As part of our concept study 'Exploration', we have been exploring water. We have learnt that we can change the state of water from a liquid to a solid (ice) by freezing it. We have also learnt that we can change water from a liquid to a vapour (steam) by boiling it.
On Monday we had great fun using salt to melt ice. We sprinkled table salt (and then sea salt) over some large mounds of ice. The children waited patiently to see what happened. They were excited when they first noticed the little ravines where the salt was melting the side of the ice! We then added drops of food colouring to highlight the ravines, crevasses, and tunnels that formed in the ice as the salt melted it. The children noticed that wherever the salt touched the ice, the ice melted more quickly. This led us into a discussion of how in places where it snows, salt is used as a 'grit' on the road to help make snow & ice melt quickly so that is safer for traffic to drive on the road.
No comments:
Post a Comment