← Back to course
Matter Lab 6-8 / Week 02 / Wednesday
3/6
Week 02 · Solid, Liquid, Gas

Wednesday

Bench Lab: Shape, volume and squash
// The three states of matter and the particles behind them
⏱ about 20 min

Wednesday: Bench Lab: Shape, Volume and Squash

Rocket lines up a tall glass, a wide bowl and a measuring cup on the Bench. "Same water, three containers," he says.

"And then?" Raven asks. "Then we see if any of it goes missing," Rocket says, pouring 200 milliliters into the glass.

Raven holds up two zip bags, one sealed with air inside and one sealed with water. "I want to squeeze these."

Nova hovers between the bags, her light flicking from one to the other. "Predict first," she says. "Which one will give?"

Rocket presses the air bag and it shrinks under his palm. He presses the water bag and it only bulges sideways.

"What do you notice?" Raven asks, already writing. "The air squashed. The water just moved."

Rocket pours the water back into the measuring cup. "Still 200," he says. "Nothing went missing."

Your mission

Today you test three ideas from the particle model. A liquid keeps its volume but changes shape. A solid keeps both. A gas squashes.

Write a prediction for each test before you do it. Then record exactly what you see.

  • A measuring cup with milliliter marks
  • A tall glass and a wide bowl
  • Two zip bags that seal
  • Two or three ice cubes from the freezer
  • Water
  • A towel for spills
  • Your Bench Log
Safety first
Only water, ice and air go in the bags. Nothing goes in the mouth.
Seal the bags fully before squeezing, and squeeze over the sink or a towel in case one leaks.
Ice cubes come straight from the freezer. Hold them with a towel if your fingers get cold.
Wipe up spills right away. Wash your hands when the lab is done.
  1. Measure 200 milliliters of water in the measuring cup and write it down.
  2. Pour the water into the tall glass. Draw its shape. Pour it into the wide bowl. Draw its shape.
  3. Pour the water back into the measuring cup and read the level. Record it.
  4. Put an ice cube in the tall glass, then in the wide bowl. Record whether its shape changes.
  5. Seal a little air in one zip bag. Press it with your palm and record what happens.
  6. Seal some water in the second zip bag. Press it the same way and record what happens.
  7. Leave one ice cube on a plate at the Bench. Check it every ten minutes and note what you see.
  8. Pour the water down the sink and dry the Bench.
PREDICT BEFORE YOU POUR
  • Read the question.
  • Tap your answer.
You pour 200 milliliters of water from a glass into a bowl and back. What will the cup read?
You move an ice cube from a glass to a bowl. What happens to its shape?
You press a sealed bag of air and a sealed bag of water. Which one squashes smaller?
TestMy predictionWhat I sawState shown
Water in glass, bowl and cup
Ice cube in glass and bowl
Pressing the bag of air
Pressing the bag of water
Ice cube on the plate after 30 minutes

What the lab shows

The water took the shape of each container but came back at the same volume. That is the liquid rule.

The ice cube stayed a cube in every container. That is the solid rule.

The bag of air squashed because gas particles are far apart. Most of a gas is empty space, so pressing pushes the particles closer.

The water bag only bulged, because liquid particles are already in contact. There is no empty space to squeeze away.

The ice cube on the plate slowly turned to liquid. Next week you will measure that change and learn what drives it.

What the lab showsTrue or false?
The water kept its volume when it changed shape.?
The ice cube changed shape to match the bowl.?
The bag of air squashed because gas particles are far apart.?
The bag of water squashed as much as the bag of air.?
WHY THIS EXERCISEYou have now tested all three rows of yesterday's table with your own hands.
The water changed shape but kept its ____.
The bag of ____ squashed smaller when pressed.
Which state did the ice cube show when it stayed a cube in every container? Type one word.
WHY THIS EXERCISEA solid keeps shape and volume: the first line of the particle model.
Draw the water in the tall glass and in the wide bowl. Write 200 milliliters under both drawings.

Excellent lab work. Tomorrow you will read a reference table that tells the state of real elements and when they melt.

← Tuesday