What's the Matter is a teacher resource designed for teachers of high-ability or gifted learners in grades 2–3. It's part of the Project Clarion Science Unit, developed by the College of William and Mary’s Center for Gifted Education. This 15-lesson unit focuses on a series of questions related to the properties of matter, such as “What is a change?” and “How do scientists investigate change?” These questions provide the springboard from which to launch students into hands-on, inquiry-based investigations.
Other skills that are emphasized include critical thinking, problem solving, communication, and the development of science process skills. Within each lesson, the teacher is provided with a clear outline that explains how to implement and extend the lesson as well as all needed open-ended reproducibles for student use. Students measure a variety of properties and communicate their findings. Also included within this text is a glossary, a table that aligns the investigations to the National Science Education Standards, a lesson-plan blueprint for the teacher, a list of additional resources, and pre- and post- assessments for the unit.
If you're looking for engaging, hands-on investigations for the primary grades, this is a wonderful resource. Although geared toward gifted or high-ability learners, the activities could be adapted to be used with the entire class.