Strand C, Properties of and Changes in Matter: how solids, liquids…
Strand C, Properties of and Changes in Matter: how solids, liquids and gases change when heated or cooled.
The Ontario Science and Technology, Grades 1–8 outcome for Grade 5 says: “Strand C, Properties of and Changes in Matter: how solids, liquids and gases change when heated or cooled.” This Fieldbook unit teaches it hands-on, with everyday materials and a printable teacher guide and student sheet for every lesson.
Hot and Cold: Particles on the Move Grade 6
Why tires go soft in winter, why sidewalks have gaps, and how a thermometer knows. Five lessons on what heating and cooling do to the particles in everything around us.
- Why do bike tires go soft in winter? 45–60 min
Students stretch a balloon over a bottle, move it between warm and ice water, and find out what happens to air particles when they cool down. Then they explain a cyclist's 'flat' tire on the first cold morning.
- Why does food colouring spread faster in hot water? 45–60 min
Two cups, two drops, one race. Students drop food colouring into warm and ice-cold water at the same moment, then explain what the moving colour tells us about particles they can't see.
- Why do sidewalks have cracks on purpose? 50–60 min
Students loosen a stuck jar lid with warm water, then go on a gap hunt around the school to find and measure the joints engineers build into sidewalks, walls and railings. They explain why solid things need room to grow and shrink.
More Ontario Grade 5 science outcomes we teach
Every Ontario Grade 5 science curriculum outcome we teach
Every unit matched to Ontario's curriculum · All places and curricula
Three full lessons, free
Make a free account and download any three Fieldbook lessons as printable PDFs. No card needed.