Mixing and Dissolving Materials: Science Background For Teachers
Mixing and Dissolving Materials: Science Background For Teachers
Mixing and Dissolving Materials: Science Background For Teachers
63
MIXING AND DISSOLVING MATERIALS
SATURATED Only a finite amount of solid will dissolve in a liquid and this is
SOLUTIONS dependent on the solid and the temperature. When no more solid will
dissolve the solution is saturated, but generally more will dissolve in
hot than in cold liquid. So if a saturated solution of sugar is made
using hot water, as it cools some of the sugar comes out of solution
and reforms making crystals. This principle is used to grow crystals.
Crystals can also, of course, be made by leaving a salt or sugar solution
and allowing the water to evaporate leaving salt or sugar crystals
behind.
• Working cooperatively.
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MIXING AND DISSOLVING MATERIALS
Key ideas and activities
Mixtures have more (a) Look at and discuss with the children obvious mixtures such as
than one thing in Dolly Mixtures, a jar of mincemeat, mixed vegetables, fruit salad,
them (some may be muesli. Get the children to closely observe and list the
separated by ingredients in the mixtures. Ask the question, ‘Can they be
sieving) separated?’
You will need: Put in a polythene bag Roll out sausage shapes
small spoon and leave to dry
cellulose paste
big spoon
powder paint or
iron oxide
clay - large
8 cm
marble size and mix…
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MIXING AND DISSOLVING MATERIALS
Some materials (a) Present the class as a whole with a wide range of materials to
dissolve in water mix so that there can be a comparative, plenary discussion. Each
others just mix group of children can have a smaller selection to work with.
Include soluble and insoluble materials and get the children to
record what happens each time. Suggest they stir or shake the
mixtures and be patient! This would be a good lead into work on
dissolving.
Good examples are;
Water with sand, sugar, salt, Alka-Seltzer, oil, coffee, lemon juice,
flour;
Vinegar with oil, lemon juice, bicarbonate of soda.
At this stage the amount of each ingredient mixed is not critical
but is used in the case of solids in liquids, 1 teaspoon of solid to
at least 100 cm3 of water to avoid saturation. Keep the various
mixtures for the discussion.
(b) The results of the activity could then be grouped into those
ICT materials that dissolve and those that do not, having discussed
solubility first. In some of these mixings has anything new been
made?
Word processing You could use the concept cartoon on Sandcastles here.
The coffee
The Alka-Seltzer
dissolved and
dissolved and fizzed.
went brown.
There are a variety Discuss this with the children first and get them to suggest the factors
of factors which that affect dissolving from their own experiences such as making a cup
affect dissolving of tea. Get them to suggest a hypothesis, for example; ‘I think that
stirring affects dissolving’ and then plan a way to prove it. This would
make a good investigation or series of small investigations,
eg Investigate Does stirring affect dissolving? This can have particular
reference to fair testing due to the large number of variables that could
be investigated. In this set of quantitative investigations, care should
be taken if using salt, as impurities in the salt often leave the water
cloudy after it has dissolved. Consequently, it is not always clear at
what point the salt dissolves.
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MIXING AND DISSOLVING MATERIALS
90
Time in seconds to dissolve
80
70
60 A graph to show
ICT 50 the time taken for
40 1 teaspoon of sugar to
30 dissolve in 100 cm3 water
Graphing package 20 at 45 °C with different
rates of stirring
10
0
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Time between stirs in seconds
(b) Temperature Repeat activity (a) using hot and cold water.
Suggest one good stir at the beginning or continuous stirring,
otherwise it can take a long time to dissolve the solid and the
temperature of the water will drop.
25 °C 45 °C 30 °C
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MIXING AND DISSOLVING MATERIALS
Time in seconds
25 different temperatures
20
15
10
5
Can you predict how 0
5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60
long it would take
at 5 °C? Temperature in °C
(c) Size of the solid particles For convenience of time, use warm
water and stir. Present the children with one solid in different
forms where the grains are different sizes eg sugar – granulated,
castor, icing, sugar crystals. Let the children look at the solids
with a magnifying glass first and predict which will dissolve the
fastest. Brown sugar contains other substances, so is not the
same as white sugar and not appropriate to use.
