Contents
Key Stage 1
Meaning
A property is what a material is like.
About Properties
Something can be rough or smooth, hard or soft, blue or red, transparent or opaque, shiny or dull, firm or bendy, stretchy or stiff and absorbent or waterproof.
Examples
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| A property of glass is that it looks 'transparent'. | A property of brick is that it has a rough texture. | A property of water is that it can be poured. |
Note to Teachers
Hot or cold and heavy or light are not properties of a material. They can describe something, but they are not properties of a material. Ask yourself; Can I change it? If the answer is yes, then it is not a property of the material. For example; a brick is rough, hard, redish brown, opaque, dull, firm, stiff and a little bit absorbent. If I cut a brick in half it is still all of those things, but now it is not as heavy. So heavy and light are not properties. If I put a cold brick in an oven it still has all the same properties, but now it is hot. So hot and cold are not properties of a material. Heavy and light are also mistake for density. Brick is dense and the foam is not dense. Heavy and light is about the weight of an object, not the mass. Since density is the mass/volume then saying brick is heavy is doubly wrong. Be careful with solid, liquid and gas as well because they depend on the temperature. If you want to say that a property of iron is that it is solid you should always add 'at room temperature', otherwise it is not true.
Key Stage 2
Meaning
A property is description of a material and how it behaves.
- Noun: Property
About Properties
Properties are adjectives that we use to describe materials.
Examples
- Glass is 'transparent'.
- Metal can conduct electricity.
- Plastic is bendy.
Used in a Sentence
- A property of glass is that it is 'transparent'.
- A property of metals is that they can conduct electricity well.
- A property of plastic is that it can be bent easily.
Key Stage 3
Meaning
A description of a material and how it behaves.
Examples
- Solids cannot be compressed.
- Gold is dense compared to Iron.
- Electrons are negatively charged.
- Metals are shiny, malleable, ductile, sonorous and they can conduct electricity and conduct thermal energy easily.
Used in a Sentence
- A property of solids is that they cannot be compressed.
- A property of Gold is that it is more dense than Iron.
- A property of an electron is that it has a negative charge.
- The properties of Metals are that they are shiny, malleable, ductile, sonorous and they can conduct electricity and conduct thermal energy easily.
Key Stage 4
Meaning
Examples
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Used in a Sentence
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Key Stage 5
Meaning
Examples
- Example1
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- Example3
Used in a Sentence
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