"Stuff Matters" Book Study for Chemistry, Engineering, and Materials Science

As soon as I stumbled across this book I knew I had to use it with my engineering students somehow. It is the perfect companion to our materials science unit.

Stuff Matters by Mark Miodownik is a fascinating look at the secret lives of materials that we use every day but might take for granted. Each chapter tells the story of a different material, how it was developed by humans, and how it in turn helped to shape mankind. It is at just about the right level for high school students, since some topics require a very basic "chemical literacy" to follow, but whether you are trying to supplement a chemistry course or a materials design unit, differentiate instruction, or simply trying to integrate reading into your science curriculum, this book is a terrific choice. The hard copy and e-book are 272 pages long, and the audiobook is about 6.5 hours. My school librarian helped me to purchase copies of each format, so students can access the book through their library media app on their 1:1 digital devices.

The book is not included in this product. This book study is a series of questions that accompany each chapter of the book to keep students accountable for their reading while also helping them to catch and absorb key ideas from each chapter. Some questions are quick fill-in-the-blanks on interesting factoids or new terms they will find in the reading, while each chapter also includes some deeper analysis questions with longer responses. The questions are designed to enhance the reading experience, and hopefully not to distract from it. There are even some video links and other neat stuff along the way to try to further provoke curiosity!

I use this assignment as an extra credit opportunity, which students can complete independently while we study materials. It could easily be integrated as a whole-class activity or a major assignment that spans a marking period. Answer key is included.