2
Icing
• Some solvents
35 time of sugar changes with the
are highly
30 amount of sugar mixed with 100 cm3
flammable and the
25 of water at 55 °C.
room must be well
ventilated. 20
• Polythene bags 15
Can you predict how
are potentially 10
long 4 teaspoons would
dangerous, use 5 take to dissolve?
small ones and
0
supervise closely. 1 2 3 4 5
Number of spoons of sugar
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MIXING AND DISSOLVING MATERIALS
Activity (d) could lead nicely into the following activity, especially if any
of the children put so much solid in the first time that it did not
dissolve! A good investigation for able 10-11 year olds; ‘is there a limit
to the amount of sugar that will dissolve in 100 cm3 of water? Is it the
same for salt?’
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MIXING AND DISSOLVING MATERIALS
Later, at home,
dad said,
I didn’t see her breathe on it.
And I said,
I didn’t see her beard.
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MIXING AND DISSOLVING MATERIALS
*
71
SANDCASTLES
I think that the
tide just washes
them away.
I think that
they are
The sandcastles dissolving.
are melting as
the tide comes in.
MIXING AND DISSOLVING MATERIALS
CONCEPT CARTOONS
73
INTRODUCTION
Each chapter begins with scientific background knowledge appropriate for the
concepts covered in that section and these are intended to help the non-specialist
teacher. There is a suggested vocabulary to introduce to children and a list of
science skills.
Opportunities for the use of ICT to enhance the teaching and learning experience
have been indicated where appropriate.
The activities section always includes a list of safety considerations, and in some
cases additional reference is made to this within the section. It is a good idea to
get into the habit discussing the hazards and risks involved with the whole class,
especially for situations which maybe particularly hazardous.
Teachers should be aware of the useful guide ‘Safe Use of Household and Other
Chemicals’ (Leaflet L5p) produced by the CLEAPSS School Science Service.
However teachers should be aware that this is only available to subscribers to
CLEAPSS.
Cross-curricular Where possible, links to other areas of the curriculum have been made
links and in all cases there are references to the Numeracy Strategy and the
non-fiction Literacy Strategy for England and Wales. In addition, poems from the
star* project have been included. This project on Science, Technology and Reading
is funded by The Design Council, Esso and the Royal Society of Chemistry, with
support from the Institute of Physics and the Association for Science Education.
These poems have been given literacy references in number form only for the age
of the children for whom the science activities are appropriate. This and other
curriculum information can be found detailed on the following website;
www.chemsoc/networks/LearnNet/thats-chemistry.htm
star* Project Science, Technology and Reading is the star* project and includes a unique
collection of poems especially written for it by Michael Rosen. The poems deal
with specific scientific concepts in an everyday context and where appropriate,
some have been included in this book. They are intended as an exciting
introduction to a science lesson, offering the concept in its everyday context, a
iii
INVESTIGATIONS AND SCIENCE ACTIVITIES
Literacy Poetry and stories star* poems have been selected and included for all of the
chapters. In addition, other poems and stories have been suggested in the
resources section on pages xvii-xx, to link particular scientific concepts with the
language curriculum.
INVESTIGATIONS Most of the ideas presented may be carried out in a variety of ways.
AND SCIENTIFIC These include demonstrations by the teacher, investigative and explorative
ACTIVITIES activities and part or whole investigations.
Practical activities such as researching a topic, illustration (eg following instructions
for crystal growing), observation, surveys, learning skills (using a thermometer),
and handling secondary data are not investigations. They are valuable scientific
activities, which may carry specific, skills-based learning intentions. Most of the
time, however, they can be incorporated into investigative and explorative
activities where pupils are encouraged to make increasingly more choices and
decisions for themselves. This is a valuable way of learning scientific and key skills,
and building children’s confidence to eventually carry out a full, independent
investigation.
Investigations involve a set of scientific skills such as identifying a problem or need,
planning the process and equipment, carrying out the task, observing and
recording results and concluding from the results. This is time-consuming, so
children should experience it when it is most appropriate, not all the time.
Suggestions for investigations have been made in the book where they are
particularly suitable.
