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Science lesson plan · 4th grade (Year 5 in England) · 30 minutes

Keep it hot or keep it cold: thermal insulators

Energy

CCSS NGSS.4-PS3-2CCSS NGSS.SEP 3England: KS2 Y5 Properties and changes of materials

Objective and success criteria

Students will: Keep it hot or keep it cold: thermal insulators.

  • I can answer questions on today's skill on my own, without help.
  • I can explain each step and say why it works.
  • I can check my answer and spot a mistake.

Before and after

Needs first: Energy moves by sound, light, heat and electric current

Leads to: the next skill in this area.

Materials: Wind-up toys or a pendulum, Energy transfer diagrams, Mini whiteboards, A diagram or short video clip of the idea, Printed student sheet (below).

Warm-up · 4 min

  • Quick retrieval from earlier learning (Energy moves by sound, light, heat and electric current). Students answer on mini whiteboards.
  • Show answers together and note who needs support in the main task.
  1. How is energy moving here: a hot drink warming your hands? (light / sound / heat / electric current) → heatPrompt: Is it seen, heard, felt as warmth, or carried in wires?
  2. Why does a spoon left in hot soup get hot all the way up the handle? (Heat moves through the metal from the hot end to the cooler end. / Cold moves into the soup. / The spoon makes heat. / Light from the soup warms it.) → Heat moves through the metal from the hot end to the cooler end.Prompt: Which way does heat always flow?
  3. True or false? Light from the Sun carries energy to Earth. (True / False) → TruePrompt: Light, sound, heat and electric current all carry energy.

Hook · 3 min

  • Wind up a toy or stretch an elastic band and ask where the energy goes.
  • Share the objective: Keep it hot or keep it cold: thermal insulators. Read the success criteria together.

I do: model it · 7 min

  • Work through the example out loud, saying why you do each step, not just what you do.
  • Example: Is this a thermal conductor or a thermal insulator: steel?
  • Step 1: Metals let heat pass through quickly.
  • Step 2: So the answer is: thermal conductor (lets heat through easily)
  • Answer: thermal conductor (lets heat through easily)
  • Pause after each step and ask a student to say what comes next.

We do: guided practice · 6 min

  • Do these together. Students try each step on whiteboards before you reveal it.
  • Use the hints as prompts rather than giving the answer.
  1. Is this a thermal conductor or a thermal insulator: iron? (thermal conductor (lets heat through easily) / thermal insulator (slows heat down)) → thermal conductor (lets heat through easily)Prompt: Is it a metal?
  2. A cool box keeps drinks cold on a hot day. What is it lined with? (black paint / thin copper sheets / a thermal insulator like plastic foam / nothing, just air holes) → a thermal insulator like plastic foamPrompt: The same material keeps hot things hot and cold things cold.

You do: independent practice · 7 min

  • Students work on the student sheet. Circulate and check the first two answers of every student early.
  • Students who finish: write a question of their own for a partner, with the answer.

The 6 questions are on the student sheet below, with answers in the key.

Exit ticket · 3 min

  • Two questions on their own. Sort answers into got it / nearly / not yet to plan the next lesson.
  1. Is this a thermal conductor or a thermal insulator: feathers? (thermal conductor (lets heat through easily) / thermal insulator (slows heat down)) → thermal insulator (slows heat down)Prompt: Is it a metal?
  2. Why are saucepans made of metal but have plastic or wooden handles? (Plastic makes the pan heat faster. / Metal handles are too light. / Wood is a good thermal conductor. / Metal conducts heat to the food; the handle insulates your hand.) → Metal conducts heat to the food; the handle insulates your hand.Prompt: Which part should get hot, and which should not?

Watch out for

  • Everyday meanings of words getting in the way of the science meaning: define key words explicitly.
  • Remembering facts without the reason: ask "why?" and "what is the evidence?"

Support and stretch

Support

  • Review first: Energy moves by sound, light, heat and electric current.
  • Use concrete materials: wind-up toys or a pendulum.
  • Give the first step of each question, or a partly worked example to finish.
  • Pair with a confident partner for the guided practice.

Stretch

  • Explain a common mistake in writing and how to fix it.
  • Write a word problem that uses today's skill, then solve a partner's.

Homework and more practice

Free online practice with hints and printable worksheets for this skill: eurekami.com/science/grade-4.

Free lesson plan from eurekami.com/lesson-plan-builder

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Keep it hot or keep it cold: thermal insulators

Name

Date

Score/ 6

  1. Question 1

    A cool box keeps drinks cold on a hot day. What is it lined with?

    • A. nothing, just air holes
    • B. a thermal insulator like plastic foam
    • C. thin copper sheets
    • D. black paint

  2. Question 2

    Four cups of water at 70 °C were wrapped in different materials. The chart shows each temperature after 20 minutes. Which wrap was the best thermal insulator?

    Temperature after 20 minutes (°C)01020304050607046no wrap50paper55cotton63wool
    • A. no wrap
    • B. paper
    • C. cotton
    • D. wool

  3. Question 3

    Is this a thermal conductor or a thermal insulator: aluminium (aluminum)?

    • A. thermal conductor (lets heat through easily)
    • B. thermal insulator (slows heat down)

  4. Question 4

    Why are saucepans made of metal but have plastic or wooden handles?

    • A. Metal conducts heat to the food; the handle insulates your hand.
    • B. Plastic makes the pan heat faster.
    • C. Metal handles are too light.
    • D. Wood is a good thermal conductor.

  5. Question 5

    The water started at 70 °C. How many degrees did the cup with paper cool down in 20 minutes?

    Temperature after 20 minutes (°C)01020304050607040no wrap52paper57cotton61wool

    Answer°C

  6. Question 6

    Why do polar bears and penguins stay warm in freezing weather?

    • A. They are made of metal.
    • B. They make cold air warmer.
    • C. Thick fur, feathers and fat are good thermal insulators.
    • D. Their bodies never lose any heat.

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Answer key: Keep it hot or keep it cold: thermal insulators

  1. 1. B. a thermal insulator like plastic foam

  2. 2. D. wool

  3. 3. A. thermal conductor (lets heat through easily)

  4. 4. A. Metal conducts heat to the food; the handle insulates your hand.

  5. 5. 18 °C

  6. 6. C. Thick fur, feathers and fat are good thermal insulators.