It’s Only Water!… Or is it?

This exciting Science Made Simple show explores all the amazing properties of water. From heating to freezing, can you squash it, absorb it, or dissolve chemicals in it? We can use water to do all sorts of unexpected things!

Be prepared to get wet, in this interactive show which may see students (and teachers) get a little wetter than they bargained for!

Watch a clip of our It's Only Water...Or is it? show live in a school here.

Duration

It’s Only Water is available in either 45 or 60 minute versions.

Suggested Audience

Suitable for schools with children aged 7-13, families and mixed aged audiences, and festival audiences.

This show contains demonstrations where water will be spilled on the floor, please ensure your venue can house such a show.

Curriculum Links

Key Stage 2

• Ways in which living things and the environment need protection
• Compare everyday materials and objects on the basis of their material properties
• Differences between solids, liquids and gases, in terms of ease of ease of flow and maintenance of shape and volume
• Changes that occur when materials are mixed
• Changes that occur when materials are heated or cooled
• Temperature is a measure of how hot or cold things are
• Reversible changes, including dissolving, melting, boiling, condensing, freezing and evaporating
• Non-reversible changes [for example, water reacting with bicarbonate of soda] result in the formation of new materials that may be useful
• Objects are pulled downwards because of the gravitational attraction between them and the Earth

Key Stage 3

• Elements consist of atoms that combine together in chemical reactions to form compounds
• Human activity and natural processes can lead to changes in the environment
• Real-life examples as a basis for finding out about science

Key Stage 2

After watching the show key stage 2 pupils should:

• Develop investigative skills asking how? Why? What will happen if?
• Understand that water has a chemical formula which describes its composition
• Know that the physical properties of a material can be determined by experiment
• Know that matter occurs in different states, and identify the three states of matter of water
• Understand that chemical reactions produce new materials
• Understand that gravity is a force that pulls all objects downwards

Key Stage 3

After watching the show Key Stage 3 pupils should:

• Know the chemical formula for water and understand that this describes its composition
• Know the simple physical properties of the 3 states of water and that these are caused by changes in the arrangement of particles
• Know that changing water state involves the transfer of heat energy
• Understand that chemical reactions produce new materials
• Understand that gravity is a weak force, and that it can be over-come by other forces

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