Science 101: What Causes the Different States of Matter? Review

I chose this article because it was very complex, and had a lot of information to learn from. I thought this would be a great read for me as a future teacher. I learned quite a few new thing... See More

I chose this article because it was very complex, and had a lot of information to learn from. I thought this would be a great read for me as a future teacher. I learned quite a few new things. I learned that iron can actually be turned into iron vapor under a certain temperature and amount of pressure. The TEK that I found that matches this information is 4.5.A Matter and energy. The student knows that matter has measurable physical properties and those properties determine how matter is classified, changed, and used. The student is expected to: measure, compare, and contrast physical properties of matter, including mass, volume, states (solid, liquid, gas), temperature, magnetism, and the ability to sink or float. I could have students do the activity mentioned in the article to model the different molecules in each state of matter. One thing that I really enjoyed about this article is that it was very extensive about each state of matter and had a lot of good resources. The information might be overwhelming to a student because it is a lot, but there are many great thing that can be taken from this article.

good read

This was the first article I read on NSTA. I was extremely worried because I haven't had a science class in over 30 years, but this was an easy read and a fun read. I want to give this a tr... See More

This was the first article I read on NSTA. I was extremely worried because I haven't had a science class in over 30 years, but this was an easy read and a fun read. I want to give this a try. I love the idea of the rubber ball and magnets model the 3 states of matter. GREAT IDEA

Exploring Matter and Molecules

This article is an excellent resource for teachers looking to increase or review their content knowledge of the different states of matter. Using rubber balls covered with magnets, the auth... See More

This article is an excellent resource for teachers looking to increase or review their content knowledge of the different states of matter. Using rubber balls covered with magnets, the author describes how to use a simple, yet effective, model to investigate and explore how molecules bond to form the different states of matter. This is an excellent article for professional development.

It is Not Just Temperature

When one learns about why we have solids, liquids and gases in our natural world one has to look at atoms first. From atoms to molecules and then how temperature and pressure affects their ... See More

When one learns about why we have solids, liquids and gases in our natural world one has to look at atoms first. From atoms to molecules and then how temperature and pressure affects their state of matter. Lastly we look at bonding to fully understand which state of matter is created from molecules of more than one element. The article also talks about the unique characteristics of water molecules. This article should be a must read for all elementary teachers.

Good, but not Perfect

This is a good resource for explaining molecular motion with regards to states of matter. The author does make it a bit complicated for elementary students, however. It could be adapted for ... See More

This is a good resource for explaining molecular motion with regards to states of matter. The author does make it a bit complicated for elementary students, however. It could be adapted for a middle grades classroom.

Three States of Matter Basics

Bill Robertson does a nice job of discussing what causes the different states of matter. He uses balls covered with magnets to illustrate part of this. Toward the end of the article, thing... See More

Bill Robertson does a nice job of discussing what causes the different states of matter. He uses balls covered with magnets to illustrate part of this. Toward the end of the article, things get a bit confusing. This article is definitely directed toward middle school teachers and up.

Could be Confusing

The analogy chosen to demonstrate that molecular motion (temperature) determines the state of matter could get very confusing. The balls are at once representing atoms and molecules. The ide... See More

The analogy chosen to demonstrate that molecular motion (temperature) determines the state of matter could get very confusing. The balls are at once representing atoms and molecules. The idea of "sticking together" when motion is slower confuses bonding and phase change. I would stay away from this.