Month: March 2026

Effects of Heat || Science Class

Hello everyone, welcome back to my blog. In today’s science post, I will be talking in more detail about the various topics we covered in science this term. We focused on how heat affects different materials and situations, and we carried out four main experiments to explore this.

The four experiments we did about the effects of heat were:

  • Tea bag experiment (convection)

Convection –

  • Melting ice (conduction)

Conduction –

 

  • Imploding can (contraction)

Contraction –

 

  • Potassium permanganate in water (diffusion)

Diffusion –

 

 

What we did in each experiment –

Tea bag experiment (convection)Flying Tea Bag Experiment for Kids - Coffee Cups and Crayons – In this experiment, we used a tea bag to observe convection currents. When the tea bag was lit, the air around it heated up, became less dense, and rose. This rising warm air created a small convection current that caused the empty tea bag to lift off the table and float upward. This helped us understand how heat can cause fluids (like air and water) to move in currents.

 

What’s convection: Convection means that hot liquids and gases will rise and cold liquids and gases will sink.

 

Melting ice (conduction) –Melting ice beaker Images - Free Download on Freepik We observed how heat transfers through direct contact. We placed ice cubes in a beaker and watched how quickly they melted.  The ice melts faster because they transferred heat from the surroundings directly into the ice. This experiment showed us that conduction is the transfer of heat through a solid when particles pass energy to one another.

 

What is conduction: Heat that is passed on by touch.

 

Imploding can (contraction) – Imploding Coke CansWhen we heated the can on the Bunsen burner, the water inside the can started to boil, and we could see the steam coming out from the top.  After the water boiled for a while, we used tongs to quickly turn the can upside down and place it into the tub of cold water.

As soon as the hot can touched the cold water, the can suddenly crushed and crumpled inwards. It looked like the can was being squashed without anyone touching it. The sides were pushed in, and the can became dented and smaller than before.

This happened to the can because when we heated it, the water inside gained heat energy and its particles moved faster, turning into water vapour that pushed most of the air particles out of the can; then, when the hot can was suddenly placed in the cold water, the water inside quickly lost heat and its particles slowed down and condensed back into liquid, which took up much less space, so there were far fewer gas particles inside the can, creating a much lower pressure than the air pressure outside, and because the outside air particles were now pushing harder on the can than the inside particles, the can was crushed inwards by the air pressure.

 

What’s contraction: When energy is removed, (colder) particles move more slowly. Causing solids, liquids, and gases to get smaller.

 

Potassium permanganate in water (diffusion) – For diffusion, we placed a small crystal of potassium permanganate into water and watched as the purple colour slowly spread throughout the petri dish. At first, the colour was very strong near the crystal, but over time it moved and mixed through the water until it became evenly spread. This showed how particles move from an area of high concentration to an area of lower concentration, eventually spreading out evenly.

 

What’s diffusion: Particles spread out from high concentrations to low concentrations until they are even. Those particles spread faster than cold.

 

 

Which experiment did I enjoy and why –

I enjoyed the tea bag experiment the most, especially watching the empty tea bag lift off the table and fly successfully into the air. It was really interesting to see something so light move just because of the heat from the flame. I liked this experiment because it helped me clearly understand the connection between warm air rising and cooler air sinking. When the tea bag burned, the air around it heated up, became lighter, and rose, carrying the tea bag upwards. At the same time, the cooler air moved in to take its place. Seeing this happen right in front of me made the idea of convection much easier to understand and remember, instead of just reading about it in a textbook.

 

Write up of my favourite experiment – 

Title: Convection experiment / Tea bag experiment

Aim: To make the tea bag fly in the air

Hypothesis: I think the tea bag will rise in the air and disappear

Equipment: Heatproof mat, Tea bag, Matchbox + matches, scissors

Method: pat 1- Set up

  1. First, we got a heatproof mat
  2. We got some safety glasses for protection
  3. Then, we cut the tea bag open, emptying the tea inside. – Just the top – string bit
  4. Open the tea bag to the shape of a 3d rectangle

Part 2 – lighting the teabag

  1. Place the tea bag on the heatproof mat
  2. Light the matchstick over the tea bag
  3. move away from the tea bag once it is lit, as it may fly up in the air,

 

Observation: the tea bag flew up into the air

I think the tea bag flew in the air because of the rising, and the tea bag is light, making the heat particles rise.

