Materials Teaching Resources
Explore the properties of materials and where they are found with your students this school year! Explore worksheets, hands-on activities, lesson plans and more teacher-created resources for teaching students about materials found in nature and made by humans.
The printable and digital resources in this collection are aligned with the Australian science curriculum, and each one has undergone a careful review by a member of the Teach Starter teacher team.
Is this your first year teaching about materials? Or perhaps you're simply looking for some fresh information and ways to teach this science topic? Read on for a primer from our teacher team, including a materials definition to share with your students, plus explanations of the differences between matural and man-made materials!
What Are Materials? A Kid-Friendly Definition
Do you need a way to explain what materials are to your students? Here's a helpful definition from our teacher team that you can add to your lessons:
A material is a substance that is used to make an object. For example, a desk can be made from wood. Wood is the material.
Materials can come from nature, but they can also be man-made.
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Material Properties Worksheet Pack (F-2)
Identify objects made from different materials and note their properties with a printable Properties of Materials Worksheet Pack.
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Mapping Mixed Materials Worksheets
Explore objects made of various materials and identify the properties that make them useful with a set of printable Mapping Mixed Materials Worksheets.
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Properties of Materials Word Wall Vocabulary
Forty-eight 'properties of materials' vocabulary cards.
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Describing Matter Properties Worksheet Pack
Observe and describe examples of matter with a Matter Properties Worksheet Pack.
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Comparing and Observing Properties of Rocks Game
Practise comparing the physical properties of rocks with an interactive Comparing Rocks Game for early years students.
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Describing Properties of Materials Beanbag Toss Game
Learn about the properties of materials and how to describe them with an exciting beanbag toss game.
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Uses of Materials Sorting Activity
Explore the materials objects are made of with a fun sorting activity for students.
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Things That Stretch, Bend and Twist – Sorting Activity
Introduce your students to physical changes in materials with a stretch, bend and twist material sorting activity.
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Physical Changes in Matter Interactive Game
Observe and predict physical changes in matter with an engaging, interactive Science Game!
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Describing Matter – Word Wall
Help your students learn to describe matter using physical properties with an illustrated matter word wall.
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Science Experiment - Keep Me Dry
A science experiment which explores the absorptive properties of materials.
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Observable Properties of Matter Cut and Paste Worksheets
Practise sorting objects based on observable properties with a pair of printable cut and paste worksheets.
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Material Mistakes Task Cards
Identify the appropriate materials needed to make everyday objects with a set of differentiated Material Mistakes Task Cards.
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Natural vs Man-Made Materials Scavenger Hunt
Explore and identify examples of natural and processed materials with our Natural vs Man-Made Materials Scavenger Hunt Worksheets.
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Outdoor STEM Activities Resource Pack
Take your STEM lessons outside with our printable Outdoor STEM Activities Resource Pack.
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Observing Properties of Matter Task Cards - Year 5
Practise observational skills and discover the characteristics of matter with a set of printable Year 5 Properties of Matter Task cards.
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Hard or Soft? Describing Matter Activity Sheets (F-1)
Explore the world of matter with Describing Matter Activity Sheets for early years students.
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Properties of Matter Graphic Organiser Pack
Use printable graphic organisers to help your students record what they have learned about the different properties of matter.
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Describing Matter - Scavenger Hunt Activities
Host an engaging science scavenger hunt to introduce your early years students to the observable properties of matter.
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Chemical Sciences: Clever Changes – Unit Plan
This Chemical Sciences unit investigates the physical changes of materials and how properties change when materials stretch, bend, twist, heat or cool.
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Marvellous Materials
A 60-minute lesson in which students recap their prior knowledge of materials and their physical features.
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Stretch, Bend and Twist – I Think You've Got the Gist
A 60-minute lesson designed for students to use their knowledge of materials to predict and identify whether materials stretch, bend or twist.
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Terrific Twisting
A 60-minute lesson designed to explain how certain materials can be twisted.
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Sensational Stretching
A 60-minute lesson designed to explain how certain materials can be stretched.
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A Mixture of Materials
A 60 minute lesson in which students analyse objects made of different materials and explain why those materials were used based on their properties.
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Choosing Materials That Work!
A 60 minute lesson in which students understand that some materials are more appropriate to use for certain objects or products than others based on the properties they possess.
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Sorting Scientists
A 60 minute lesson in which students investigate and sort materials based on their properties.
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Properties of Materials
A 60 minute lesson in which students develop an understanding of the properties of materials that make them useful for specific purposes.
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Identifying Types of Materials
A 60 minute lesson in which students identify the material objects are made of and sort them in various ways.
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Describing Materials
A 60 minute lesson in which students explore the properties of materials and develop vocabulary to describe them.
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Natural and Processed Materials Video – Solid Wood vs Laminate
Explore natural and processed materials with this science experiment video perfect for your Year 4 science unit!
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Cooling Materials Down Video
Explore how cooling affects different materials using this science demonstration video perfect for your early years Chemical Sciences unit!