Use of Standards Based Grading for an Inquiry Lab on Chemistry of Airbags

In this 8th grade physical science laboratory activity about chemical reactions, students are challenged to: 1) create a reaction that would be suitable to deploy a car's airbag; and 2) construct a model of an airbag that will provide enough cushion to protect a hard-boiled egg. In order to accomplish these tasks, students will undertake a design project to construct, test, and modify a device that either releases or absorbs thermal energy by chemical processes. Students will demonstrate their knowledge of the objective through presenting a video of the inquiry lab report on “How Do Airbags Save Lives”. Standards Based Grading (SBG) will be used to provide feedback for assessing student learning on the content. The sections that show assessments using SBG are highlighted in light pink throughout this ETP.