The Environmental Protection Agency monitors sensors to track air pollution and set clean air standards. Enthusiastic young scientists use similar sensors to gather data in their area and then apply the gas laws and conservation of energy to draw conclusions.

Concepts

gas laws, the ideal gas law, charles' law, boyle's law, the law of conservation of energy

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Additional Tags

science

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Instructional Ideas

• Discuss the applications for environmental monitoring

Classroom Considerations

• Lesson intended for three 90-minute lessons, but would easily adapt to six 45-minute lessons or five 1-hour lessons
• Relies on prior knowledge of temperature and conservation of energy

Pros

• Applies textbook concepts to real-life experiments and current applications
• Lists many modifications and extensions
• Includes alternatives if the proper sensors aren't available or in the budget

Cons

• None

Common Core

RST.9-10.3 RST.9-10.4 RST.9-10.7 RST.9-10.9 RST.11-12.3 RST.11-12.4 RST.11-12.7 RST.11-12.9