Differences in Lava Lamp Activity

I have two lava lamps that rest in one of the window sils in my classroom. It is both a great distractor to the students and a source of fascination/curiosity to my students. It also helps that my students have to learn the concept of density. One of my lava lamps always seems lethargic and to be frank quite a dissapointment for viewing. I had been thinking that maybe it's a really good observation that might lead to a science inquiry for my students. I did some video and time lapse filming which may result in an inquiry for my students to do. Take a look at the video and see if it's a good idea.

Comments

[Pre-service science teacher]

I am a pre-service science teacher, and I think it is awesome that you are posting blogs showing examples and experiments that science teachers can use in their classroom. After creating this blog, do you feel that it has become easier for you to reflect on your instruction to find areas that you could improve on to become a more effective teacher?

[Darren Fix]

Thanks for the kind words! Making these videos and posts is really a valuable way of changing/adapting my teaching to spur student thinking. Lately I'm trying to make these more inquiry based, so that students are the ones asking the questions and trying to devise ways of investigating. With the implementation of the new common core standards and the increasing possibility of the adoption of the next generation science standards, my focus in teaching has become less in making science easier for students to understand, but rather to spur students to want to question and investigate themselves.