Material World
Unit Planner
(to accompany
the Integrated
unit of work for
materials
planner
Useful websites
1. Engage
(Intro
lesson)
Focus
Activity
Details and purpose of activities
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/scienceclips/ages/7_8/characteristics_materials_fs.shtml
http://www.active-maths.co.uk/words/moving/science_words.html
http://www.education.vic.gov.au/studentlearning/teachingresources/science/scicontinuum/sciglossa
rylz.htm#synthetic
What are
materials?
Observations in
the outdoor
(playground)
classroom etc
of what
materials we
can see
To give children
opportunities
to see different
materials
Supporting
activity-Read
the three little
pigs and look at
why the houses
were built of
different
materials and
what worked.
Brainstorm what children think materials are.
Write a word wall of materials where children suggest materials
Students take clipboards and a sheet and write down any materials they can see- anything they can see,
smell, touch or taste.
As a whole class activity, organise students so they can handle/investigate the materials and describe
how the materials feel. They can use their own words or choose from a list on display. The activity
develops sensory experiences and leads into developing their general and science-specific language as
they describe the properties of materials. Note the appropriateness of the description.
How do
we classify
materials?
From
observations
classify the
materials into
categories-to
illustrate the
wide variey of
different
materialsnatural and
processed
To enable
children to
classify and see
the way
materials can
be used
Create a
classification
table and based
on discussion
of categories.
Suggest:
Manmade/Nat
ural
Purpose what
we can use it
for
Appearancehard/soft
Etc
Make up a big classification chart to see where materials belong.
Materials –describing them and classifying them
Grouping and classifying to appreciate the variety of materials look at diff ways to classify and start to
investigate property examples of ways to classify the materials:
Composition( material in which they are made)
Function(what can you do with it)
Location (where it is found)
Perception (ie characterisctics, hard,soft, liquid etc
Made by (ie humans or occurring naturally)
Questions to help classify the materials:
What happens when the material or substance is heated?
Does it dissolve?
What happens when you hit it with a hammer?
(End up with a classification chart and children classify the materials they have found into the chart.
Where do
materials
come
from?
Engage
Various
uses of
materials
Matter
Bring in a range of items,- Gather items ie steel wool, plastic bag, sand, apple, potato, plastic drinking
detectives
cup, nail, a brick, a piece of wood, knitting wool, milk bottle top, piece of cotton cloth and a newspaper
Children try to
Powerpoint on matter, guess what the materials are.
work out where
these items
come from.
Gloves-bring in a range of gloves and get children to test them ie with water- come up with some
How materials
observations and how different materials would be used for different circumstances
are used for
(Tactile learning opportunity to support Session 2-gripping gloves)
different things Collect-gloves-ski, garden, washing up, latex, wool, leather, evening ,oven etc
and behave
Students discuss:
differently
What might this glove be used for?
What is this glove made of?
Conduct an
Why do you think it is made of this material?
investigation
What else could the glove be used for?
and record
observations
Follow up with
the glove guide
where children
draw gloveslabelling
materials used
to make the
glove, usage
and description
of the glove.
Explore
Identify
fair testing
Look at the
fairness of
testing-Change,
(Activity)
By raising questions for investigation or as a consequence of eliciting ideas. Fair test investigation focus
on solubility, hardness, strength and water repelling agents of materials.
measure, same
(Cows Moo
Softly)
Pg 71 primary
connections
General planning (does it identify the types of variables in the investigation such that it was a fair test
and that a result could be found)
Specific planning deciding the number and values of the independent variable to be used and the values
of the variables were kept the same.
Looking at
the
suitability
of
materials
for certain
usages
Ie the
conditions
need to be the
same for each
material,
Rotting;
Using plastic containers students put into moist soil;
1. Apple core
2. Piece of paper
3. Plastic bag piece
4. Piece of fabric
Using soil students place the items in the soil and moisten then put the lid on. Students make
predictions of what they think will happen and create a record sheet. The containers are left for
a week, maybe more and observations are kept as to whether their samples are rotting.
Conclude results.
How
material
change
with
different
elements
Rusting and
rotting
experiment 12
From Out of
the Box 10+
page 38/39
Test 5 paper
Brainstorm
what materials
will rot and
what will not
decompose.
Test theoryCreate a record
of what is
happening to
their rotting
experiment.
Need 5 plastic cups, paper clips and vinegar and a piece of steel wool
Absorbenc
y of
materials
using fair
testing
clips in 5 cupspredict what
will happenconclude
results at the
end of the
week
Leak, soak
repel
Add to word wall words more characteristics of materials
How materials are affected by weight/ water etc, Strength and absorbency
Student investigation ie how shape and material affects strength in construction
Absorbency of fabrics
Scientific investigations and report writing
Leak, soak
repel
Absorbency of
materials
Looking at
materials for
specific
purposes
Key questions:
Which
materials
soaked up a lot
of water?
Which
materials didn’t
soak up water?
Which is more
Obtain five different materials. Ie cotton, nylon etc Plan, carry out and report on an investigation of the
fabrics in order to answer the question: “ Which fabrics are best for keeping us dry?”
Part 1-The absorbency of fabric- spill some water and suggest ways we could clean it up. Ask for
suggestions as to what could clean it up to spark an interest, actually spill some water on the table this
gives the prelude to the next lesson as materials have been suggested
Part 2-The list of materials is addressed. Produce samples of these materials ie squares of fabric
towelling, rag, cotton, taffeta etc. Feel the materials and discuss them before testing the materials with
the water. Students limit materials to what they think will be affective about 5. Use materials not 100%
sure of ie not a sponge. List materials on board ie linen teatowel, cotton teatowel, face washer, other
materials.