 

Thats all for this blog,

Shreeya

 

Contraction Can Experiment || Science Class

Hello everyone, welcome back to my blog. Today in science, we did a contraction experiment.

In this experiment, we set up our Bunsen burner with the following equipment: a heatproof mat, a Bunsen burner, a tripod, a gauze mat, tongs, a soda can filled with 100 mL of water, and an ice cream tub filled with cold water.

In this blog, I will give a method, show a video of what happened, explain what happened to the can, and describe why this happened.

 

Method –

  1. We got a soda can and filled it up with 100mL of water.
  2. Get an ice cream bucket and fill it with cold water (add ice if you want it to be colder).
  3. We set up the Bunsen burner, with a heat-proof mat underneath the tripod and a gauze mat as well.
  4. We placed the can on top of the Bunsen burner, which is on the blue flame.
  5. As it started to boil and we could see steam, we grabbed some tongs and firmly gripped the soda can.
  6. After gripping the can, making sure it won’t fall, quickly flip the can into the cold water.
  7. Once the cold and hot water collide, the can will shrink because there is more air pressure outside pressing the can inwards.

Video –

 

What happened to the can?

When we heated the can on the Bunsen burner, the water inside the can started to boil, and we could see the steam coming out from the top.  After the water boiled for a while, we used tongs to quickly turn the can upside down and place it into the tub of cold water.

As soon as the hot can touched the cold water, the can suddenly crushed and crumpled inwards. It looked like the can was being squashed without anyone touching it. The sides were pushed in, and the can became dented and smaller than before.

 

Why did this happen to the can?

This happened to the can because when we heated it, the water inside gained heat energy and its particles moved faster, turning into water vapour that pushed most of the air particles out of the can; then, when the hot can was suddenly placed in the cold water, the water inside quickly lost heat and its particles slowed down and condensed back into liquid, which took up much less space, so there were far fewer gas particles inside the can, creating a much lower pressure than the air pressure outside, and because the outside air particles were now pushing harder on the can than the inside particles, the can was crushed inwards by the air pressure.

 

Thanks for reading my experiment for today,
Shreeya

Shark Infested Custard – Health Class

Hello everyone, welcome to a health blog post.

Today in Health, we played another game, Shark-Infested Custard. We had to form teams of 5, with one person as the leader. The game involved 4 hula hoops, and we had to get our team of 5 across to the other side without stepping on the concrete. It was very fun communicating with my team and giving them a strategy, as I was the leader. We came second, but it was a joy to play. In this blog post, as in every other Health blog, I will be answering the questions given for the Titan work.

Explain what Te Whare Tapa Whā is –

Te Whare Tapa Whā is a Māori model of health that explains how our wellbeing is made up of four important parts, like the four walls of a house.

  • Taha tinana – our physical health (our body)
  • Taha hinengaro – our mental and emotional health (our thoughts and feelings)
  • Taha whānau – our social health (our relationships with friends and whānau)
  • Taha wairua – our spiritual health (our beliefs, values, and sense of purpose)

If one wall is weak, the whole house becomes unstable. This shows that we need to look after every part of our hauora, not just our body or our mind, so we can stay balanced and healthy.

Here are some full answers you can use and then tweak into your own words.

Describe your activity in detail –

Today in Health, we played….
Today in Health, we played a team game called Shark Infested Custard. We had to get into teams of five, and each team chose one person to be the leader. I was the leader of my group. We were given four hula hoops to use.

We started on one side of the court, and our goal was to get our whole team to the other side without anyone stepping on the concrete. We had to communicate, share ideas, and move carefully from hoop to hoop, making sure everyone could fit safely inside without falling out. If someone touched the ground, we had to go back to the start. My job as a leader was to give instructions, listen to my team, and help everyone work together.

The aim of this game was to…
The aim of this game was to get our whole team from one side to the other using only the four hula hoops, without touching the shark-infested custard (the concrete). The game also aimed to help us improve our communication, teamwork, problem‑solving, and leadership skills. We had to think of a good strategy, support each other, and stay positive, even when it was challenging.

