Super STAAR

Supporting Lessons

Separating a Mixture: Perkins School for the Blind (website) - Students use various methods to separate salt from sand.

Separating a Mixture
Perkins School for the Blind, www.perkins.org

Separating Mixtures: Discovery Education (website) - Students use chromatography to separate and analyze ink mixtures from a variety of pens.

Separating Mixtures
Discovery Education, www.school.discoveryeducation.com

Properties of Mixtures and Solutions: University of Virginia (website) - Students make observations, organize and analyze information, and measure and record data while identifying, separating and determining the concentrations of components in mixtures.

Properties of Mixtures and Solutions
University of Virginia, http://galileo.phys.virginia.edu

Separation of a Mixture: Alabama Learning Exchange (website) - Students explore mixtures, recognize that a mixture is created when two or more materials are combined, and design their own procedures for separating a mixture of four ingredients.

Separation of a Mixture
Alabama Learning Exchange, http://alex.state.al.us

Elaboration Lessons and Extensions

Separating Mixtures: TeachEngineering (website) – Advanced content on mixtures and solutions with suggestions for additional activities.

Separating Mixtures
TeachEngineering, www.teachengineering.org

Mixtures and Solutions Lesson Plans, Worksheets, Printables: Plan It (website) Search Plan It allows you to find lessons and other resources on the area of physical science.

Mixtures and Solutions Lesson Plans, Worksheets, Printables
Search Plan It, www.searchplanit.com

Assessment Ideas

Give students a variety of sample substances (e.g., sand and sugar mixed together, carbonated beverage, piece of concrete, salt). Ask them to identify the samples that represent a mixture and to explain their answers. [Pure salt is not a mixture; all the other examples are.] Then, have students identify the mixtures that are solutions. [The carbonated beverage, “soda,” is an example of a solution.]

Literature Connections

Mix It Up! Solution or Mixture? Nelson, Tracy (ISBN-13: 978-1618102270)

Matter. Cooper, Christopher (ISBN-13: 978-0751361353)

Salt. Walpole, Brenda (ISBN-13: 978-1560740605)

Iron. Hasan, Heather (ISBN-13: 978-1404201576)

Mixtures and Solutions: Why Chemistry Matters. Aloian, M. (ISBN-13: 978-0778742500)

Mixtures and Solutions: Reading Essentials in Science. Karpelenia, J. (ISBN-10: 0756946425)

Additional Resources

Mixtures and Solutions: Science-class.net (website) - Links to activity labs, quizzes, sideshows, and other resources to help you present and teach concepts related to mixtures and solutions.

Mixtures and Solutions
Science-Class, science-class.net