Take a vote on what students think will absorb the best.
Part 3- plan out the investigation
What do we want to find out?
How could we find out?
What will we need to do it?
effective to
absorb water?
Could use
observation
sheet in
Primary
connections
resource sheet
4 material
world
Explain
(formative
assessment)
Elaborate and
Evaluate
Selecting
suitability
of
materials
Investigati
on of the
use of
plastics
Investigati
on of
insulation
Material
matters
Further ideas
Part 4- buckets, jugs, containers made available.Samples of fabrics, each group tests their materials/
fabrics children discuss findings and share. If no one has suggested ask the question how do we know
how much the fabric has absorbed and should be time it, size of cloths. Suggest a timer and texta mark
on the container to show how much they have absorbed. Suggest a retest involving all these criteria for
deeper understanding and fairer results. Time them, same size and mark container. List resources
Part 5- each group test a material using the above criteria. Mark container- count to five suggest
mathematical measure of container for more accurate results. Use a ruler to measure the difference
Snap, stretch or
tear
experiment ??
Bags of fun
Session 1
Page 30 Primary connections Material world
Puzzling
plastics
Page 41 of Primary connections material world-involving concepts of biodegradability.
Lesson 6
Primary
connections pg
47
Design a
wardrobe for a
particular
situation
Looking at the insulation properties of a variety of materials.
Observation, recording and interpreting results
Need 5 bag calico, thick plastic, paper, thick fabric, thin plastic
Carrying dilemma resource sheet 6
See example pg39 primary connections for example
Understanding of material and their insulating, repelling properties.
Ie Winter outfit, Summer outfit etc
Clarify and consolidate ideas for/by communication to others
This activity aims to encourage students to identify and discuss the physical properties of a
range of materials and suggest on the basis of the properties identified how they could be best
used.
Collect and introduce the class to a range of natural and processed materials. Avoid presenting
them with easily identifiable objects designed for a specific purpose (such as a building brick).
Encourage the class to identify a number of individual properties associated with each material
and then invite them to select a material best suited for a specific task.
For example, assemble a number of small pipes or tubes made from the following materials:
glass, PVC, cardboard, metal, ceramic and bamboo. After the students have discussed and
identified the different properties of each material, have them work in groups to identify the
best material to perform the following tasks/purposes: transport cold water, transport boiling
water, make tent poles, hold electricity wires, construct playground climbing equipment,
construct packaging for sending mail and make a fire.
Encourage students to discuss and identify the properties which make the material well suited
to the task. Students could also construct a list of other natural and processed materials well
suited to perform a required task.
Another approach to this type of activity is presented in the PEEL vignette Why don’t we make
underwear out of glass?
Challenge existing ideas and collect evidence/data for analysis
Collect a range of plastic and paper bags suitable for collecting supermarket shopping. Cut a
similar size strip from each and devise ways of measuring the force needed for them to break.
For example, attach a bucket using a length of string and compare the numbers of cups of sand
required in the bucket before the strip breaks. Encourage students to draw a simple picture
graph to represent the number of cups required to break each strip. Discuss the advantages and
disadvantages of each of the materials tested.
Concepts





Objects in our surroundings are made of substances or materials that have different
physical properties and characteristics.
Materials can be described using a variety of general and science-specific terms.
Some materials are natural whereas others are processed (or synthetic).
Different kinds of materials are used for different purposes.
Changes to materials can occur.
Exploration activities
How can we sort the things around us?
In small groups, students use criteria such as colour, size, shiny or hard to place objects into groups.
Students report their decisions to the class and discuss reasons for their grouping.
Teachers and students label objects with the name of the material that they have been constructed from
and use appropriate words such as shape, size, colour, shiny, dull, hard, soft, rough, smooth or magnetic
to describe the appearance, texture and other properties of the material. They discuss their decisions.
In pairs or in small groups students make collages or poster displays of pictures from magazines of
objects made of similar materials or used for similar purposes. Categories of items that could be used for
sorting could be clothing, transport, foods, or buildings. Students label each different material and
describe why it is suitable for its particular purpose
Which is which? Natural and processed materials
Introduce students to concepts of natural and processed materials.
Each student selects an object and predicts what material(s) it is made of, where the material(s) comes
from and what happens to the material for the object to be made. Students could show their
understanding of the production process with a series of labelled drawings.
Prepare a class display of objects. Draw or photograph each using a digital camera or assist students in
importing pictures from a simple picture dictionary. Ask students to state what material each object is
made from. Help develop their understanding of why certain objects are made of particular materials.
Do materials change over time?
Students explore what happens to water when it is placed in a shallow container and left for several
days. The class use a digital camera to record changes. Ask them to explain what happened referring to
their observations.
Students draw on their experience to describe what happens to ice cream or ice blocks in hot weather.
Ask whether the melted substance is still ice cream or ice. Explain the difference in language used to
describe water in its solid state and water in its liquid state. Introduce melting and freezing in this
context.
Design an investigation into what happens to uneaten lunches and milk drinks which are left in lunch
wrappers or lunch boxes for a period of days. The class uses a digital camera to record changes. Students
monitor the changes and discuss them as a class.
With assistance students design investigations into what happens to different materials if they are buried
or exposed to the air over several weeks. They discuss why some materials take a long time to break
down or change.
Students discuss which materials can be recycled or reused rather than left as rubbish or litter and
investigate what happens to the ‘waste’ from their classroom, school or home.