Homeschool Science: Exploring Matter
Exploring Matter
Prepare to embark on an exciting homeschool journey as we explore the fantastic world of matter! Throughout this unit, you can independently analyze scale, proportion, and quantity to measure and describe physical quantities. Engaging activities and experiments will help you develop a model to demonstrate that matter is composed of tiny particles that are too small to be seen. You'll also discover that regardless of the changes matter undergoes, its total weight remains constant. It will be a fun and immersive exploration of the fascinating world of matter!
Homeschool Lesson One: Let's Talk About Matter!
Matter is all around us—everything that takes up space and has mass. From the ground beneath our feet to the air we breathe, it's all made up of matter. Picture matter as a collection of building blocks called elements, each with its own unique traits. Regular chemical reactions can't break these elements into other substances.Â
States of Matter
There are several states of matter: solid, liquid, gas, and plasma. These are the four fundamentals that make up our universe and occur naturally. However, other exotic states are accepted by the law of physics, like the "Bose-Einstein condensate" and the "time crystal." These states are less familiar, are not naturally occurring, and require extreme circumstances. However, we'll be focusing on only three of these states.
Solid is a state where an object maintains its shape and fixed volume. Solid particles are packed so tightly that they cannot freely only vibrate. Can solid matter be changed? Yes, but only through force. So, breaking, cutting, or melting can transform the shape or change the state of solid matter.
On the other hand, liquid is fluid that conforms to the shape of any vessel into which it is poured. The particles in a liquid are more easily moved around, allowing them to conform to any container and transform quickly into a solid by freezing. Liquid can become a gas through heating at constant pressure to the substance's boiling point or by reducing pressure at a steady temperature. This process is called evaporation.
Gas molecules have little to no bonds, which allows them to move freely. This means that, similarly to liquids, gas will conform to a container, but unlike liquids, it will expand to fill the container. A gas below its critical temperature is called a vapor. Water is a liquid, solid(ice), gas(water vapor). Water vapor happens through condensation.
The Magic of H20 (Day 2)
Mrs. Moms tip: Start this lesson by reviewing the info from the previous lesson.
Water is the ultimate element, as can be seen in all three states. As a liquid, it can be frozen and made into ice, which is a solid. Water freezes at 32 degrees Fahrenheit, which is zero degrees Celsius. Then, it can revert back to liquid through melting when it reaches 32 degrees. Another way that water can change states is through sublimation, which skips the step of becoming liquid and goes from frozen to gas. This process is seen in dry ice. Deposition is the opposite: it also goes from gas to solid and skips the liquid phase. Finally, the last two condensations occur when a gas turns into a liquid; for instance, when you have a cold can of soda, and it begins to warm up, it creates water vapor(gas) that is then turned into beads of water on the outside of the can. Evaporation happens when a liquid turns to gas below its boiling point.
Experimenting with Sublimation
Dry Ice experimentation: my husband picked this up from a local store. It was about 20 bucks for a 10 lb bag, which is more than we'll need. NUMBER ONE RULE: NEVER TOUCH DRY ICE. Always use tongs. Dry ice is the perfect medium to illustrate the process of sublimation. Watching the solid transform into gas is like magic. We conducted three experiments using dry ice.
Spooky season is around the corner, so let's fog it up! Grab a bowl or any container, fill it with dry ice, and pour over some boiling water. The two varying temps make for a spectacular sight, creating a dense fog that's sure to delight.
Grab a used water bottle and fill it with dry ice, pour in some water, place a balloon over the opening, and watch it fill with gas. How big can you make your balloon? Watch out because it might pop!
Let's blow bubbles. Mix equal parts of dish liquid and water into a bowl. Then, grab your water bottle, hose, or pop tube. (we had a couple on hand from a previous bday celebration) and they worked brilliantly. Add dry ice to the bottle and carefully pour in hot water. Then, stick the tube into the water bottle and the other end into your soapy bowl. Watch the bubbles form!
Resources and Downloadable Content
This lesson is part of a unit. You can have your student read this aloud independently and review it together using the attached slideshow. Then, have them complete the attached worksheet.
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