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Dissolving Materials in Water
Objectives
- To understand that certain materials will dissolve when mixed with water.
- To recognise that certain materials do not dissolve in water - they are insoluble.
- To discover that some materials appear to dissolve, but simply mix with the water.
Resources
Cambridge Primary Science Book 3 | Water | Variety of soluble and insoluble materials | Filter paper or coffee filters
Today's Lesson
Main Activity
Remind your child of the previous lesson where they carried out an experiment to dissolve salt in water.At this point, you may wish to watch the following video to prepare for the investigation in today’s lesson.
Explain that today, they are going to test a variety of different materials to see whether they dissolve in water or not; for example: rice, coffee, tea, flour, icing sugar, powder paint, sand.
Set up a table where they can carry out this experiment, and allow them to place a quantity of each material into a bowl of water and stir it to see whether it dissolves or not. Discuss with your child how they will make this experiment a fair test.
If a material looks like it has dissolved, ask your child to then pour the liquid through some filter paper. Certain materials, for example, powder paint and flour, look like they have dissolved, but they do not pass through the filter paper with the liquid; the solid is left behind. Therefore, the paint has not dissolved, it has merely coloured the water, as each powder granule is in suspension in the liquid. Such materials are therefore insoluble but have created a mixture with the water.
Then help your child to create a list of soluble and insoluble materials.