Scientists in History

Learning the development of the modern atomic model and the scientists that contributed to its development is part of the Lab Chemistry curriculum. As a project for the atomic theory unit, my classes are going to do a "Scientists in History" group project. The project will split the class into groups of four and each group will be assigned an atomic scientist. The groups will write a collaborative paper using Google Docs and develop a presentation using Powerpoint. The use of Powerpoint is due to the better graphics capabilities than Google Docs presentation software.

The students are to explain three personal facts about the scientist, describe their invention that contributed to the atomic theory including the time period, and then present three US or world events or discoveries that occurred in the same era. When an invention in placed in a time period, the information is more meaningful because the students can get a better understanding of what the world was like at the time. For instance, was the invention before or after electricity was discovered? The students will make ten minute presentations in the order that the discoveries were made.