Everyday Materials

This everyday Materials Year 1 Science lesson pack will challenge your pupils to get stuck into some seriously practical science! They'll identify, name and sort materials – and learn about their properties. They'll distinguish between an object and the material from which it is made, and apply their reasoning as they compare a variety of everyday materials according to the properties they identify through scientific exploration.

Your Year 1 class will identify, classify and describe the everyday materials around them, such as wood, plastic, metal, glass and fabric, all through a variety of fun activities and experiments.

Identifying Materials

The first Identifying Everyday Materials Year 1 Science lesson in this series helps your class identify a variety of common materials, including wood, plastic, glass, fabric and stone. They will learn about where the materials come from and start to distinguish between an object and the material it is made from. Your class will then hunt around the classroom for a variety of different materials.

This downloadable lesson contains a lesson plan, slideshow presentation and printable teaching resources.

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Sorting Materials

This sorting materials year 1 Science lesson encourages your class to distinguish between an object and the material it is made from. Your class will have plenty of opportunities to identify materials and objects and they will soon be dab hands at grouping objects according to their material. Your class will be challenged to describe the materials different objects are made from as they undertake their independent activities.

This downloadable lesson contains a detailed lesson plan, slideshow presentation and printable teaching resources.

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Describing Properties of Materials

This Properties of Materials Year 1 lesson will stretch your children's vocabulary muscles as they describe materials according to their properties. Your class will use words such as hard, soft, stretchy, fluffy, rigid and bendy to describe a variety of materials and objects made from those materials.

This downloadable lesson contains a lesson plan, slideshow presentation and printable teaching resources created by our experienced team of primary teachers.

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Useful Materials

This lesson encourages your class to think about why some materials are more suited to certain purposes than others. Your children will help some confused people work out which materials they should use for a variety of tasks, based on what they know about materials, as well as choosing the best material for a variety of objects. This lesson encourages your class to apply their knowledge of materials to a range of situations and to begin to think more in depth about the purpose of objects and the properties of materials.

This read-to-teach downloadable lesson contains a plan, slideshow presentation and teaching resources.

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Waterproof Investigation

The fifth lesson in this series will see your class conducting waterproof investigations as they work out which material is most suitable for patching up a battered umbrella! Your class will test a variety of materials to see if they are waterproof or not and choose which one they think is most suitable for the task. They will have the opportunity to make their own brollies to see if they stay dry!

This downloadable ready-to-teach lesson contains a lesson plan, slideshow presentation and printable teaching resources.

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Evaluation

The final lesson in this series gives your class the chance to consolidate what they have learnt about materials and their properties.

As well as checking their understanding through a variety of fun activities, your class can also use what they have learnt about materials to create a particular object, choosing the materials they think would be most appropriate.

This downloadable ready-to-teach lesson contains a detailed lesson plan, informative slides and engaging printable teaching resources.

View Lesson 6