Duration: 90 minutes
SPIRIT Skills:
- Critical thinking
- Curiosity sense of wonder
Brief Description:
In the science part, students learn about the three states of matter and the names of the different phase transitions through concrete situations and experiences. (see PowerPoint for the different situations and experiences)
Each state of matter is visually represented using the particle model.
The learned content is synthesized through a board diagram that the students copy.
How does this develop particular SPIRIT skills:
Wondering (This taps into their sense of wonder; students are amazed that water is not lost, but transformed into another state of matter.)
What do we want to achieve regarding SPIRIT skill development (student understanding and/or behaviour)?
Wondering (e.g., “How do these particles move in different states of matter?”)
Children engage in wondering by becoming curious about how particles behave in different states of matter. The concrete experiences and visual representations spark questions about the world around them, which leads them to explore and seek answers. Behaviour:
- Asking questions about the particles, such as “Why do particles move differently in solid, liquid, and gas?” or “What happens to the particles when something melts?”
- Showing curiosity by pointing out examples of different states of matter in their everyday lives (e.g., ice melting into water or water vapor rising from a kettle).
- Expressing surprise or excitement when they see the particle model and realize how it represents real-world phenomena.
Academic/Curriculum Objective connection
To describe some natural phenomena related to temperature: expansion and contraction, melting and solidification, evaporation and condensation. To describe gas, liquid, solid.
Materials and tools needed for implementation
PowerPoint with photos of the different phenomena’s ice cubes, mirror, electric kettle, etc.
Preparation notes
PowerPoint and worksheet.
Guided Questions
Wondering: Can you make water disappear? What happens to the water when it evaporates?
Stage Debriefing Questions (Optional)
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Tips and Tricks for dealing with stage challenges
- Consider the students’ prior knowledge and personal experiences. It is essential to build on these.
- Use concrete materials (e.g., a solidified candle, water vapor and condensation from a kettle) or highly visual materials that clearly show the different states and transitions. You can also use “moving materials” to illustrate the processes, such as a time-lapse of a candle melting and then solidifying.