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Classroom Investigation 01: The Fire Triangle Teacher Guide
This teacher guide supports teachers in facilitating a 5E investigation where students conduct four experiments to observe impact of limiting one of each side of the fire triangle – oxygen, fuel, and heat – to understand the needs of fire. Then, using a metal screen, students look at a candle flame to observe combustion.
Context
The fire triangle is critical to fire fighting and fire investigation. Fire professionals must understand what fire needs to burn and how eliminating one leg of the fire triangle can extinguish fire. Why do fire fighters use water to put out a fire? What leg of the fire triangle are they eliminating?
Just like a candle flame can leave a soot pattern on a ceramic tile, fire investigators look for these types of patterns on walls, furniture, and other parts of structures to help them determine the point of origin of the fire, or the location where the fire started. Knowing where are started helps investigators understand how it was caused.
Questions
- What are the three things a fire must have to burn?
Problem to be solved
- Firefighters and fire investigators need to know basic fire science to both fight fires and to uncover the source of a burn.
Be sure to explore the video showing this classroom investigation as well as the student guide.
