Sugar and water

Sugar and water

Pencil and paperOnline interactive
Overview
Using this Resource
Connecting to the Curriculum
Marking Student Responses
Further Resources
This task is about investigating dissolving sugar in water.

Question 1Change answer

Put half a teaspoon of sugar crystals into a glass of water.
a) Describe what has happened to the sugar after 4 minutes.

Question 1Change answer

What has happened to the sugar is known as dissolving.
 

b) Write down two ways that might make the sugar dissolve faster.
 

Question 1Change answer

c) Choose one of your ideas.
    Write a plan that could help find out if this way would make the sugar dissolve faster.

Question 1Change answer

d) Carry out your plan and write down all your observations.

Question 1Change answer

e) Write a sentence about what you found out.
Task administration: 
This task can be completed with pencil and paper or online.
 
Equipment:
Sugar; glass; water; teaspoon; clock; other equipment as required by their experiment, e.g., thermometer
  • Level 2 students are likely to find the writing expectations for this task a barrier. Consider either getting students to tell you their ideas, or write up together as a class. (The focus should be on investigating, not writing.)
  • You may want to collect the student's questions, and then provide guidance as to which of these should be investigated.
  • You may want to pause  after the students have completed part c), so that any equipment required can be collected.
Level:
2
Curriculum info: 
Science, Investigating in science, Material World
Keywords: 
changes, dissolving, sugar, observation
Description of task: 
For this practical students make observations about dissolving, and plan and carry out an investigation to find out what makes sugar dissolve more quickly.
Curriculum Links: 
Science capabilities
The capabilities focus is brought about by the conversations you have and the questions you ask.
 
Capability: Gather and interpret data
This resource provides opportunities to discuss processes in investigations, what makes them fair, what has to be measured (time) and how this could be done.
Science capabilities: 
Gather and interpret data
Making Better Sense: 
Dissolving
Answers/responses: 
a) The sugar begins to dissolve/disappears/get smaller.
b) Identifies 2 possible methods of making sugar dissolve faster.
(One of these will become the question to be investigated).
c) Plan
Suggests a feasible plan using simple trials, which relates to the question being investigated.
d) Records all the observations and measurements necessary so that a judgement can be made as to whether they have answered their question.
e) Writes or tells a sentence about what they found out.
The sentence written relates to the question being investigated.
Other Level 2 resources about dissolving: