Higher:
Is able to make predictions and test different materials
Middle:
Can describe the properties of some simple materials
Lower:
Is able to identify materials that are good for different uses
Lesson Recap Starter: Think back to the last lesson. What can cardboard be used to make? Why are boxes made out of cardboard?
Lesson Starter: Why is a sponge good to use for cleaning a car?
Ask the big question - why is a sponge so good for cleaning a car? Children to think, pair, share and suggest ideas.
Presentation - Starter Slide.
Answer questions and take part in activities during the presentation.
Stop the presentation at the relevant slides: Talk Partners; AfLs; Songs.
Take part in the Choral Response Questions activity (see Assessment section) after the Keywords/Rocket Words slide.
Literacy - Complete Handout page 2 about different items in the house - can children find the right words to describe the items and their properties?
Key Concept:
During this unit, each lesson contains a key concept question housed in the '30 Second Challenge' slide. To help children master this content so the knowledge moves from their short term memory to their long term memory, at the beginning of the follow on lesson the question from the previous lesson is revisited.
The questions covered during this unit include:
1. What can cardboard be used to make? Why are boxes made out of cardboard?
2. Describe the properties of glass and ceramic.
3. What materials are flexible? Give an example of a flexible material and how it is used.
4. What is an opaque material? What is a transparent material? What is a translucent material?
5. What are Wilbur and Orville Wright famous for?
6. What does the word absorb mean? How can you test to see if a material is absorbent?
Presentation
Expert Film: Peter Pointen explains how he uses a tile cutter to cut through ceramic.
How we deliver the Gatsby Benchmarks:
2 - Learning from career and labour market information: Pop along to Developing Experts career’s zone to find out about jobs in your area.
4 - Linking curriculum learning to careers: This unit showcases careers in the people who work with materials. Access our 360° virtual work tours.
7 - Encounters with Further and Higher Education: Pop along to Developing Experts career’s zone to find out about training providers in your area.
Presentation - Expert Film
Properties of Materials
Watch the lesson assignment film for more help with this activity.
The children will be looking at the materials (a paperclip, a sponge, a paper, a tennis ball or similar, a rubber band, a pencil) and testing them to see: Does it twist? Does it bend? Does it soak up water? Does it bounce? Can it be squashed?
They should complete the table on the Handout with ticks and crosses.
Properties of Materials
Paperclip
sponge
paper
tennis ball or similar
rubber band
pencil
small cup a water
These can be arranged around the room or put as a pile on each table.
Handout
Quiz
With their talk partners, the children are to go through the quiz at the end of the presentation and answer the questions.
Quiz in presentation
Watch children and talk to them as they carry out their observations and sorting. Can children identify the difference between translucent, transparent and opaque materials?
Can children use a magnifier to make simple observations about an object?
Are the children able to recognise properties such as hardness, strength and flexibility?
Can children make comparisons between materials?
Quizzes available in pupil zone.
Unit knowledge organiser and test available in documents area.
A strong material to make a table is...
A long-lasting material to make car tyres is...
Magazines are made from paper because...
A sponge is an... (absorbent)...material.
The Science Behind the Science
Transparent materials can be seen straight through, like glass. Translucent materials can be seen through, but not as clearly as glass, such as a green plastic bottle. Opaque materials cannot be seen through at all, like wood.
Opaque materials can cast the strongest shadows as they let the least light through them. A perfectly transparent material will not cast any shadow because it allows all of the light travel through it.
To describe the simple physical properties of a variety of everyday materials.
The study of the properties, behaviours and uses of materials, both natural and human-made; the origins of human-made materials and how they are manipulated to suit a purpose.
The Australian Curriculum - Sorting and grouping materials on the basis of observable properties such as colour, texture and flexibility
Identifying and classifying
Cross Curricular Link for Mathematics: Measurement: Ask pupils to describe the lengths and heights [for example, long/short, longer/shorter, tall/short, double/half] of the materials they are exploring.
Grade 2 - Matter.
Observation describes the basic characteristics of common objects, identifying common materials in life, knowing common forces. Chinese - Science Inquiry - Ask a question Under the guidance of teachers, I can ask questions of interest from the comparison of specific phenomena and things.
