DE Science Elementary
“5-Minute Prep” For
Matter
States of Matter > Three States of Matter
Three States of Matter – The Big Ideas
•
•
•
•
•
Matter can exist in three states: solid, liquid, or
gas.
The state of matter depends on its
temperature.
Ice is water in its solid state.
Water is a common liquid.
Steam is water in its gas state.
Three States of Matter – Prior Knowledge
Students have been interacting with matter since
birth. It will help for students to use the Fundamental, What’s the Matter, to review three
states of matter. It will be helpful if students can
list common:
• solids.
• liquids.
• gases.
Three States of Matter – Common Misconceptions
• Materials can only exhibit properties of one state
of matter.
– Reality: Materials can change between states of
matter, i.e. water, ice, and steam.
• Expansion of matter is due to the expansion of
particles rather than the increased particle
spacing.
– Reality: When matter is heated it expands due to the
vibrating of molecules, loosening bonds, and
increasing space between adjacent atoms or
molecules.
Three States of Matter – Using DE Science Content
When you close this presentation, you can review the following
recommended resources for Three States of Matter.
•
•
•
•
Exploration: Three States of Matter
Reading Passage: Water on Earth
Video: The States of Water
Video: Types of Matter
Use the PowerPoint version of this presentation for hyperlinks to
these resources or you can get to them through the browser
or search feature.
Three States of Matter – Instructional Ideas
• After reading Water on Earth , have the students
brainstorm and list other places and/or times of
the year on Earth where water is found as a
solid, liquid, and gas.
Three States of Matter – Instructional Ideas
• Use a computer lab to have each student or
pairs of students complete the Exploration:
Three States of Matter.
– Ask students to describe the water cycle in a
paragraph, using the terms solid, liquid, and gas in
the description of the water cycle.
State standards:
If you wish to review your state standards
regarding life cycle of plants, click here to get to
the curriculum standards search feature of DES.
http://discoveryeducation.com/forward/curriculum.cfm
You can click on any standard to see what
resources are available to teach it.
Additional Information:
For additional content, check the Extend section
within the concept.