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Properties of Matter Worksheets for 2nd Grade

14 free PDFsUS Letter or A4Answer key includedNo login

Describe and sort materials by their properties, test them, choose the best material for a job, and explore changes from heating and cooling.

Download the properties of matter worksheets

Describe and sort materials

A properties poster, a describe-the-properties chart, an absorbency sort as cut and paste with a no-cut twin, and an investigation record to test real materials.

The best material for the job

Choose materials for raincoats, windows and pots, then read real test results to pick the best umbrella.

  • Preview of the printable “Material test Results: best umbrella worksheet” worksheet: analyzing test data to choose the best material for a purposeView all 2 pages

    Material test Results: best umbrella worksheet

    Analyzing test data to choose the best material for a purpose

    Answer key on page 2

    US LetterPDFA4PDF

    2 pages48 KB

Changes from heating and cooling

Sort changes that can and cannot be reversed, as a table or a cut and paste page, and read a story about making pancakes.

  • Preview of the printable “Reversible and irreversible changes sort” worksheet: sorting changes caused by heating or cooling into ones that can and cannot be reversedView all 2 pages

    Reversible and irreversible changes sort

    Sorting changes caused by heating or cooling into ones that can and cannot be reversed

    Answer key on page 2

    US LetterPDFA4PDF

    2 pages307 KB

  • Preview of the printable “Reversible and irreversible changes cut and paste” worksheet: sorting changes caused by heating or cooling into ones that can and cannot be reversedView all 2 pages

    Reversible and irreversible changes cut and paste

    Sorting changes caused by heating or cooling into ones that can and cannot be reversed

    Answer key on page 2

    US LetterPDFA4PDF

    2 pages320 KB

  • Preview of the printable “Reversible and irreversible changes reading passage” worksheet: reading about changes from heating and cooling and telling which can be reversedView all 2 pages

    Reversible and irreversible changes reading passage

    Reading about changes from heating and cooling and telling which can be reversed

    Answer key on page 2

    US LetterPDFA4PDF

    2 pages111 KB

Building with small pieces

Read about a block castle that becomes a train, then take apart your own build and make something new.

  • Preview of the printable “Building with small pieces reading passage” worksheet: explaining how an object made of small pieces can be taken apart and made into a new objectView all 2 pages

    Building with small pieces reading passage

    Explaining how an object made of small pieces can be taken apart and made into a new object

    Answer key on page 2

    US LetterPDFA4PDF

    2 pages59 KB

  • Preview of the printable “Take it apart and build something new worksheet” worksheet: taking apart an object made of pieces and using the pieces to build a new objectView larger

    Take it apart and build something new worksheet

    Taking apart an object made of pieces and using the pieces to build a new object

    US LetterPDFA4PDF

    1 page27 KB

Words and review

Vocabulary cards to cut apart and a short check of the whole topic.

  • Preview of the printable “Properties of matter quiz for 2nd grade” worksheet: reviewing states of matter, properties, reversible changes and building from piecesView all 2 pages

    Properties of matter quiz for 2nd grade

    Reviewing states of matter, properties, reversible changes and building from pieces

    Answer key on page 2

    US LetterPDFA4PDF

    2 pages43 KB

Print at 100% (actual size) for the cleanest tracing lines.

About these properties of matter worksheets

Second graders become material detectives. They squeeze, bend and drip water on everyday things to find out what they are like, and they use words like hard, flexible and absorbent to describe them. Then they use what they find to choose the best material for a job, like a raincoat or a cooking pot.

These properties of matter worksheets follow the four big ideas of 2nd grade physical science. Children describe and sort materials by their properties, analyze test results to pick the best material, see that an object made of small pieces can be taken apart and built into something new, and decide which changes from heating and cooling can be reversed.

Every page is black and white with short directions a 2nd grader can read. Pages print on US Letter or A4, and every page with right answers has an answer key on page 2.

Standards

  • NGSS 2-PS1-1Plan and conduct an investigation to describe and classify different kinds of materials by their observable properties.
  • NGSS 2-PS1-2Analyze data obtained from testing different materials to determine which materials have the properties that are best suited for an intended purpose.
  • NGSS 2-PS1-4Construct an argument with evidence that some changes caused by heating or cooling can be reversed and some cannot.
  • NGSS 2-PS1-3Make observations to construct an evidence-based account of how an object made of a small set of pieces can be disassembled and made into a new object.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.2.4Determine the meaning of words and phrases in a text relevant to a grade 2 topic or subject area.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.2.1Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to demonstrate understanding of key details in a text.

How to use them

  1. Start with the properties poster. Pass around a sponge, a coin, a sock and a crayon and ask children to describe each one before they fill in the chart.
  2. Do the soak-up-water test for real: put five drops of water on each object, then sort with the cut and paste page or its no-cut twin.
  3. Use the umbrella test results page to practice reading data, then run your own tests with the blank investigation record.
  4. Melt butter or an ice cube and toast a slice of bread to show changes that can and cannot be reversed before the sorts and the pancake story.
  5. Give each child 10 to 20 blocks for the take it apart page, so they see the same pieces become a new object.

Teaching tips

  • A property is something you can observe. Encourage exact words: “rough” and “bendy” are better than “nice” or “weird.”
  • Melting is a change of state caused by heat. Dissolving is different: sugar in water seems to disappear but is still there, mixed in. Keep the two words separate.
  • A change can be reversed when the material can go back the way it was, like melted chocolate hardening. Cooking an egg or baking a cookie makes a new material that cannot change back.
  • For the best-material pages, ask children to name the property that matters for the job: keeps water out, see-through, strong, stays hard when hot.
  • Differentiate the cut and paste sorts by giving early readers the picture versions and strong readers the sentence versions.

Questions teachers and parents ask

What are properties of matter for 2nd grade?

Properties are things you can observe about a material, such as its color, texture, hardness, flexibility, whether it soaks up water and whether it sinks or floats. Second graders use these properties to describe and sort materials.

What is the difference between a reversible and an irreversible change?

A reversible change can go back, like ice melting into water and freezing again. An irreversible change cannot go back, like cooking an egg, toasting bread or burning wood.

Do I need special materials?

No. A sponge, foil, a craft stick, a cotton ball, a rubber band, a cup of water and some building blocks cover every investigation.

Are there answer keys?

Yes. Every page with right answers has a key on page 2. Posters, vocabulary cards and record sheets for your own tests have no key.