CORNWALLIS ACADEMY – Lesson Plan

Name Date:
Period: Group:
Subject: Lesson 2 Specific heat capacity
No. on register Boys: Girls: Support Staff: N
Sub group information
A:
P:
S:
LAC: G&T: EAL: FSM:
WALT – Investigate specific heat capacity

WILF

A: Use the equation for specific heat capacity

C: Explain how heat is transferred to an engine coolant
E: Recall the units of specific heat capacity

Key words: Specific heat capacity, J/KgoC, joules (J)

PLTS (please tick)
Independent Creative Reflective Team Workers Self Managers Effective
Enquirers Thinkers Learners Participants

Assessment for learning

Peer Self Group Teacher as coach

Traffic Lights Rubrics / Model 2 stars and a wish Focused questioning Other...
answers linked to
levels or grade
criteria
Links with previous learning

Links with future learning

Time Starter
Pupils need to read and complete questions on pages 16 and 17 of the textbook.

Main Activities

Teacher needs to demonstrate how to use the equipment provided in order to obtain results. The
pupils will be testing the specific heat capacity of metal blocks made of different types of metal.
They will need to carry out the practical on their own and will need to also use the worksheet to
complete a results table and a graph (template is on the worksheet)

Plenary
Pupils need to finish these sentences
E: Specific heat capacity is…
E: The units of specific heat capacity are…
C: The higher the specific heat capacity the better it is at storing heat, so the best metal to touch
 when you are feeling hot on a hot day is…
C: Engine coolants are needed because… (give them a hint throughout the lesson about
overheating engines and melting metal parts)
C: Heat is transferred to an engine coolant by…

Peer assess the responses and award two stars and a wish / use a bank of statements for peer
assessment feedback such as:
Good use of key words / You need to use more key words / You need to spell key words correctly
Well done for using the textbook explanation without cheating! / You need to check the definition
of specific heat capacity using the textbook
Well done for identifying that the higher heat capacity number material would cool you down
quickest

(Higher tier pupils need to use the equation for specific heat capacity, so it would be a good idea to
do some peer assessment of textbook calculation answers / do calculations involving energy =
mass × specific heat capacity × temperature change)

Every Child Matters (tick and complete where appropriate)

1) Being Healthy

2) Staying safe

3) Enjoying / Achieving

4) Achieving Economic well-being

5) Making positive contribution

Resources required: Homework/Project:

ap1-2-1 ap1-2-2
Investigating specific Investigating
heat capacity.doc
specific heat capacity – writing frame.doc

Check with the prep room that we have all the available equipment to do this lesson.
There are a limited number of immersion heaters
Equipment required per group:
Metal block
Insulator
12 V immersion heater
Voltmeter and ammeter
12 V power supply
Electrical leads and crocodile clips
Thermometer or temperature probe
Stopclock
Access to top-pan balance
Sub Group provision Safeguarding links

Foundation
Describe an experiment to measure the energy required to change the temperature of a body.
Describe how the energy needed to change the temperature of a body depends on:
• mass
• the material from which it is made
• the temperature change
Higher
Describe heat as a measurement of energy on an
absolute scale.
Use the equation, including a change of subject:
energy = mass × specific heat capacity × temperature change
An initial calculation of temperature change may be
required