Subscribe

5th grade · Science · Unit 2 of 10

Solid, Liquid, Gas

Mass, volume and particles

What your child practices

Matter as anything with mass and volume, how particles are arranged in solids, liquids and gases, and why materials are chosen for their properties.

Minnesota K-12 Academic Standards benchmark: 5P.3.1.1.1 · matter is made of particles too small to see

How we explain it

Children can open this short lesson before they practice.

  1. Matter is anything that has mass and takes up space.
  2. A solid keeps its shape and volume. A liquid takes the shape of its container but keeps its volume.
  3. A gas spreads out to fill its whole container.
  4. We choose materials for their properties, like steel for strong bridges.

Example: Juice is poured from a tall glass into a wide bowl. What stays the same? A liquid changes shape to fit its container. It keeps the same volume. Answer: its volume

Solid, Liquid, Gas in Minnesota

In the Minnesota K-12 Academic Standards, this is unit 2 of 10 in 5th grade Science, after Solutions & Mixtures and before Changes of State.

Gradelings describes a child's practice on this unit as Beginning, Approaching, Meeting or Exceeding (Four practice steps). That reflects practice, not a report-card mark: the teacher decides the mark.

Source: Minnesota Department of Education (MDE)

Sample questions

A taste of this unit. In the app, questions change every time and get easier or harder to match your child.

  1. Question 1

    In which state are particles packed closely and only vibrate in place?

    • Liquid
    • Gas
    • Solid

  2. Question 2

    Which of these is NOT matter?

    • A drop of juice
    • A beam of light
    • Air in a balloon
    • A puff of smoke

  3. Question 3

    Which state of matter has a definite shape and a definite volume?

    • Solid
    • Gas
    • Liquid

  4. Question 4

    Bicycle tires are filled with air. Which property of a gas makes this useful?

    • A gas keeps a fixed shape
    • A gas can be squeezed, so the tire cushions bumps
    • A gas is much heavier than a solid

  5. Question 5

    A gas can be squeezed into a smaller space, but a solid cannot. Why?

    • Solid particles do not move at all
    • Gas particles are bigger than solid particles
    • There is a lot of empty space between gas particles

  6. Question 6

    Hydraulic lifts use liquids to push heavy loads. Which property of liquids helps?

    • They are easy to compress
    • They are very hard to squeeze into a smaller volume
    • They keep a fixed shape

More 5th grade