Practical Science Work

Children thought of a number of investigations
linked to the properties of different materials.

Some of the properties included:

• Absorbency
• Float
• Flexibility
• Strength
• Magnetic

We then started to look at the absorbency investigation and started thinking about the structure of investigation

We thought about the:

• Aim
• Prediction
• Hypothesis
• Equipment
• Diagram
• Method
• Results and
• Conclusion

Children were questioned and guided along stage by stage and then got involved in the practical side, testing out the absorbency of different types of paper.

Children thought about how they would measure how absorbent the different paper was and how to record it. They learnt scientific vocabulary and used various types of equipment, they worked on measuring amount of water, included simple addition and subtraction… worked as a team… made a mess and cleaned up again after themselves!

The children also thought about what made a fair test, how they could improve their work and most importantly – even discovered which of their types of paper appeared the most absorbent!

Carefully measuring 20ml of water using
a funnel and the measuring cylinder

Just how absorbent is newspaper?
All will be revealed shortly

Next to be tested… this group worked so quickly and efficiently the camera couldn’t keep up with them!

Tissue paper… by some predicted to be the most absorbent of the papers tested. Was it?