Everything around us is matter, and matter comes in three common states: solid, liquid and gas. A solid keeps its own shape, a liquid flows and takes the shape of its container, and a gas spreads out to fill whatever space it is in. Third graders usually know the easy cases, such as a rock, milk and the air, but they stumble on tricky ones. Sand, salt and flour pour, so they seem like liquids, yet each tiny grain keeps its own shape, so they are solids.
Honey flows slowly, but it is still a liquid. Wind is moving air, so it is a gas. On this sheet each material is named in a short sentence and the child writes its state, with no choices to pick from. Building Confidence uses everyday materials, On Level adds materials that pour, and Challenge Me includes the tricky ones. Ask your child what happens when you pour it, squeeze it or leave it open.
What your child will learn
Sort materials into solids, liquids, and gases
Use shape and flow as evidence
Explain why sand and salt are solids
Tell that air and wind are gases
NGSS standard: 2-PS1-1
Worked example
Salt pours like a liquid, but each grain keeps its own shape and size, so salt is a solid.
Common mistake
Calling anything that pours a liquid without looking at one grain or piece.
Helpful hint
Ask three questions: does it keep its shape, does it flow, does it spread out to fill the space?