Look at a cotton sock and a plastic lunch box. Which one bends easily? Which one would you use to keep soup inside? Why do you think they are made of different materials?
Today's words: a property is what a material is like, such as bendy, see-through or strong. To compare is to test the same thing on different materials and notice how they differ.
Think about the sock and the lunch box. What do you think would happen if we dripped water on each one?
We will test four materials: card, plastic, cotton and foil.
Watch each strip being held out from one end. Which ones flop down? Can bending tell them all apart?
In four minutes, which strip will the water creep furthest along?
This is how the water race works. One end of each strip goes in a dish of water. The water soaks into the strip and creeps along it. Nothing floats or sinks. After four minutes we measure how far the wet part has reached. The strip with the longest wet part wins.
Say your prediction: which strip will the water creep furthest along, and why?
In your group, run the water race the way we showed. Follow the steps on the card below.
Jot your four numbers on the scrap note so your group keeps them. Be ready to share them for the class chart. Talk about what you notice.
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