🧊 What Are the States of Matter?
2nd Grade 🔬 Science
Matter is anything that takes up space. On Earth it is mostly found in three states: solid, liquid and gas.
Solids
A solid keeps its own shape — like an ice cube, a rock or a pencil. Its tiny particles are packed tightly and only wiggle in place.
Liquids
A liquid flows and takes the shape of its container — like water, milk or juice. Its particles slide past each other.
Gases
A gas spreads out to fill any space — like the air in a balloon or steam from a pot. Its particles zoom around far apart.
Changing states
Heat and cold change states. Ice melts into water, water boils into steam (evaporation), and steam cools back into drops (condensation). Water freezes at 32°F and boils at 212°F at sea level.
Quick quiz
Which is a liquid?
What happens when ice melts?
At what temperature does water freeze?