THERMAL ENERGY READING

PASSAGE AND COMPREHENSION

QUESTIONS
PROCEDURE: STUDENTS WILL READ THE PASSAGE
ABOUT THERMAL ENERGY (INCLUDING SOURCES,
THERMAL CONDUCTORS, AND THERMAL
INSULATORS). WHILE READING, STUDENTS WILL
TAKE NOTES USING THE GUIDE PROVIDED. (I HAVE
STUDENTS PUT THEIR NOTES IN THEIR JOURNAL
AS A CIRCLE MAP).

Thermal Energy
Imagine that it is a cold, snowy day. You are inside trying to
stay warm, so you decide to make a cup of hot chocolate.
You get the hot chocolate powder, and check the physical
properties. You notice that the hot chocolate powder is
brown and soluble. You get some water from the sink, but
you need to warm it up. How can you do this? You need to
give your water some heat. What items could produce
thermal energy?

Thermal energy is energy created by heat. There are a lot of different ways to
produce thermal energy. You could use a stove, hot plate, microwave, sun, or fire to
create thermal energy. To warm up your water for your hot chocolate, you might
want to use a stove.

You place the water into a pot, and turn the stove on. Soon, you notice that your
water is bubbling. Whoops! You have let the water get too hot. It is 100 C. You
notice that the bubbles in the pot are moving really fast. This is because as matters
temperature increases, the particles start moving faster. When your liquids turn into
gas, the particles are moving all over the place.

You let your water cool below 100 C, and it stops boiling. Next, you need to make a
mixture/solution of hot chocolate. You want to pick a good cup to hold your hot
chocolate because you dont want it to get too cold before you can drink it. You
decide to do an investigation. You split your hot chocolate between two containers:
a mug and a plastic cup. You wait five minutes and taste from both containers. The
plastic cups hot chocolate tastes a little cool. The coffee mugs hot chocolate is still
super hot! Why?

Items can be good conductors or insulators of thermal
energy. A thermal conductor is a material that allows the
energy to flow through it. This means that hot items would
cool off quickly and cool items would heat up quickly.
Examples of thermal conductors include: iron, copper,
aluminum, and other metals. A thermal insulator is a
material that traps the energy. This means that hot
Why does the plastic cup allow the
items would stay hot and cold items would stay cold. hot chocolate to cool more?
Thermal insulators include wood, plastic, and fabrics.
The coffee mug is a better thermal insulator than the
plastic cup because the hot chocolate stayed hot.


Name:

Thermal Energy Notes

1. What does thermal energy mean?



2. What are three sources of thermal energy?



3. What does thermal conductor mean and what are two examples of thermal
conductors?




4. What does thermal insulator mean and what are two examples of thermal
insulators?




5. What happens to particles of matter when temperature increases?


Name:

Thermal Energy Notes

1. What does thermal energy mean?
Thermal energy is energy created by heat.


2. What are three sources of thermal energy?
Three sources of thermal energy are stove, hotplate, and microwave.


3. What does thermal conductor mean and what are two examples of thermal
conductors?
Thermal conductors are materials that allow energy to flow through it. Two
examples of thermal conductors are iron and copper.



4. What does thermal insulator mean and what are two examples of thermal
insulators?
Thermal insulators are materials that stops or traps energy. Two examples of
thermal insulators are wood and plastic.



5. What happens to particles of matter when temperature increases?
The particles of matter begin to move quickly when temperature increases.