KS2 Science textbook

Chapter 5: Properties and uses of materials

Strand Properties and changes of materials
Level Year 5
Practice 77 questions with step-by-step solutions

National Curriculum for England, Key Stage 2 science, Year 5. Content: M1 compare and group together everyday materials on the basis of their properties: hardness, solubility, transparency, conductivity (electrical and thermal), response to magnets, M2 give reasons, based on evidence from comparative and fair tests, for the particular uses of everyday materials, including metals, wood and plastic.

Open Year 5 chapter

By the end of this chapter you will be able to

Compare and group materials by whether they are see-through, and by how hard they are
Explain which materials conduct electricity, and use a circuit test to sort them
Explain which materials conduct heat, and use a spoon test to compare them
Say which materials are pulled by a magnet, and group materials by that property
Give reasons, from evidence, for choosing a material for a particular use

You should already know

Materials and their simple properties, such as hard, soft, shiny and see-through (Year 1 and Year 3 Science)
Fair tests, and changing only one thing at a time (Year 5 Science, Chapter 1)

Where this leads

Solutions and separating mixtures, where solubility is used (Year 5 Science, Chapter 6)
Reversible and irreversible changes (Year 5 Science, Chapter 7)

Lessons in this chapter

Read the whole chapter on one page (good for printing).