MOLECULES MATTER

Molecules Matter  Atom – the smalles building block of matter  Molecule – two or more atoms connected together  We will represent atoms and molecules with circles for the time being.

 What do you think the study of chemistry might be about?  Chemistry is the study of matter and what matter does.  What are the three common types of matter on Earth?  Solid, liquid, and gas  What are some examples of matter?  Matter is often defined as anything that has mass and takes up space.

 Does water have mass, and does it take up space?  A bucket of water is pretty heavy to lift. So it definitely has mass.  It also takes up space in the bucket.  Since water has mass and takes up space, water is matter.  In chemistry we want to look deeper and find out more about what matter is made of and how it acts.

 Get out the Molecules Matter Activity Sheet  Complete the activity and what did you observe sections.  You will have 15 minutes to complete this activity.

 The water beads up on the wax paper and stays together when the wax paper is tilted and when the drop is moved around with a straw.  It is difficult to separate the drop into two drops.  When the drops touch, they combine quickly and easily.

 Watch the Water Molecules in Motion Demonstration  The drops of food coloring slowly move and mix into the water. Eventually all the water in the cup will be evenly colored.  How do your observations support the idea that water molecules are moving?

 The drop of food coloring mixes into the water because the water molecules move and push the color in all directions.  The molecules of food coloring themselves are also in motion.  Complete the demonstration portion of the activity sheet.

 Let’s watch this animation of molecules in liquid water.  The little balls represent the particles of a liquid, in this case water molecules.  Make sure to focus on the motion of the molecules, how they interact, and their distance from one another.

 Molecules of a liquid are in motion but they are attracted to each other. This is why they move past each other but don’t get very far apart.  Now you are going to draw your own model of water on the molecular level like the one on the next slide on your activity sheet.

Molecules Matter  The molecules are not any exact order but are near each other.  They have little curved “motion lines” to show that the molecues are moving.  This diagram shows water molecules enormously bigger than they actually are.

 Watch the following video clip to see an example of how water molecules are attracted to one another.  Now you need to complete number 7, 8, and 9 on your activity sheet.