Writing Prompts for Properties of Matter
Daniel watched a log burning in a campfire. The next morning he looked for the log but found
only some gray ashes. Daniel exclaimed, “The log has disappeared! There’s nothing left.” How
would you explain what really happened to Daniel? Please give evidence for your explanation.
What type of change in matter is this?
Last night it rained. Today, Grace splashed in puddles all the way to school. On the way home,
Grace looked for the puddles to splash in, but she couldn’t find any. What do you think
happened to the puddles of water? Give a good explanation and evidence to support your
hypothesis. What type of change in matter is this?
Edwin sprinkled ice melt onto an icy sidewalk. He watched the ice melt and wondered why the
ice melt worked. Explain what you think is happening when ice melt is used on icy sidewalks.
Why does it work? How would you test your hypothesis? What type of change in matter is
this?
Mariela accidently dropped her mother’s special vase and broke it. Mariela thought about
gluing the pieces together, but she knew that would look bad. She also knew that some kinds
of changes in matter can be reversed. Is there a way to reverse this change without using glue?
Give evidence to support your hypothesis. What type of change in matter is this?