How can you tell they’ve got it: States of Matter Vocabulary?

If they’ve got it, you’ll see things like: Correctly sort a set of everyday materials as solid, liquid, or gas and give a reason for each; Use the terms solid, liquid, and gas accurately when describing everyday substances; Use 'change of state' to describe what happens when ice melts or water boils. Or just try it together: If you point to water, ice, and steam from a kettle, can your child correctly call each one a liquid, solid, or gas — and use those words naturally?

Science Matter & Materials Ages 5–7

States of Matter Vocabulary

Your child can name the three states of matter: solid, liquid, and gas. Ice is a solid, water is a liquid, and steam is a gas. A solid keeps its shape.

In curriculum terms

Name and distinguish the three states of matter — solid, liquid, and gas — using properties vocabulary: hard, rigid, runny, flows, keeps its shape, fills its container; use 'change of state' to describe what happens when materials are heated or cooled

Ages are typical, not deadlines — follow your child’s pace. How to help at home →

How to tell they’ve got it

Tick these off as you see them — no test required.

Correctly sort a set of everyday materials as solid, liquid, or gas and give a reason for each
Use the terms solid, liquid, and gas accurately when describing everyday substances
Use 'change of state' to describe what happens when ice melts or water boils

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Try this together

If you point to water, ice, and steam from a kettle, can your child correctly call each one a liquid, solid, or gas — and use those words naturally?

Where this sits on the map

Stuck here? Check the skills it builds on first. Confident? Here’s what it unlocks.

Builds on

Nothing on the map comes before this — it’s a starting point.

States of Matter Vocabularythis skill · ages 5–7

Unlocks

Heating & Cooling Changesages 7–9Describing and measuring changes of state requires solid/liquid/gas vocabulary and the term 'change of state'

Solids, Liquids & Gasesages 8–9Comparing and grouping materials as solids, liquids, or gases requires the naming vocabulary for the three states

Describing Material Propertiesages 5–6Describing physical properties of materials uses solid/liquid/gas vocabulary introduced in the states of matter LANGUAGE node

solid = must come firstdashed = helps

Curriculum alignment

Where this fits in the official school curriculum — our best automated guess, not yet checked by a person.

Show candidate curriculum codes · 1 ACARA · 1 NSW · 3 VIC

Australian Curriculum v9 candidate

AC9S3U04medium confidenceYear 3 · Science understanding

investigate the observable properties of solids and liquids and how adding or removing heat energy leads to a change of state

NSW syllabus codes & stages only

STE-SCI-01low confidenceScience and Technology K-6 · Early Stage 1

Victorian Curriculum 2.0 codes & levels only

VC2S4U04high confidenceScience · Levels 3 and 4 · Science Understanding strand

VC2S2U05low confidenceScience · Foundation to Level 2 · Science Understanding strand

VC2TDE4C04low confidenceDesign and Technologies · Levels 3 and 4 · Technologies Contexts strand

These are candidate alignments generated by semantic matching — machine-suggested and unreviewed (v0.1), not official or verified mappings. For official curriculum content see australiancurriculum.edu.au, curriculum.nsw.edu.au and f10.vcaa.vic.edu.au. Don’t rely on them for registration or compliance purposes.

Nearby on the map

Describing Material Propertiesages 5–6 Grouping Materialsages 5–6 Naming Everyday Materialsages 5–6 Objects vs Materialsages 5–6

All Matter & Materials skills →