Revised

Lesson Plan
Created by: Isabella Abbinante

Subject: Science Grade: 8 Date: Duration:
75 minutes
Lesson Overview This lesson is about kinetic molecular theory and
the 3 states of matter: solids, liquids, and gases. It
will explain how particles of matter move within
each state, and what happens to these particles
when energy is added or removed. Lastly, it will
define the different changes of state.
Class Profile
• 26 students
• 5 ELL students
• 2 at level 3
• 3 at level 4
• 4 students with a “Q” designation


Big Idea(s)

• “The behaviour of matter can be explained by

the kinetic molecular theory and atomic
theory”.

https://www.curriculum.gov.bc.ca/curriculum/science/8

Curriculum Competencies
• Communicate ideas, findings and solutions
to problems, using scientific language,
representations, and digital technologies as
appropriate
• Use scientific understandings to identify
relationships and draw conclusions
• Formulate alternative “If…then…”
hypotheses based on their questions

Objectives

Students will be able to:
• Describe the four main points of the kinetic molecular theory
• Describe what happens to matter when its temperature changes
• Describe the change of state that occurs when energy is added/removed to a
solid, liquid and gas
• Describe the 3 states of matter in terms of the following: shape, volume,
spaces between particles, and movement of particles
• Define the following key vocabulary terms:
- matter
- mass
- volume
- expansion
- contraction
- melting
- sublimation
- evaporation
- solidification
- condensation
- deposition
• List the states the matter
• Define kinetic molecular theory
• Explain how particles of matter act when energy is added/removed using the
sentence starters: “When energy is added to particles they ___________” and
“When energy is removed from particles they ___________”

Materials and Equipment Needed for this Lesson

• 3 containers: 1 filled with ice cubes, 1 filled with water, and 1 filled with air
(i.e., empty)
• PowerPoint Presentation titled “States of Matter”
• “States of Matter” Notes package (adapted versions contain varying degrees
of “blanks” to fill in)
• Laptops/iPads (if not available, students will be permitted to use their
phones to play around with the simulation activity)
 • Simulation Activity:
https://phet.colorado.edu/sims/html/states-of-matter/latest/states-of-
matter_en.html
• States of Matter Glossary
• Booklet titled “States of Matter Handout”


Lesson Stages Learning Activities Time Allotted
1. Warm-up • Think-Pair-Share Activity:
- Introduce students to the 3
states of matter: solid
(container of ice cubes),
liquid (container of water)
and gas (container of air, i.e., 10 minutes
empty container).
- Students will be given the
prompt “What do you notice
about the contents of these 3
containers? What are
characteristics of each of the
contents?”
- Students will be given time to
think about and write down
their answers, discuss with
their peers, and then share
their answers with the class.
2. Presentation • Go through the “States of Matter”
PowerPoint presentation
• The presentation will cover the
topics of:
- states of matter
- changes of state 30 minutes
- kinetic molecular theory
- characteristics of states of
matter
• The presentation will also
contain and define all key
vocabulary terms students are
expected to know
• Students will be following along
with their adapted note booklets,
filling in their notes from the
presentation
• Handout “States of Matter
Glossary” to students as a source

3. Practice and
Production •
• Pass out “States of Matter
4. Closure •
• Students will be asked to provide 5 minutes
of reference for all key
vocabulary terms of the lesson
Simulation Activity
- Students will be provided
with the link for the “States of
Matter Phet Simulation”
- Students may work in pairs to
play around with the different
features of the simulation
- If laptops/iPads are
unavailable for the class,
students are permitted to use 30 minutes
their phones for the activity
- Prompt students to think
about what they have just
learned while doing so –
“What should happen to the
particles of a ______ when you
increase/decrease the
temperature?”
- Students will be allotted
about 15 minutes time to play
with the simulation
Handout” – Students will have
the remainder of the class time to
work in groups to begin the
package
- This handout contains various
activities to provide students
with practice and further
understanding of the
concepts
Remind students that whatever
they have not completed in the
the handout booklet will be for
homework
an Exit Slip before they leave
class. They will be prompted with
the question: “Name and define 2
of the changes of states that we
learned today”.

Adaptations • Key vocabulary terms be bolded in the
PowerPoint presentation
• PowerPoint presentation contains visual
examples of the different states of matter, as well
as graphics displaying the movement of particles
in each state
• Glossary with all of the key vocabulary terms –
arranged in graphic organizers and with visuals
where applicable
• Being able to play with an online simulation
allows for visual representations of key concepts
from the lessons
- Students receive hands-on experience with
visual directions as opposed to wordy written
instructions
• Worksheet contains both word banks and
sentence starter activities
• Think-Pair-Share provides students with the
opportunity to engage with their peers
• Adapted note packages – depending on the
students abilities, they will have an adapted
version of the notes package that has less blanks
for them to fill in while following along with the
PowerPoint (this way, if the student is slower to
write down information, or if they have a hard
time processing information while writing and
listening at the same time, they can focus better
on the lesson)