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Science Launch G5 / Week 03 / Launch Lab
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Week 03 · Mystery Materials

Launch Lab

Launch Lab: Property hunt
// Identify materials by their properties
⏱ about 15 min

Launch Lab: Property hunt

Raven tapes a chart to the refrigerator with four columns: magnetic, shiny, hard, and soft.

"Today our whole home is a lab," she says. "Every object gets tested."

Rocket holds up a magnet like a trophy. "I call magnet duty!"

Nova hovers by the chart. "I will count the clues," she says. "Remember, one property is a clue. Several make a case."

  1. A property is something you can observe or measure about a material.
  2. Iron and steel are magnetic. Aluminum, copper and plastic are not.
  3. Salt and sugar have different solubility, so a fair dissolving test can tell them apart.
  4. A harder material scratches a softer one. The Mohs scale goes from talc to diamond.
◇ PROPERTY HUNT
Choose ten safe objects around your home.
Try spoons, foil, a key, a plastic cup and a wooden block.
Test each one with a magnet and record the result.
Decide if it is shiny or dull.
Try to scratch it gently with a fingernail. Record soft or hard.
Find two objects that match on one property but differ on another.
For a grown-up
Ask: what did you notice? What would you change?
Choose the objects together and skip anything sharp, breakable or electrical.
WEEK CHECK
  • Read the question.
  • Tap your answer.
A spoon is shiny, hard and pulled by a magnet. Which metal could it be?
Why test more than one property?
Iron and steel are ____.
The softest mineral on the Mohs scale is ____.
Which property did Raven's fair test use to tell salt from sugar? Type one word.
WHY THIS EXERCISESalt and sugar have different solubility.

You are now a real materials detective. Next week, we mix substances and watch for something brand new.

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