Project: practice in measuring metric volumes
(do this exercise in conjunction with instrumentation)
complete the following exercise of volume measurement. practice in the skill of measurement and estimation is useful in chemistry. this exercise is designed to you get that practice.
here are your goals for this lesson:
judge metric volume measurements in the 100 to 500 ml range to within +/- 20 ml
feel confident using a graduated cylinder reliably
to do this exercise, you will need fifteen containers, five large, five medium, and five small. the "large" containers should be about the size of a soda pop can. the containers do not have to be transparent but they need to be shaped so that you will be able to easily pour water from them into a graduated cylinder. you will also need at least one 100-ml graduated cylinder. ideally, you will also have a larger and smaller cylinder to use. (if, perhaps, you are using kitchen measuring cups instead of graduated cylinders, they need to have metric markings on them. be sure to use the metric markings! ) be sure to read the volumes at eye level and at the bottom of the meniscus.
make a supply of colored water to use in this experiment. colored water will make it easier to read the meniscus. fill one of the large unmarked containers with colored water, estimate the volume in milliliters (ml), and then carefully pour it into the graduated container to measure the actual water volume. repeat this procedure with the other four "large" containers. before you start, make a chart in which to record your estimates and actual data. when you have completed this task with the large containers, move on to the medium and small containers. you will then transfer this information to your reports for your teacher to grade.