Not all investigations are of the type where variables are the focus. Scientists carry
out a variety of investigations where the skills of planning, carrying out the task,
recording results and concluding are needed. Whilst the investigation must be
carried out in a scientifically ‘fair’ way, changing maybe one variable, the focus
maybe on another skill, depending on what is appropriate eg pattern finding.
Children should experience a varied diet of investigations. The following give
examples of other different investigation types:
This type of activity presents opportunities for information collecting and handling
using ICT.
DIFFERENTIATION It is generally accepted that most children will be able to carry out a simple whole
investigation independently by the time they leave primary school. Some,
however, will not.
Children gradually develop the skills to do this and investigations can be
differentiated not only by changing the task but also by the amount of teacher
input that is given.
For example, an investigation into the factors that affect dissolving may be
differentiated in many ways:
(1) Limit the number of factors that are investigated for less able children.
(2) When investigating each factor, some children may plan, choose apparatus
etc for themselves, others may need help for all or some of this.
v
TABLES, CHARTS AND GRAPHS
(3) You may wish to use the investigation as an opportunity to focus teach a
skill to a group of children, such as improving their results chart or teaching
them how to draw a line graph.
Helping in any part of an investigation does not negate its value or mean that the
investigation cannot be assessed. Children may do a part investigation
independently and receive help with the rest. For example, a child may need help
planning an investigation, but be able to carry out the task and record results
independently. It may not be possible to assess a complete investigation for some
children.
(4) Some investigations are not appropriate for all the class eg investigating the
saturation point of a solid in water, but may be used as an extension activity
for some able 9-10 year old children.
TABLES, CHARTS Charts and graphs help to make sense of a list of measurements and enable
AND GRAPHS children to visually see the results of their scientific investigations. It also helps
them to see the effect that variables have on each other. They need to develop the
skills of reading and constructing charts and graphs.
There are conventions for tables, charts and graphs, all of which should be given
clear, appropriate headings.
Tables should be drawn in column form. The left-hand column is for the
independent variable, which is the one you choose and change, and the right-
hand column is for the dependent variable, which is the one you observe and
measure.
Any units used should be in the column heading not in the column.
There can sometimes be confusion about plotting variables on a graph and
deciding which variable goes on which axis. The independent variable, which is
chosen by the experimenter, goes on the horizontal or ‘x’ axis, and the
dependent variable, which are the readings to be made, go on the vertical or ‘y’
axis.
In the science activities in this book, most of the graphs used are bar charts or line
graphs.
(a) Bar charts are used when the independent variable is not numerical. The
bars can be in any order, equal width and should not touch. Lines, paper
strips and materials etc can be used instead of bars.
(b) Column graphs are very similar to bar charts but are used when either or
both variables are whole numbers, the second variable being discreet
numbers and not continuous. The columns should be in order of increasing
or decreasing size.
(c) Histograms are for continuous survey data (any number) where the data
has been grouped in numbers, eg weight, 0-10 kg, 10-20 kg, 20-30 kg. This
is represented as a column similar to a column graph, but the columns are
touching.
(d) Line graphs are also for continuous data where two variables are used eg
time and temperature of dissolving. The points of the data are marked with
vi
STANDARD UNITS
an ‘x’ and the ‘best fit’ line or curve drawn through the points. Usually in
science the points are not individually joined up, although this is common
practice in other subjects. The units used are part of the axis label and not
next to the data numbers. More than one line can be drawn on a graph, if
the same two variables are used, to compare a third variable eg rate of
evaporation of different liquids. Colours can be used to differentiate the
lines.
(e) Pie charts are used for survey data as an alternative to Venn diagrams,
column graphs, histograms and bar charts. There should be no more than
six categories in order to avoid it becoming too complex, with the data key
next to the chart. The sections should be in rank order beginning at ‘12
o’clock.’
STANDARD These are the metre, m, the unit of length; the kilogram, kg, the unit of mass; the
UNITS OF second, s, the unit of time; and the cubic metre, m3, the unit of volume. As the
MEASUREMENT use of litres is common in everyday life children should know both.
1 litre = 1 dm3
1 ml = 1 cm3
1 dm3 = 1000 cm3
The unit of temperature used is the degree Celsius (˚C) which is not a standard
unit.
