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Week 09 · The Thermostat

Thursday

Test the room in two spots
// A switch that feels the room
⏱ about 15 min

Thursday: Test the Room in Two Spots

Rocket shivers by the window. "It is cold over here!"

Raven stands by the thermostat. "It says 68 here. What do you notice?"

"One room, two different feelings," Rocket says.

Nova hums. "Hint: a thermometer can settle it. Try two spots."

A fair test

The thermostat senses the room in one spot.

Other spots in the room may be warmer or colder.

We change one thing: the spot.

Same thermometer. Same room. Same waiting time.

  • A household thermometer a grown-up approves
  • A room with a thermostat
  • Paper and a pencil
  • A grown-up to help
Safety first
A grown-up handles the thermometer.
Stay away from heaters, vents and the stove.
We look at the thermostat. We never touch its buttons.
Never open or move the thermostat.
  1. Spot one: a grown-up holds the thermometer near the thermostat.
  2. Wait two minutes. Read the number.
  3. Spot two: hold it near a window or across the room.
  4. Wait two minutes. Read the number.
  5. Write both numbers in the table.
SpotReading
Near the thermostat
Near the window
Set point on the thermostat
WHAT HAPPENED?
  • Read the question.
  • Tap your answer.
What one thing did we change?
Why wait two minutes at each spot?
The two readings are different. What does that show?

Compare to the set point

Look at the number near the thermostat.

Is it close to the set point?

The thermostat tries to keep its own spot near the set point.

Far-away spots can drift warmer or colder.

READ THE NUMBERS
  • Read the question.
  • Tap your answer.
The set point is 68. Near the thermostat reads 68. Is that close?
The window spot reads 62. Is that warmer or colder than 68?
Which spot does the thermostat sense?
SentenceTrue or false?
A fair test changes one thing at a time.?
Every spot in a room is always the same warmth.?
The thermostat senses the air where it sits.?
A grown-up handles the thermometer.?
WHY THIS EXERCISEMeasuring beats guessing when two people feel differently.
RUN THE TWO-SPOT TEST
  • Tap a card.
  • Then tap its spot.
1First
2Next
3Then
4Last
Draw the room from above. Mark the two spots and their numbers.

You settled it with numbers, like a real scientist!

Tomorrow, you explain the thermostat.

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