Properties of Materials: Concept Map
≈ 24 minConcept Map
Organise the vocabulary, quantities and relationships into a connected model.
This extension applies that lens specifically to Properties of Materials.
An object is a thing; a material is what it is made of. A spoon is an object; steel, wood or plastic is the material.
Every material has properties — measurable or testable characteristics:
| Property | What it means | Test |
|---|---|---|
| strength | resists breaking under a load | hang masses until it fails |
| hardness | resists being scratched | scratch it with another material |
| flexibility | bends without breaking | bend it and let go |
| brittleness | shatters instead of bending | tap it sharply |
| thermal conductivity | lets heat pass easily | heat one end, feel the other |
| electrical conductivity | lets electricity pass | put it in a circuit with a bulb |
| water resistance | does not absorb water | drop water on it |
Engineers and designers do not pick materials by preference — they match the property to the job.
Worked example — a cooking pot. The base must move heat quickly from the stove plate into the pap, so it is made of a metal like steel or aluminium: high thermal conductivity. The handle must not move heat into your hand, so it is made of wood or a hard plastic: low thermal conductivity. The same object uses two materials with opposite properties, because it has two different jobs.
The same reasoning explains a household cable: copper in the middle (excellent electrical conductor) wrapped in plastic (excellent electrical insulator, so the current stays in the wire and you stay safe).
Natural Sciences — Grade 7 — Concept Map: Why are the handles of cooking pots usually made of plastic or wood rather than steel?
Natural Sciences — Grade 7 — Concept Map: What is the name for a material that lets heat pass through it easily?
Natural Sciences — Grade 7 — Concept Map: A learner rubs a steel nail across a tile, then across a piece of glass, and records which surface gets a mark. Which property is she testing?
Name the original topic being extended by this concept map lesson.
Which statement is the best evidence-led starting point for Properties of Materials: Concept Map?