States of Matter (Ch. 8)

In All About Solids, Liquids and Gases, young students will be introduced to the three common forms of matter. They'll learn that all things are made up of tiny particles called atoms and that the movement of these particles determines the form that matter takes. In solids, the particles are packed tightly together and move very little. The particles in liquids are more spread out and move faster. In a gas, the particles are spread even further apart and move even faster. Kids will also discover how matter can change from one form into another when energy is added or taken away. The terms melting point, freezing point and boiling point are introduced and clearly explained. Includes many real-life examples and colorful graphics, along with a fun, hands-on activity that demonstrates how different liquids evaporate at different rates.

Everything that has weight and occupies space is called matter. All matter is made from particles called atoms and molecules.

This matter can be classified into three states:-

Solid -- The molecules of solids are tightly packed, usually in a regular pattern. Solids do not flow, since their molecules are strongly attracted to each other.

Liquid -- Molecules in liquids are close together but not necessarily touching each other. There is no pattern as they randomly move about in all directions.

Gas -- Gases are made up of very loosely packed molecules that are largely spread out moving all over the flask.

Watch this video and understand about states of matter with the help of this animated learning module for kids.

This video is used by docents at CMA to show how glass can change from solid to fluid and back again. The artists at Jason Antol Studios in Columbus, Ohio, graciously performed the demonstrations on camera.
The 10-second on-screen countdowns allow visitors a chance to answer each question.
As used in the exhibition Chihuly Illuminated, the video is silent. Here it's presented with background music.

Music: Hey, Soul Sister - Train

Did you know that water is the only thing on earth that naturally occurs as a solid, liquid and gas?

This 5 minute video gives an entertaining and visual explanation of the three main states of matter and describes how water constantly moves through these states in the natural water cycle.

Music: In The End -Linkin Park

Quick, think of three words to describe yourself. TIME'S UP! What did you think of? Chances are you thought of descriptive words that we call Properties. In this episode of Crash Course Kids, Sabrina talks about how properties help us understand objects.

Even an empty lunch sack is useful to science. You can examine it and come up with some traits. In this episode, Sabrina chats about things like malleability, hardness, conductivity, and magnetism. And all with lunch!

Have you ever thought about all the different kinds of groups you’re a part of? Like, there’s the friends you hang out with and your family, your hockey team, your Crash Course fan club, and that’s just for starters! And even though these groups are totally different, in each of them there’s something that all its members have in common.

We've learned that all objects---that is, all things made of /matter/--- have properties, qualities that make them different from one another.

Like, the metal water bottle we had in our lunch bag was a good conductor of heat, and the fruit strip was more malleable than the potato chip. Just like groups of people have major things in common, so do different materials. So how does that work? How can we group materials by their properties?

What exactly can we tell about an unknown substance by it's properties. We already know that a substance is matter that’s made of one kind of atom or molecule, and that has specific properties and that some substances are elements, which means they can’t be broken down into other substances through physical changes or chemical reactions. We also know that we can group substances and elements by their properties like we found that all of the metal things from the bottom of my backpack were shiny and attracted to a magnet. So metals have high reflectivity and magnetivity. What else do we know about metals?

We've talked about mixtures and solutions, solutes and solvents, but what about things that can't be undone? What about Chemical Changes? Would it surprise you to know that baking a cake is a Chemical Change? Or striking a match? In this episode of Crash Course Kids, Sabrina talks to us about how to tell if you have a chemical change on your hands.

You will learn about "Physical and Chemical Changes" in this video. A physical change is a change in which the appearance or the form of a substance changes, but the substance remains the same.

Ice on melting changes into water. Water on boiling changes into water vapour. Even though there are changes taking place, all the products formed are still forms of water. Hence, this is a physical change. If you take a glass plate and break it again and again into smaller pieces, they all are still parts of a plate. Hence, this is also a physical change.

A chemical change is a change in which a substance changes. A chemical reaction takes place and a new substance is formed.

Have you ever seen an old car lying somewhere for a very long time? Over time, chemical reactions take place on the car resulting in rusting. This is a chemical change. Also, when we light a matchstick, combustion reaction takes place. This is a chemical reaction and hence, the burning of a matchstick is a chemical change.

Why does ice float? You might not think about it, but this special property of frozen water is what makes your iced tea tinkle and makes a lot of aquatic life possible. Hank gets in touch with his inner Olaf to explain the wonder that is ice.

Water is a special substance for several reasons, and you may have noticed an important one right in your cold drink: ice. Solid ice floats in liquid water, which isn't true for most substances. But why? George Zaidan and Charles Morton explain the science behind how how hydrogen bonds keep the ice in your glass (and the polar ice caps) afloat.

The Mpemba Effect with Jasper Wrinkleskins

In this video, created for the 2012 Hermes competition for the Royal Society of Chemists, Dr. Doug Corrigan explains the solution to a question that has plagued mankind for over 2000 years - why does hot water freeze faster than cold water?

Salt dissolves in water; oil does not. But why? You can think of that glass of water as a big, bumpin' dance party where the water molecules are always switching dance partners -- and they'd much rather dance with a salt ion. John Pollard explains how two chemistry principles, energetics and entropy, rule the dance floor.