Properties and Uses of Materials
Line of Development 15
Early to Second Level
Introduction
This section shows examples of
learning activities and pupils’ work to
exemplify standards at early, first and
second level in the Sciences across
Line of Development 15 on the
properties and uses of materials. The
tasks and examples of work are taken
from classes at primaries one, three
and five. The information could be
used to:
 support teachers in planning for
learning and in assessment of pupils’
work
 by schools as a discussion tool when
planning for the experiences and
outcomes.
Primary One pupils in this school chose
materials to make their own sandals.
Primary One Early Level
Background
The primary one teacher in this
podcast describes a task which
was part of the class project on
clothes. The children had
woodkin dolls and a selection of
materials. They were questioned
about suitable clothing for
different weather and activities
as they played.
The children were asked to
consider which materials to
dress the dolls in for rain, going
out to play in the cold etc.
In active play tasks in primaries
1 and 2, the children regularly
select materials suitable to their
task and are able to describe
these using simple language like,
soft, hard and shiny.
The children in primary
one designed tie –dye
t-shirts with accessories
and had a fashion show
for parents.
Primary One –
Clothing Task
The children in the activity discussed
what would be a suitable material for a
warm, sunny day.
Most children working at early level will
be able to:
• use simple language to describe
the properties of materials, for
example, thickness,
waterproofing
• select appropriate materials for
a simple task.
Learning was extended with this child to
include:
• thinking about how more than
one function might be required
of the material
• how some materials are more
effective than others for
particular purposes.
Audio of child’s conversation with the
teacher
Primary 3 First Level
Background
As part of their project on
making materials change the
children were learning about
waterproofing.
The children were presented
with a chip shop owner’s
dilemma at the end of an
animation. He had used shiny
wrapping paper to attract
customers but it had rained, the
colours had run and the paper
was all soggy. Each of the
characters in the story gave their
ideas about what had gone
wrong, leading naturally into a
discussion about properties like
strength, shiny appearance,
waterproofing, shape,
weight/mass, flexibility, colour
and conductance of heat.
The learners were working through a series of lessons where they were in role as a laboratory of
scientists whose job it was to test materials for different purposes. The task deliberately used
materials that were similar so that the answer is not obvious and requires cognitive challenge that
extends the children beyond simple comparisons at early level.
Learning Through
Enquiry
The children were working in
co -operative teams of 3 or 4
and were given opportunities to:
• discuss questions and ideas as
a team,
• share their ideas and thinking
with the whole class,
• explore and test materials for
waterproofing, conduction of
heat, flexibility, colour,
weight/mass,
• make simple predictions,
•Record other thoughts and
ideas,
• make a recommendation on
which material was best based
on their results.
First Level
This child’s work is an illustration of the first
level.
This child is able to:
• select from an extensive range of
materials, matching their physical
properties to a particular function,
• use the results of their
experiments to choose appropriate
materials to solve a practical
challenge,
•make simple predictions,
•other factors are being considered
such as the fact that metal conducts
heat,
•describe their ideas using simple
vocabulary which describes
properties e.g. soggy and thick,
• record results on a table.
Making Floam
Floam is a solid, stretchy modelling
material made from readily available
ingredients.
In this activity the children learn how
the substances used to make floam are
altered during the process.
At second level the children can:
 compare and contrast the original
materials to the new one,
 discuss the changes that occur,
 describe how the changes that
have taken place cannot be easily
reversed.
Audio of child discussing how the
properties of the ingredients are
different to the new material that has
been made.
Glue worksheet
Results for My Glue
1) Before I made my glue I looked on the Zoomsci website to see how to
make it.
2) Next I got the ingredients .
3) Then I mixed them to make my glue.
4) While I waited for the whey to separate, I found a glue to compare mine
with (I used Arladite).
5) Finally i decided on some objects to test my glue with.
To keep my test fair i used the same amount of glue on each object and
left them all to dry for two minutes
Results
Paper
Matchsticks
Pebbles
Rice Krispies
A one pence
My Glue
Stuck together
Stuck together
Fell off
Stuck
Fell off
Arladite
Stuck
Stuck
Stayed on
Stuck
Stayed on
What I learned
I noticed that the glue was very different from the things i made them with
(milk, baking soda and vinegar), it clumped together and was not as runny. My
glue was able to stick light things such as Rice Krispies and matchsticks. The
Arladite stuck all those things together and the heavier objects like the penny
and pebble. This shows Arladite is a much stronger glue.
Primary 5 Second Level
Background
The pupils explored a variety
of chemical changes,
including baking bread and
making new materials such
as floam and glue.
The activities demonstrated
how substances can be
changed to produce new
substances with different
characteristics.
Applying the
Learning
As part of a homework task the
children were asked to make a
glue using instructions from a
website.
They were asked to explore the
quantities used, test their
product, report on their process
and evaluate their findings.
In this second level task the child
can:
• Clearly describe the
steps and process of their
investigation
• Independently decide on
objects to test
• Make comparisons
• Evaluate results and
draw conclusions
Next Steps and
Other Ideas
• Make links to aspects that have
to be planned for and reinforced
across the curriculum e.g.
creativity, enterprise.
• Reinforce the development of
literacy and numeracy skills, the
responsibility of all
practitioners.
• Opportunities to link to other
curricular areas e.g.
Technologies.
• Create Glow groups to share
ideas and results with others.
• Publish findings on websites,
Blogs, Twitter or as podcasts.
Child’s picture created using their own glue.
Properties and Uses of Materials
Line of Development 15
Early to Second Level