Activities 1 and 2
Work can continue over two class periods. Say, “Matter can change from one state to another and today we are going to look at the phase changes of water.” Have students work with a partner to answer these questions:
- “What is water called when it is a solid?” (ice, a glacier, an iceberg, etc.)
- “What is water called when it is a liquid?” (water)
- “What is water called when it is a gas?” (fog, clouds, water vapor, mist, steam, etc.)
List these questions on the board; then call on students to answer the questions.
This group work may be difficult if students have not had previous experience designing investigations. You will need to move from group to group, asking questions and offering suggestions as needed. Note: If you feel students need more experience, the following activities can be done as a whole class, but require more time.
Divide the class into four groups:
- Group 1, Liquid to a Solid: Students design an investigation where water is changed from a liquid to a solid. Have students decide on a procedure (write it down), gather the materials needed, and carry out the investigation. Once the investigation is finished, a reporter should be designated to explain the investigation to the class. (Students need to freeze water.) All students in the group need to write a paragraph and make a drawing, explaining the difference between water as a liquid and a solid. This investigation illustrates the freezing of water.
- Group 2, Solid to a Liquid: Students design an investigation where water is changed from a solid to a liquid. Have students decide on a procedure (write it down), gather the materials needed, and carry out the investigation. Once the investigation is finished, a reporter should be designated to explain the investigation to the class. (Students could let an ice cube melt by setting it in the Sun or by heating it.) CAUTION: Teacher supervision is needed if students use a hot plate or microwave, and students should wear goggles. All students in the group need to write a paragraph and make a drawing, explaining the difference between water as a solid and a liquid. This investigation illustrates the melting of frozen water (ice).
- Group 3, Liquid to a Gas: Students design an investigation where water is changed from a liquid to a gas. Have students decide on a procedure (write it down), gather the materials needed, and carry out the investigation. Once the investigation is finished, a reporter should be designated to explain the investigation to the class. (Students could let the liquid evaporate by placing it in the Sun or by boiling it.) CAUTION: Teacher supervision is needed if students use a hot plate, and students should wear goggles. All students in the group need to write a paragraph and make a drawing, explaining the difference between water as a liquid and a gas. This investigation illustrates evaporation of water.
- Group 4, Gas to a Liquid: Students design an investigation where water is changed from a gas to a liquid. Have students decide on a procedure (write it down), gather the materials needed, and carry out the investigation. Once the investigation is finished, a reporter should be designated to explain the investigation to the class. (Note: (a) Students could illustrate condensation by putting ice in a can or clear plastic cup, adding water, and watching for water droplets to appear on the outside of the can or clear plastic cup. (b) They could also cover a small amount of water in a bowl with plastic wrap and set the bowl in the Sun. Soon water droplets will appear on the inside of the plastic wrap. (c) They could also hold up a mirror and breathe on it. Droplets of water from the water vapor in the student’s breath will condense on the mirror.) All students in the group need to write a paragraph and make a drawing, explaining the difference between water as a gas (water vapor in the air) and a liquid. This investigation illustrates condensation.
This group work will take some groups longer than others because of possible overnight wait time.
Let students participate in a Matter Suitcase Scavenger Hunt where they use the worksheet provided to fill all the pockets in the suitcase (S-3-6-3_Matter Suitcase.docx). Say, “Fill each pocket in the suitcase with a word naming the matter for which properties are described on the suitcase pocket. For example, if the pocket were labeled ‘red,’ what could you write in the box?” (apple, a student’s shirt, blood, etc.)
Activity 3
All investigations, drawings, and paragraphs should have been completed at this point. Reporters from each of the four groups in Activity 2 should give oral presentations, detailing the investigations and spotlighting water’s phase changes. Students should be encouraged to ask questions and/or make comments about the reports. Say, “All matter, whether solid, liquid, or gas, can be changed but is never destroyed. It never disappears. It just changes to another state of matter.”
Have students fold a piece of printer paper into four rectangles. Then have students work with a partner discussing water’s phase changes and making drawings illustrating freezing, melting, condensation, and evaporation. Have students label each drawing with the correct vocabulary word. Model how this is done and give them an example to follow.
As a review, have students watch the “Magic School Bus Wet All Over” video, stopping at appropriate times in the video to work with a partner to label the phase changes illustrated (such as water’s change from a liquid to a gas during evaporation, etc.).Video links include the following:
Extension:
- Students who might need an opportunity for additional learning can read The Magic School Bus at the Waterworks by Joanna Cole and discuss the phase changes with you or an aide.
- Students who are going beyond the standards can look up information on the water cycle, create a visual presentation labeling the phase changes of water, and write a paragraph explaining where melting and freezing occur within the water cycle.
