Melt, Freeze, Evaporate or Condense?

Start with something students can look at or think about: a photo, a short video, a jar on the windowsill, or a question like "what do you already know about physical changes?" Then let them work through it independently after a quick group example, checking in with a partner if they get stuck, keeping a word bank or anchor chart in view so the vocabulary stays available. When you review, ask students how they knew, and let them point to the part of the diagram or reading that told them. These physical changes worksheets work well as a lead in before an investigation, as a way to capture what students noticed afterward, or as review before an assessment.

Name melt, freeze, evaporate or condense for six changes such as a dripping ice cream cone. Heating or cooling can change matter from a solid, to a liquid, to a gas, and back again. The directions on the page read: Read the box. Then, write melt, freeze, evaporate or condense to name the change in each picture. The answer key shows every answer.

Yes, both. We made it for 2nd Grade material properties, and the page works the same whether it lands on a kitchen table or a center rotation. At home, most families go through it together and talk the answers out loud, and that talking is where most of the learning happens with physical changes. In class it runs well as independent work while you pull a small group. Print one copy or thirty, whichever the day needs.

Students learn that physical changes alter the form or appearance of a material but not its chemical identity, cut paper is still paper, melted wax is still wax. For 7-8 year olds, sorting familiar examples into 'physical change' and 'new substance formed' categories builds the foundational distinction between physics and chemistry.

Physical changes are introduced in Grade 2 physical science as part of matter properties units. Most state standards include this topic as a precursor to chemical changes, which are explored more fully in Grade 5 and middle school.

Conduct a series of simple physical change experiments, tear paper, fold foil, dissolve sugar in water, melt chocolate, and use the worksheets to classify and describe each change. Encourage your child to ask: is this still the same stuff, just different looking? That question is the heart of physical versus chemical change.

1 printable worksheet, free to preview. Downloads are included with a ClassWeekly free trial, and every page prints on standard 8.5 x 11 paper.

These are written for 2nd Grade students, roughly ages 7-8. Many teachers also use them a grade up for review or a grade down as an extension, so use the preview to judge the fit for a particular child.

Yes. Each one shows the NGSS code it covers on its own page, so you can check the alignment yourself rather than taking our word for it.