Metal Heat Treatment - History of STEM practicals - History of Metals

Practical 27 in the History in STEM practical series.

In this practical the students will be able to test the effect of various heat treatments on bobby pins to determine what properties each treatment gives, and what would they appropriately be used for. The practical does not require much equipment, but gives real quantitative data for comparision. It also gives a chance for the students to delve into the history of metals. The introduction discusses the Stone, Bronze and Iron ages, as well as some examples of how heat treatment was used throughout history. When working in a group, if the equipment was already laid out, the data for this practical could be collected in 45 minutes.

More about the History in STEM practical Series

This series is designed to bring quality cross-curricula material to STEM subjects, that help students to explore and discover phenomena normally taught, while getting a glimpse into the history of its development.

In addition, a number of the practicals give the students the opportunity to play “Mythbusters”, looking at a number of different methods and having to reason why one or the other was the more likely or useful method.

From Ancient Greece to Vikings, China to the Golden age of the Muslim empire and beyond to India, the series takes a look at some of the most important STEM achievements throughout history.

There is a plan for about 40 of these such practicals in this series, so, if you liked this one, consider looking at some of the others, or check out some of the bundles available.

Copyright © 2020 The Efficient Science Teacher

All rights reserved by author. Permission to copy for single classroom use only. Electronic distribution limited to single classroom use only.