Explain how your hauora was impacted by participating in today’s activity –

My hauora was positively affected during the game as…. This had a positive impact on my hauora because…
My hauora was positively affected during the game as I was able to move my body, talk with my teammates, and practice being a leader. This had a positive impact on my taha tinana because I was active, walking, balancing, and stepping in and out of the hula hoops. It also helped my taha hinengaro because I felt focused, proud, and happy when my team listened to my ideas, and we worked well together.

My taha whānau was strengthened because I was building better relationships with my classmates, encouraging them, and listening to their ideas too. I also felt more confident in myself, which supported my taha wairua, as I felt a sense of purpose and belonging in my team.

My hauora was negatively impacted when… This had a negative impact on my hauora because…
My hauora was negatively impacted when our team made mistakes or when we nearly fell out of the hula hoop and had to start again. This had a negative impact on my taha hinengaro because I felt a little bit stressed and frustrated at times. I also worried that I might not be a good leader if our strategy didn’t work.

Explain what is important to know or understand when participating in a game with others –

It is important to understand that communication, respect, and teamwork are really important when participating in a game with others. This is because everyone needs to feel listened to and included so the team can work well together. We need to share ideas kindly, encourage each other, and not blame people if something goes wrong.

It is also important to understand the rules of the game and play fairly so no one gets hurt or feels left out. When everyone shows manaakitanga (kindness and support), it helps to protect each person’s hauora – physical, mental/emotional, social, and spiritual – and makes the game more fun and successful for the whole team.

Thanks for reading my blog

Shreeya

Marshmallow Tower – Health

Hello everyone,

Welcome to another Health blog. Today in Health, we did a marshmallow tower game. We had to work in pairs or groups of three. As a group, we had to try our best to make it stable and as high as possible. But we could only use 12 marshmallows and 8 sticks. It was very interesting to see how it turned out at the end. Sadly, my partner and I didn’t manage to keep our tower up, but it was a fun experience.

In this blog, I will be answering some questions related to today’s activity. For our blog task, we had to choose a level: Ace, Pro, Legend, or Titan. I picked Titan. 

 

Explain what Te Whare Tapa Whā is –

Te Whare Tapa Whā is a Māori model of health that explains how our wellbeing is made up of four important parts, like the four walls of a house.

  • Taha tinana – our physical health (our body)
  • Taha hinengaro – our mental and emotional health (our thoughts and feelings)
  • Taha whānau – our social health (our relationships with friends and whānau)
  • Taha wairua – our spiritual health (our beliefs, values, and sense of purpose)

If one wall is weak, the whole house becomes unstable. This shows that we need to look after every part of our hauora, not just our body or our mind, so we can stay balanced and healthy.

Describe your activity in detail –

Today in Health, we played a marshmallow tower game. We went into pairs or groups of three and were given 12 marshmallows and 8 sticks. Our challenge was to build the tallest and most stable tower we could using only those materials. We had to plan our design, communicate with each other, and quickly fix any parts that fell over.

The aim of this game was to work together to build the highest and most stable tower we could with limited resources. It also helped us practise teamwork, problem-solving, communication, and resilience when things didn’t work out.

 

Explain how your hauora was impacted by participating in today’s activity – 

My hauora was positively affected during the game as I was having fun working with my partner and trying different ideas for the tower. This had a positive impact on my taha hinengaro (mental and emotional health) because I felt excited, interested, and curious about how to make the tower better. It also helped my taha whānau (social health) because I had to communicate, share ideas, and listen to my partner, which made our relationship stronger. My taha tinana (physical health) was involved too, as I was using my hands and body to build the tower and move around the table.

 

Explain what is important to know or understand when participating in a game with others –

It is important to understand how to communicate respectfully, listen to others, and work as a team when participating in a game with others. This is because good communication helps everyone share their ideas and feel valued, which makes the game more enjoyable. It is also important to understand fairness and follow the rules so that everyone has an equal chance and no one feels left out or cheated. Another important thing is to be kind and supportive, even if you don’t win, because this helps protect everyone’s hauora and keeps the environment positive for all players.

Pictures of what the activity looked like –