Year 1: Heavy and light
Part of the Year 1 mass and capacity chapter. Chapter overview · whole chapter on one page · Download worksheet (PDF) · Answers (PDF)
Heavy and light
Some things are heavy. Some things are light. Heavy things weigh more. Light things weigh less.
You can feel it. Hold one thing in each hand. The hand with the heavier thing goes down.
A balance scale works in the same way. Put one thing on each pan. The pan with the heavier thing goes down, and the other pan goes up.
We can say the book is heavier than the apple. We can say the apple is lighter than the book.
Key ideas
- Heavy means it weighs a lot. Light means it weighs less.
- The side that goes down is the heavier side.
- The side that goes up is the lighter side.
- Heavier than and lighter than compare two things.
Key words. Heavier than means weighs more. Lighter than means weighs less.
Method. The heavier one is the one that makes its side go down on the scale.
- Look at the scale. The side that goes down holds the heavier object.Pan B goes down
- Find the heavier object. The heavier object is on the low side.B is the book
- Write the answer. B, the book
Check. The other side goes up, so it is the other one. ✓
Watch out. A big thing can be light, and a small thing can be heavy. Look at the scale, not the size.
Key words. Heavier than means weighs more. Lighter than means weighs less.
Method. The lighter one is the one that makes its side go up on the scale.
- Look at the scale. The side that goes down holds the heavier object.Pan B goes down
- Find the lighter object. The lighter object is on the high side.A is the ball
- Write the answer. A, the ball
Check. The other side goes down, so it is the other one. ✓
Watch out. A big thing can be light, and a small thing can be heavy. Look at the scale, not the size.
Method. Compare the two objects, then decide if the sentence is true.
- Find the two objects. Read the sentence carefully.bag and apple
- Say which one is heavier. The heavier one makes its side go down.The bag is heavier
- Write the answer. Does the sentence match what we found?True
Check. Read the sentence the other way round to check. ✓
Watch out. Heavier and lighter mean opposite things. Read them carefully.
Watch out
Watch out: a big thing is not always heavy. A small thing can be heavy too. Look at the scale, not at the size.
Exam tip
Grown-up tip. Let your child lift two things, one in each hand. Ask: “Which is heavier? How do you know?” Then ask them to use the word heavier in a sentence.
Exercise 8A Heavy and light
Non-calculatorKey words. Heavier than means weighs more. Lighter than means weighs less.
Method. The heavier one is the one that makes its side go down on the scale.
- Look at the scale. The side that goes down holds the heavier object.Pan A goes down
- Find the heavier object. The heavier object is on the low side.A is the ball
- Write the answer. A, the ball
Check. The other side goes up, so it is the other one. ✓
Watch out. A big thing can be light, and a small thing can be heavy. Look at the scale, not the size.
Key words. Heavier than means weighs more. Lighter than means weighs less.
Method. The lighter one is the one that makes its side go up on the scale.
- Look at the scale. The side that goes down holds the heavier object.Pan B goes down
- Find the lighter object. The lighter object is on the high side.A is the bag
- Write the answer. A, the bag
Check. The other side goes down, so it is the other one. ✓
Watch out. A big thing can be light, and a small thing can be heavy. Look at the scale, not the size.
Key words. Heavier than means weighs more. Lighter than means weighs less.
Method. The heavier one is the one that makes its side go down on the scale.
- Look at the scale. The side that goes down holds the heavier object.Pan A goes down
- Find the heavier object. The heavier object is on the low side.A is the bag
- Write the answer. A, the bag
Check. The other side goes up, so it is the other one. ✓
Watch out. A big thing can be light, and a small thing can be heavy. Look at the scale, not the size.
Key words. Heavier than means weighs more. Lighter than means weighs less.
Method. The lighter one is the one that makes its side go up on the scale.
- Look at the scale. The side that goes down holds the heavier object.Pan B goes down
- Find the lighter object. The lighter object is on the high side.A is the book
- Write the answer. A, the book
Check. The other side goes down, so it is the other one. ✓
Watch out. A big thing can be light, and a small thing can be heavy. Look at the scale, not the size.
Key words. Heavier than means weighs more. Lighter than means weighs less.
Method. The heavier one is the one that makes its side go down on the scale.
- Look at the scale. The side that goes down holds the heavier object.Pan B goes down
- Find the heavier object. The heavier object is on the low side.B is the brick
- Write the answer. B, the brick
Check. The other side goes up, so it is the other one. ✓
Watch out. A big thing can be light, and a small thing can be heavy. Look at the scale, not the size.
Key words. Heavier than means weighs more. Lighter than means weighs less.
Method. The lighter one is the one that makes its side go up on the scale.
- Look at the scale. The side that goes down holds the heavier object.Pan A goes down
- Find the lighter object. The lighter object is on the high side.B is the bag
- Write the answer. B, the bag
Check. The other side goes down, so it is the other one. ✓
Watch out. A big thing can be light, and a small thing can be heavy. Look at the scale, not the size.
Key words. Heavier than means weighs more. Lighter than means weighs less.
Method. The heavier one is the one that makes its side go down on the scale.
- Look at the scale. The side that goes down holds the heavier object.Pan B goes down
- Find the heavier object. The heavier object is on the low side.B is the brick
- Write the answer. B, the brick
Check. The other side goes up, so it is the other one. ✓
Watch out. A big thing can be light, and a small thing can be heavy. Look at the scale, not the size.
Key words. Heaviest means the most heavy. Lightest means the least heavy.
Method. Put the objects in a line, from the heaviest to the lightest. Then find the heaviest one.
- Put the objects in a line. The heaviest goes at the front.brick > bag > book
- Find the heaviest one. The heaviest one is at the front of the line.brick is the heaviest
- Write the answer. The brick is the heaviest.
Check. The first one is heavier than the last one, so the line is right. ✓
Watch out. Read every sentence. Do not pick the first object you read about.
Key words. Heaviest means the most heavy. Lightest means the least heavy.
Method. Put the objects in a line, from the heaviest to the lightest. Then find the lightest one.
- Put the objects in a line. The heaviest goes at the front.bag > book > ball
- Find the lightest one. The lightest one is at the end of the line.ball is the lightest
- Write the answer. The ball is the lightest.
Check. The first one is heavier than the last one, so the line is right. ✓
Watch out. Read every sentence. Do not pick the first object you read about.
Key words. Lightest is the least heavy. Heaviest is the most heavy.
Method. Lightest first. Compare two objects at a time.
- Compare two objects. Use the scale or the cubes to see which is heavier.apple < book < brick
- Put them in a line. Start with the lightest one.apple, book, brick
- Write the answer. apple, book, brick
Check. There are 3 objects in the question and 3 in the answer. ✓
Watch out. Check that you have not left one out.
Method. Compare the two objects, then decide if the sentence is true.
- Find the two objects. Read the sentence carefully.bag and apple
- Say which one is heavier. The heavier one makes its side go down.The bag is heavier
- Write the answer. Does the sentence match what we found?True
Check. Read the sentence the other way round to check. ✓
Watch out. Heavier and lighter mean opposite things. Read them carefully.
Method. Think about which thing is heavier. The heavier thing pulls its hand down.
- Find the heavier thing. The heavier thing pulls harder.The brick is heavier than the ball
- Find the lower hand. The hand with the heavier thing goes down.The hand with the brick is lower
- Write the answer. The hand with the brick is lower.
Check. The hand with the ball is higher up. ✓
Watch out. Think about the weight, not the size of the thing.