)

a. Upon completion of the guided review section of the lesson, the teacher will
have students write what they observed into their journals. The students will
then draw models of the solutions and discuss the phenomena observed with
their peers while remaining socially distanced.

F. Providing Feedback (Closure): (10 minutes)

a. The teacher will then direct the class back to the board and ask students to
share their models. Use this time to go over the masses and comparisons of the
solutions with the class once again.

d. Extension:
1. If there is time at the end of the lesson, the teacher can go into the next lesson by starting
a small discussion with students to get them thinking about other concentrated solutions
may look, especially if they are transparent like salt and water or sugar and water.

e. Contingency:
1. If there is not enough time for the lesson, consider splitting the lesson into two different
days. Consider doing front loading on day 1 and the experiment on day 2.

6. Accommodations, Modifications and Differentiations for Diverse Learners:

a. English Language Learners:
 i. Consider having a slideshow or vocabulary sheet with additional pictures to share with
the class. Consider having student friendly definitions that are not filled with as much
academic vocabulary posted on Google Classroom.
ii. Consider having a diagram or model of what is being done drawn and labelled for
students to see.

7. Assessment and Evaluation of Learning:

a. Assessment is conducted informally by asking students discussion questions throughout
the lesson, asking students to explain what they’re seeing while using vocabulary words.
b. The teacher asks students to draw a model of what the solutions looked like.

8. Homework Assignment:
N/A.

9. Reflection:
a. Strengths:
One of the best things about this lesson was the convenience of being able to find the
materials. Due to the pandemic, we can’t do the experiment in its ideal manner. This
would pose a great challenge in many other experiments, but because the materials are
very accessible and may already be available at home, students can repeat the experiment
with their families. I also think this is a great experiment that is simple but effective in
teaching concentration and saturation together. Students are able to use observations to
understand what is going on, even if they can’t drink them.
b. Concerns:
One main concern is the fact that many students may not grasp the concept well
because there isn’t a simulation on hand for them to use or because they are not the ones
performing the experiment. This may be difficult for kinesthetic learners to grasp because
they often learn by doing things with their hands. It may be helpful to find simulations or
other methods of demonstrating concentration to support them.
c. Insights:
I think this lesson was a very fun one to teach because my students were able to
recognize my expressions. They are familiar with drinking Kool-Aid and by describing what
I’m tasting, many of them began to predict what the next drink would taste like using
what they observed about the color, mass, and the amount of Kool-Aid I put in each of
them. It was also fun to have them determine the amount of Kool-Aid to put in the
concentrated solution. I felt this was a great way for them to feel involved rather than just
simply watching a demonstration. I also really appreciate how easy it is to repeat the
experiment at home. I think many of my students will be trying it with their families.