Physical Science: Chemistry · Chemical Reactions

HS-PS1-7Math of Chemistry

Performance expectation

Use mathematical representations to support the claim that atoms, and therefore mass, are conserved during a chemical reaction.

What NYSED says about assessing it

Clarification statement

Emphasis is on using mathematical ideas to communicate the proportional relationships between masses of atoms in the reactants and the products, and the translation of these relationships to the macroscopic scale using the mole as the conversion from the atomic to the macroscopic scale. Emphasis is on assessing students' use of mathematical thinking and not on memorization and rote application of problem-solving techniques.

Assessment boundary

Assessment does not include complex chemical reactions.

The three dimensions

Every item written to HS-PS1-7 has to assess all three dimensions together, not the content alone. This is the structural change that made older practice material stop matching the exam.

Science & engineering practice

Using Mathematics and Computational Thinking

Disciplinary core ideas
  • PS1.B: Chemical Reactions
Crosscutting concepts
  • Energy and Matter
  • Scientific Knowledge Assumes an Order and Consistency in Natural Systems

Performance levels

What a student at each level can do with HS-PS1-7. These drive how a cluster spreads difficulty across its items.

Summarised by ScienceIQ from the NYSED Performance Level Descriptions for Physical Science: Chemistry. These are our wording, not the Department’s — the official descriptions are the authority.

L1
NYS Level 1

Identify mathematical representations showing conservation of atoms or mass.

L2
NYS Level 2

Use or complete a mathematical representation showing conservation.

L3
NYS Level 3

Construct a mathematical representation or calculate a conserved quantity.

L4
NYS Level 4

Use mathematical representations to support the claim that atoms and mass are conserved.

Related performance expectations

Generate a cluster for HS-PS1-7

Phenomenon stimulus, connected items across the required types, answer key, rubric and figures drawn deterministically from a structured spec — in the format your students will sit.