Our fifth-grade students have been conducting science experiments in the guise of art projects (but don’t tell them). After the students decorated their plastic plates with permanent markers, Mrs. Nielson and Mrs. Gray heated the plates using a heat gun.

Here’s where the science comes in…

According to KidzSearch Safe Wikipedia for Kids. “A thermoplastic is a material which becomes soft when heated and hard when cooled. Thermoplastic materials can be cooled and heated several times. They can be recycled. When thermoplastics are heated, they [can] melt to a liquid.  They also freeze to a glassy state when cooled enough.”

As thermoplastics heat, they become soft and pliable. The students carefully watched their plates for any movement or changes in shape before using tongs to gently bend and fold their project to the desired shape.

Just another example of our amazing art teachers integrating art into our curriculum.  Thanks Mrs. Gray and Mrs. Neilson!

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Start to finish – decorate, heat, shape, cool.

Some were more watertight than others.

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Science Core – 5th Grade Standard 1

Students will understand that chemical and physical changes occur in matter.

Objective 2

Evaluate evidence that indicates a physical change has occurred.