Lesson Plan

Lesson Title: Structure of the Atom,

Course: Grade 9 Applied Science (SNC1P)

Unit Title: Chemistry Exploring Matter

Curriculum Document: The Ontario Curriculum, Grades 9

and 10, Science, Revised 2008.

Purpose: Instruction of a New Concept

Expectations
Overall: C3. Understanding Basic Concepts
Specific: C3.1 Identify the characteristics of neutrons, protons, and electrons, including charge, location, and relative mass
Learning Goals

I will be able to identify the location of electrons, neutrons

and protons within an atom
I will be able to distinguish the difference between
electrons, neutrons and protons based on their charge
I will understand the differences between protons, neutrons
and electrons with respect to their relative mass
Assessment
For learning:
-

Monitoring the groups discussion following the video

Questions posed to the class during the lecture

Student Success Criteria

-

I will create a model of the atom containing all three

particles in the correct locations with the correct relative
sizes. The model will be accurately labeled with the correct
charges for each respective particle.

Materials / Resources
Bill Nye Video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cuXxSQEYDR8
JJ Thomson Experiment:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7YHwMWcxeX8

Of learning:
Activity Description and Worksheet
-

Model activity and worksheet

Materials for Activity: glue, two sizes of different coloured
Styrofoam balls, toothpicks, two sizes of metal wire, black

marker, tape
Prior Knowledge
-

Have prior understanding of matter, states of matter and their

properties (Grade 5 Science)

Procedure/Organization
Individual, Small Groups, and Class Group
Instructional strategy:
Video, Mini Lecture, and Activity

Introduction:

As each student enters into the classroom, assign him or her a

role (proton, neutron, or electron) and a group number (groups
of 3).
Present the students the learning goals of the class
Explain to the students that they will be watching the Bill Nye
Atoms Episode and that during the movie they will be
responsible for jotting down a couple important points about
their role to share with the group.
Following the video, the students will share their information
with their group members

Time
3 min

Teacher Notes
During the movie circulate the room, or obtain a
position where all of the students are equally
viable in order to ensure that they are staying on
task and recording the proper information.

7 min

Use the CALM model method of handling

students.

5 min

As the students are sharing their information,

circulate and ask guided questions for students
who may not have appropriately covered all of the
material. Some examples of these questions:
-

Where can the (proton, neutron, electron)

be found in the atom?
What is its charge?
What is its relative mass?
Why are the masses expressed like that?

Instruction:
Key Terms: Matter, Atom, Nucleus, Proton, Electron, Neutrons
- What is Matter?
- Demonstration: cutting the apple. Eventually as I cut this apple,
there will get to a point where it is sooo tiny that I can no longer
cut it, correct? This is the basis of the theory behind the atom as
developed by early Greek philosophers.
- The Atom: Early Greek philosophers believed that if you divide
something, eventually you will get to a point where you can no
longer divide it. They called this the atom, which comes from
the Greek word for uncuttable.
- Dalton expanded on this theory proposed by the Greeks and
provided evidence through experimentation of three key basic
concepts:
- Stuff can be broken into elements *what are elements?
- Elements are atoms with different masses.
- Compounds are combinations of elements. E.g. salt, or water
- The Electron: JJ Thomson discovered the electron through
experimenting with electrical currents inside an empty glass
tube. He was investigating cathode rays, a popular topic amongst
scientists at that time.

Teacher Notes
2 min

2 min
-

5 min

3 min
-

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7YHwMWcxeX8
-

What do you notice when he passes the current through the tube?
If you notice, as he brings the magnet closer to the tube, the ray
7 min
bends. When the magnet is positively charged, the ray bends
towards it, and when the magnet is negatively charged, the ray
bends away. What does this tell you about the ray? What is the
rule about opposite and like charges
This lead to his conclusion that atoms were in fact made up of
smaller particles that were negatively charged. This smaller

Matter is the basis of all living things. It is

what makes up the world around us. It is
defined as anything that has mass and
takes up space
Stress that many of these discoveries were
by accident. And that even though some of
these discoveries were later disproved,
they all aided in creating the knowledge
we have today. One of the main benefits of
science is that even being wrong teaches
you a lot. There is nothing wrong with
making mistakes, because sometimes you
learn better that way. In addition, those
that were right were later built off,
showing the importance of collaboration
and building off prior knowledge. It also
demonstrates that you do not have to have
all the answers and you never know what
might be important.
An element is a substance that cannot be
chemically broken down to form a new
substance. They are what are found on the
periodic table.
Students should be able to recognize that
as the current is passed though
The ray is negative, because the rule is
that opposite charges attract and like
charges repel
He calculated the mass of these atoms, and
found them much smaller than that of a
hydrogen atom

negatively charged particles would later be named electrons.

How could he know that these were not just negatively charged
atoms? Why is the hydrogen atom an important reference?
This lead to his plum pudding model, where the pudding is a
weird positively charged substance that no one was sure about,
and the electrons were the raisons on top
The Proton: Ernest Rutherford said one day hey, I think I will
shoot some stuff at atoms. I am sure his wife said oh, Ernie
(she probably called him Ernie) if it makes you happy to play
with your little physics stuff, go ahead. I know how much you
like it. So he did. He shot some alpha particles (which are really 8 min
just the nucleus of a helium atom) at some really thin gold foil
(ScienceBlogs, 2014)
What do you think would happen if he shot positively charged
particles at a positively charged mass?
Strangely enough, he found that most of the alpha particles
(reminder, what is an alpha particle?) went straight through.
Why do you think this could have happened?
Rutherford proposed that the atom contains a small positively
charged nucleus that is surrounded by small negatively charged
electrons
Bohr offered confirmation of Rutherfords proposal that
electrons resided outside a positively charged nucleus and
3 min
provided evidence that they orbit around that nucleus.
Much later Chadwick discovered that the nucleus contains a
second type of particle of similar mass that was neutron. This
was called the neutron.

The hydrogen atom is the lightest of all the

atoms
If JJ was correct, and atoms were mostly
positively charged stuff with random
negatively charged particles, than the
positively charged particles that are being
shot at the mass should deflect off (since
like charges repel)

Application or practice:

Time:

Design an atom. See the attached handout for directions.

22 min

The teacher must first handout the activity

handout and worksheet for the students. Ensure
that there are sufficient materials (glue, pre-cut
metal wire, colourful Styrofoam balls in two
different sizes, toothpicks, black markers) for the
class and that they can easily access these
materials.
As the students are completing the activity,
circulate the room, ensuring the students remain
on task and answering any questions that may
arise.

Summary Conclusion:

Time

Have the class complete the Design an Atom Activity Worksheet

5 min

Teacher Notes
-

Clean up the mess made by the activity

Collect the models and the worksheets

Modifications/Accommodations:
Length: 72 min. or 1 period
Modifications/Accommodations would be made depending on the students in the class. For example
if one student had limited vision, I would seat them near the front of the class, and ensure their
handout/worksheet contained larger fonts.
References:

ScienceBlogs