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KS2 MOBILE SCIENCE WORKSTATION
INVESTIGATION WORKSHEET
TITLE – Separating materials
LINK TO PROGRAMME OF STUDY
Year 5 Properties and changes of materials:
 Methods of separating materials
 Reversible and irreversible changes
 Working scientifically (Upper KS2)
EQUIPMENT – In your workstation you will have:
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Beaker, funnel, filter paper, paper clips, magnet
You will also need a sieve, sand, salt, peas, rice, bi-carbonate of soda, vinegar and water
OBJECT OF THE INVESTIGATION
For pupils to understand that:
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Different mixtures require different processes to separate them
Some processes can be reversed and others cannot
INTRODUCTION
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Discuss how different materials can be separated
Establish that pupils know the difference between reversible and irreversible changes
Pupils are told that they are going to mix a number of different materials together and see if they
can be separated
They are then shown the equipment that is available
They are asked to get into groups and they then have ten minutes to come up with a a plan to carry
out one or more of the investigation (during this time they can inspect the equipment)
Each group reports back on their idea, which is then discussed by the class
The ideas are then ready to be investigated
EXPLORING
The pupils are asked how they can ensure that their investigation is fair, but they need to be made aware
that this is NOT a Fair Test, but an Exploring type of investigation. All their ideas about methods of
separation are recorded and discussed.
SEPARATING MATERIALS 2
RELIABILITY
The pupils are asked how they will ensure that their results will be reliable and therefore be suitable to draw
a conclusion at the end of the investigation. All the ideas are recorded and discussed. Once it has been
agreed that the experiment needs to be repeated a number of times to ensure the accuracy of the results
then they can move onto the next stage.
METHODOLOGY
Using everything they have decided upon a straightforward methodology can be produced
For example:
 Sand and paper clips – use a magnet
 Salt and water – use evaporation
 Sand, salt and water – use filtering and evaporation
 Peas and rice – use sieving
 Bi-carbonate of soda and vinegar – cannot be reversed
Safety note: warn pupils of the dangers of tasting mixtures.
Pupils need to put forward their own ideas as to how to separate the mixtures. They need to be able to
explain why evaporation and filtering works. They need to have some idea as to why bi-carbonate of soda
and vinegar cannot be separated. All of this leads to further discussions about reversible and irreversible
changes.
HYPOTHESIS
The pupils are asked to suggest what process(es) should be used for each experiment and what the
outcomes are likely to be.
RESULTS TABLE
Pupils are asked to design their own results table to record the findings of the experiment. Support is
offered to the less-able.
EXPERIMENT
The experiments are then carried out. These might be done by the teacher as a demonstration, by a group of
pupils coming up to the WORKSTATION to carry out one of the experiments whilst the rest of the class
watch or by individual groups coming up and carrying out an experiment whilst the other groups are doing
written work.
RECORDING RESULTS
Pupils record their results in the results table they have designed. They are asked to look at the pattern of
results to see if there are any which do not seem right. If this is the case they are asked to give an
explanation, and an idea, about what to do to ensure accuracy.
CONCLUSION
From their results the pupils are asked to draw conclusions as to whether they used the correct processes
and to think of other reversible and irreversible changes to investigate.
RECORDING THE INVESTIGATION
Recording the investigation is important but should not be a chore. There are many ways in which this can
be done without pupils losing their love of science.