HEALTH AND Any situation in school is potentially dangerous and the ultimate responsibility
SAFETY rests with the employer. However there is an expectation that the employee will
behave in a certain way as to minimise the risks. All schools should have a school
safety policy, which includes references to science activities to which teachers
should adhere. In addition, most local authorities belong to CLEAPSS (Consortium
of Local Education Authorities for the Provision of Science Services) and follow
their guidelines. They recommend the use of the ASE booklet ‘Be Safe’ which
offers advice for most primary science activities and are extremely helpful if
additional advice is needed. (The telephone number and website is at the end of
this section). However advice is only available to subscribers.
vii
HEALTH AND SAFETY
All the activities in this book can be carried out safely in schools. The hazards have
been identified and any risks from them reduced to insignificant levels by the
adoption of suitable control measures. However, we also think it is worth
explaining the strategies that are recommended to reduce the risks in this way.
Regulations made under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 require a risk
assessment to be carried out before hazardous chemicals are used or made, or a
hazardous procedure is carried out. Risk assessment is your employers
responsibility. The task of assessing risk in particular situations may well be
delegated by the employer to the head teacher/science co-ordinator, who will be
expected to operate within the employer’s guidelines. Following guidance from
the Health and Safety Executive most education employers have adopted various
nationally available texts as the basis for their model risk assessments. These
commonly include the following:
If your employer has adopted one or more of these publications, you should follow
the guidance given there, subject only to a need to check and consider whether
minor modification is needed to deal with the special situation in your class/school.
We believe that all the activities in this book are compatible with the model risk
assessments listed above. However, teachers must still verify that what is proposed
does confirm with any code of practice produced by their employer. You also need
to consider your local circumstances. Are your students reliable? Do you have
safety glasses for everyone?
How likely it is that something will go wrong depends on who is doing it and what
sort of training and experience they have had. In most of the publications listed
above there are suggestions as to whether an activity should be a teacher
demonstration only, or could be done by students of various ages. Your employer
will probably expect you to follow this guidance.
Teachers tend to think of eye protection as the main control measure to prevent
injury. In fact, personal protective equipment, such as goggles or safety spectacles,
is meant to protect from the unexpected. If you expect a problem, more stringent
controls are needed. A range of control measures may be adopted, the following
being the most common. Use:
viii
HEALTH AND SAFETY
• safety screens (more than one is usually needed, to protect both teacher and
students).
Throughout this resource, we make some reference to the need to wear eye
protection. Undoubtedly, chemical splash goggles, to the European Standard EN
166 3 give the best protection but children are often reluctant to wear goggles.
Safety spectacles give less protection, but may be adequate if nothing which is
classed as corrosive or toxic is in use. It is recommended that corrosive or toxic
materials are not used in primary schools.
Members who cannot find their materials and non-members interested in joining
should contact the CLEAPSS School Science Service at Brunel University, Uxbridge,
UB8 3PH. Tel: 01895 251496, fax: 01895 814372, email: science@cleapss.org.uk
or visit the website http://www.cleapss.org.uk.
ix
HEALTH AND SAFETY
Hazard and risk Discuss with children the hazards of an activity – what might go wrong? Then
in teaching discuss the risks – how likely is it that something would go wrong? How many
people could be affected? How badly would each be affected? (One hand
chopped off would be a big problem; a minor cut on a hand would be a small
problem; a class set of minor cuts on hands would be a medium problem). Then
discuss the control measures – how can we make it less likely that something does
go wrong?
The word ‘danger’ can be used when you want to talk generally, but to be precise
then hazard, risk, etc are the correct terminology.
(b) Breaking, contracting and flicking something into your face or eye;
The chance of (a) actually happening may be zero (if you are not using heavy
loads). Or considerable if you are! The number of people affected may depend on
whether the whole class is doing this or just one group. How serious the injury
might be would depend on the type of shoes being worn, how heavy your load
really is, etc. Whether it will drop onto toes or not may depend on whether there
is a bin underneath to keep toes out of the way (a control measure). The chance
of (c) happening will depend on many factors such as the control exercised by the
teacher and the normal behaviour of the class.