Explore the interactions between various combinations of two atoms. Turn on the force arrows to see either the total force acting on the atoms or the individual attractive and repulsive forces. Try the "Adjustable Attraction" atom to see how changing the parameters affects the interaction.

Experiment with a helium balloon, a hot air balloon, or a rigid sphere filled with different gases. Discover what makes some balloons float and others sink.

Pump gas molecules to a box and see what happens as you change the volume, add or remove heat, change gravity, and more. Measure the temperature and pressure, and discover how the properties of the gas vary in relation to each other.

Monitor the temperature of a melting ice cube and use temperature probes to electronically plot the data on graphs. Investigate what temperature the ice is as it melts in addition to monitoring the temperature of liquid the ice is submerged in.

Students will investigate what constitutes a solid and a liquid state of matter. Using the probe, students' misconceptions on states of matter will be exposed. The lab, which uses a cornstarch, water and food coloring mixture, will be explored. The students will determine how that exploration will take place and devise a procedure to determine the state of matter. Students will then, as a group, present their findings to the class. Students can also write a Claim, Evidence, Reasoning (CER) paragraph to answer the question "What state of matter is Oobleck?" An engineering extension task is included that challenges students to devise a way to make a useful invention that would take advantage of a substance like oobleck.

Join biochemist and Miss America 2020, Camille Schrier, as she uses her kitchen as her laboratory. In this episode of Cooking Up Science with Miss America, we will explore the States of Matter. We know that substances can exist as different states of matter: solids, liquids, or gasses. But can some substances have the properties of more than one state of matter at the same time? Let's explore some oooey gooey Non-Newtonian fluids by making oobleck and slime and discover the science behind them. Developed for students in grades 6-10.

This ThingLink provides links to several OERs curated from various repositories (oercommons.org, sharemylesson.com, curriki.org, app.partcipate.com) that all deal with teaching the states of matter to upper elementary students.  There is a full lesson plan from Ohio State University that deals with the water cycle, and specifically, with storage of fresh water in glaciers and snow.  There is a lot of information regarding student misconceptions and how to teach the content, as well as literacy resources and student engagement activities.  There is also a link to a full unit plan of labs and investigations, including PowerPoints and lab sheets for students.  Linked on this ThingLink, you'll also find an introduction video from PBS and a song about matter on YouTube.  Please feel free to add resources to remix!!