Throughout the last couple of weeks, in science, the Kindergarten class has focused on observing and recording how materials can be changed by heating and cooling. Our first experiment was to create an ice cube tower and observe what happened to the ice with the help of the sun’s heat. We observed and recorded the results and we learned that the ice cubes went from a solid to a liquid and eventually, a gas.
Next, we focused our attention on what happens to different materials using our body heat and then placing the heated objects into ice water. The result was that our body heat is not as hot as the sun’s heat but it still worked to melt the butter.
Finally, taking what we have learned, we made predictions about what would happen to the same materials (butter, marshmallows and crayons) if we put them on a hot plate. Carefully, we placed the materials in a muffin tin and over the heat. We observed the melting of the different materials and were surprised by our results. We predicted that the butter would melt first but discovered that the crayons melted at a faster rate. We also discovered that after melting the materials, if you place them back in the refrigerator, they will harden and take a different shape.
There have been many amazing discoveries on how heat changes materials in Kindergarten.