Teach students about liquids by giving them the opportunity to explore how liquids react to their environment. Give children a dish of water and have them experiment with it, watching how the water moves and changes shape. Encourage them to pick up the water with their hands and see what happens. Another liquid activity involves seeing how many liquid objects students can find in the classroom, at home or outdoors. For a fun twist on this activity, plan a liquid lunch, where everything students eat must be a liquid.
Introduce students to objects in a solid state by providing them with an assortment of solid items and allowing them to make observations on the objects. Encourage students to discover that solids retain their shape and are hard to mold or reshape. Ask students to make a list of solids and invite them to classify the objects into categories, such as natural and man made solids. Give students the chance to define the properties of solids by asking them riddles about classroom objects. For example, a riddle focusing on a pencil may include clues, such as "This solid is mostly yellow, has a pink end and a pointed gray end. It is made of mostly wood."
Give students the opportunity to explore an object that act as both a liquid and a solid by letting them experiment with shaving cream. Provide each student with a small mound of shaving cream and allow them to touch it, pick it up and place an object, like a penny in it and ask them how the shaving cream acts like both a liquid and a solid. For a second experiment with a material that is in-between states, mix two parts cornstarch and one part water to make an oozy mixture for students to explore.
Introduce students to the concept of changing states of matter by allowing them to observe liquids freezing and solids melting. Provide students with several ice cubes and allow them to place them around the school, indoors, outdoors and in the shade and Sun to observe what makes them melt the quickest. Ask students how they could change liquid water into ice and suggest colder temperatures, such as those found in the freezer if they do not suggest freezing on their own, and then freeze water in ice cube trays or bottles to show the change in state.