Instructional Software

Lesson Idea Name: Investigation of Static Electricity with Balloons

Content Area: Physical science
Grade Level(s): 5th grade

Content Standard Addressed: S5P2. Obtain, evaluate, and communicate information to investigate electricity

ISTE Technology Standard Addressed: 3. Research and Information Fluency

Selected Technology Tool: PhET Interactive Simulations

URL(s) to support the lesson (if applicable): https://phet.colorado.edu/sims/html/balloons-and-static-

electricity/latest/balloons-and-static-electricity_en.html

Type of Instructional Software:

☐ Drill and Practice ☐ Tutorial ☒ Simulation ☐ Instructional Game ☐ e-books/e-references

Features of this software (check all that apply):

☐ Assessment Monitoring/Reporting
☐ Allows teacher to create customized lessons for students
☐ Multi-user or collaborative functions with others in the class
☐ Multi-user or collaborative with others outside the class
☒ Accessible to students beyond the school day
☒ Accessible via mobile devices
☒ Multiple languages
☐ Safety, security and/or privacy features

Bloom’s Taxonomy Level(s):

☐ Remembering ☒ Understanding ☐ Applying ☐ Analyzing ☐ Evaluating ☐ Creating

Levels of Technology Integration:

☒ Infusion Level: Students may work at a higher Bloom’s Level, but they do not have any “Voice or Choice”
during the activity and most of the decisions are made by the teacher.

☐ Integration Level: We would like to see ALL lessons/activities reach this level. The project is student-
driven. Students have “Voice and Choice” in the activities, selecting the topic of study and determining the
technology tool to demonstrate mastery of the standard. The teacher becomes more of a facilitator.
☐ Expansion Level: The projects created are shared outside of the classroom, publishing student work and
promoting authorship. This could be reached by showcasing the project on the school’s morning
newscast, posting the project to the classroom blog, or publishing via an outside source.

Universal Design for Learning (UDL):

The PhET Interactive Simulation I chose will help to engage all of the students in the concepts of static
electricity. It also provides visuals, and it is available in different languages. This helps provide multiple means
of representation. Providing multiple means of representations also includes activating students’ prior
knowledge which I will do in the introduction of the lesson which is described in the next section of this
document. UDL also calls for teachers to provide multiple means of action and expression which I do by

SBooker, 2020
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allowing students to choose how they will demonstrate and explain their understanding of static electricity
and what they have learned. Lastly, I provide multiple means of engagement when I encourage students to
share a time that they might have experienced static electricity first with partners and then as a whole class.

Lesson idea implementation:

To start off the lesson plan, I will ask students about their experiences with static electricity and what they
might already know. I will allow students to talk with partners or small groups and then we will reconvene. I
will encourage students to share times they think they might have felt static electricity. If needed, I will
prompt the students with questions such as “Have you ever been shocked while sliding down the slides at the
playground?” or “Have you ever tried to rub a balloon on yourself and then stick it to the wall?” This
conversation will take up the beginning of class and help us transition into how we will be observing static
electricity through simulations. I will explain that the students will be able to explain the forces involved in
static electricity (positive and negative charges), and I will ask them to recreate a diagram explaining static
electricity later that week.

The first day will be all about students investigating the factors that go into electricity, and later that week I
will assess their understanding through the recreation and explanation of their diagram. Students will have a
variety of resources such as paper, pencils, different colored pom poms, glue, Styrofoam balls, markers, and
balloons. The final product will differentiate learning because students can choose how they want to model
static electricity, and they can choose to explain through words on paper, out loud, or with actions. While the
site itself only reaches Bloom’s level of understanding, I am extending the lesson to Bloom’s level of creating
by having the students create models themselves. I also give the students “voice and choice” by allowing
them to determine what they create and how they do it. This helps me strive for a LoTi level 4 where the
activity is student-centered. I will conclude the lesson by having students share their ideas and listen to
others. I will take notes on what each student creates so I can gauge their level of understanding and provide
proper resources for clarifying the topic and helping them mater the learning objective.

Reflective Practice:
I feel that this process of learning and experimenting with static electricity will really deepen the students’
understanding of how positive and negative charges interact with each other. With this understanding of how
positive and negative charges interact with electricity, I could move on to magnetism also has rules related to
positive and negative charges. Another 5th grade standard, S5P3, states students will “obtain, evaluate, and
communicate information about magnetism and its relationship to electricity.” Students will further their
understanding of positive and negative charges and how those relationships hold true in other areas of
physical science as well. I could use additional simulations from PhET for future activities or include another
tool such as BrainPOP where students could watch tutorials before experimenting with simulations.

SBooker, 2020