NEW online articles for Primary Science "If you can't stand the heat..."

Blowing hot & cold Why do we blow :- on our cold hands to warm them and on our soup to cool it? Some things feel cool to the touch e.g. metals, stone, ceramic tiles, whilst others feel warm to the touch e.g. wool, polystyrene and your arm. Why is this? If we wrap ourselves in a blanket to keep warm will wrapping a container of hot water in a towel, bubble wrap, newspaper or polystyrene chips keep it warm? What will happen if we do the same with a container of ice? These simple investigations on heat can be carried out using empty soft drink cans and thermometers. Remember - if the testing is to be fair then one of the cans should have no insulation (a control). Those who have access to Concept Cartoons will find that they have an excellent introduction to such an activity with the cartoon on the ‘Snowman’. This activity brings out children's ideas on heat transfer and insulation etc through a discussion on a melting snowman. See below, for an example. Click image to access the web site.

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