Uses of Everyday Materials · Spring Term

Identifying Materials

Testing and classifying materials as wood, metal, plastic, glass, brick, rock, paper, or cardboard through observation.

About This Topic

Material Properties introduces students to the building blocks of the world around them. In Year 2, the National Curriculum focuses on identifying and comparing the suitability of a variety of everyday materials, including wood, metal, plastic, glass, brick, rock, paper, and cardboard. Students learn to use descriptive scientific language like 'opaque', 'transparent', 'flexible', and 'rigid'.

This topic is about more than just naming materials; it is about understanding why they were chosen for a specific job. By testing properties like absorbency or strength, children begin to think like engineers. This topic comes alive when students can physically model the patterns of testing, using a hands-on approach to discover which materials pass or fail their challenges.

Active Learning Ideas

Stations Rotation: The Property Lab

Set up stations for 'Waterproof Test', 'Magnet Test', 'Flexibility Test', and 'Transparency Test'. Small groups move through with a tray of different materials, recording their results on a tally chart.

⏱ 50 min·Small Groups

Generate mission

Think-Pair-Share: The Silly Suitcase

Show a picture of a suitcase made of glass or a spoon made of paper. Students think about why these are 'silly' choices, share with a partner, and then suggest a better material based on its properties.

⏱ 20 min·Pairs

Generate mission

Gallery Walk: Material Hunt

Students explore the classroom to find objects made of two or more materials (like a chair with metal legs and a plastic seat). They label them with sticky notes and the class walks around to see how many different combinations they found.

⏱ 30 min·Individual

Generate mission

Watch Out for These Misconceptions

Common Misconception

All metals are magnetic.

What to Teach Instead

Children often think a magnet will stick to any metal. A hands-on investigation with copper coins, aluminium foil, and steel paperclips quickly shows them that only some metals (like iron and steel) are magnetic.

Common Misconception

Hard materials are always strong.

What to Teach Instead

Students may confuse 'hard' with 'strong'. By comparing a piece of chalk (hard but breaks easily) to a piece of plastic (softer but harder to break), they learn that materials have different types of strength.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between an object and a material?

An object is the thing itself, like a chair or a window. A material is what that object is made of, like wood, metal, or glass. One object can even be made of several different materials!

What does 'transparent' mean?

Transparent is a scientific word for something you can see through clearly, like a glass window or a clear plastic bottle. If you can only see a little bit of light through it, we call it 'translucent'.

What are the best hands-on strategies for teaching material properties?

Comparative testing is the most effective strategy. Giving students a 'problem' to solve, like finding the best material for a toy boat, forces them to test properties like buoyancy and water resistance. This active experimentation helps them link a material's physical traits to its real-world use.

Why is plastic used for so many things?

Plastic is very useful because it can be made into almost any shape, it can be many different colours, it is usually waterproof, and it is often very light and strong. This makes it great for everything from toys to food containers.

Browse curriculum by country

• Americas
• US
• CA
• MX
• CL
• CO
• BR

• Europe
• UK
• IE
• FR
• DE
• ES
• IT
• NL
• PT
• SE

• Asia & Pacific
• IN
• SG
• AU