1. Unique Properties of Water
Mrs. McAven 8th Grade Science Riverwood Middle School

2. Properties of Water
What are some characteristics that make you different from everybody else? Maybe you can play basketball really well, or have a freckle on the tip of your elbow, or maybe you can draw better than anybody else you know.
It may seem strange, but each substance in the world has special characteristics that make it different from every other substance. Just like you, they have characteristics, or properties, that make them unique. Believe it or not, water has some of the most unique properties of all!

3. VOGO Buoyancy Capillary action Specific heat Density Surface tension
Polarity
Universal solvent
Adhesion
Cohesion

4. VOGO Words: Adhesion Buoyancy Density Capillary Action Polarity
Side 1 WORD
Side 2
Definition
Example/Sentence
Picture
Where can I find these words? Chapter 2 (pg. 44)
Words:
Adhesion
Buoyancy
Capillary Action
Cohesion
Density
Polarity
Specific Heat
Surface Tension
Universal Solvent

5. UNIVERSAL SOLVENT Water is called the “universal solvent” Definition:
water can dissolve more things than any other substance.
Example:
water can dissolve: soap, sugar, salt, toothpaste, baking soda, etc.
UNIVERSAL SOLVENT

6. Definition:
the ability of water molecules to attract to other substances.
Because water molecules are polar (having one positive end and one negative end) they attract other substances.
Example:
raindrops sticking to a window or glass
water sticking to cup
ADHESION

7. Definition:
the ability of water molecules to attract towards each other.
Because water molecules are polar (having one positive end and one negative end), they attract each other.
Example:
water “dome”
rain drops
COHESION

8. Definition:
when one molecule has opposite charges on each of its ends (one end is slightly positive, the other end is slightly negative).
Example:
Water (H2O) is a polar molecule because its hydrogen end is slightly positive and its oxygen end is slightly negative.
POLARITY

9. CAPILLARY ACTION Definition:
the process that moves water through a narrow porous space
Example:
water moving up a straw
water moving up a plant stem
CAPILLARY ACTION

10. DENSITY Definition: the measure of mass of a substance per unit volume
Example:
ice floating on water
DENSITY

11. BUOYANCY Definition: the ability of an object to float in water.
Example:
floating in the ocean or a pool
a boat
BUOYANCY

12. The amount of energy it takes to raise the temperature of a substance by one degree Celsius
Water has a very high specific heat.
This means that compared to other substances, it takes a big change in energy to change the temperature of water.
Example: The ocean does not drastically change temp.
SPECIFIC HEAT

13. SURFACE TENSION Definition:
the force that acts on the particles at the surface of a material
Example:
Water striders (bugs)
painful belly flop
SURFACE TENSION

14. LAB TIME Liquid Awesome https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HVT3Y3_gHGg
Properties of Water:

15. Unique Properties of Water Mini Labs
Sink’n Lincoln
Water bug
Water Rope
Iceberg
Shipwreck

16. Sink’n Lincoln Predict how many drops of water you can fit on a penny.
What was the actual number of drops you could fit on the penny?
What property of water allowed you to fit that many drops on the penny?

17. COHESION ADHESION Definition:
the ability of water molecules to attract towards each other.
Because water molecules are polar (having one positive end and one negative end), they attract each other.
Example:
water “dome”
ADHESION
Definition:
the ability of water molecules to attract to other substances.
Because water molecules are polar (having one positive end and one negative end) they attract other substances.
Example:
raindrops sticking to a window or glass

18. Water bug
4. A paper clip is not lighter than water, yet it can stay on top of the water. Explain why this is.
5. Explain what soap would do.

19. SURFACE TENSION Definition:
the force that acts on the particles at the surface of a material
Example:
Water striders (bugs)
painful belly flop

20. Water Rope
6. What is capillary action? How does this help plants?

21. CAPILLARY ACTION Definition:
the process that moves water through a narrow porous space
Example:
water moving up a straw
water moving up a plant stem

22. Iceberg 7. Why does ice float on top of water?
8. Draw and label a picture ranking the densities of the liquids in the column.

23. DENSITY Definition: the measure of mass of a substance per unit volume
Example:
ice floating on water

24. Ship Wreck 9. Does the density of the boat affect the buoyancy?
Buoyancy and the Titanic
MythBusters: Water Displacement

25. BUOYANCY Definition: the ability of an object to float in water.
Example:
floating in the ocean or a pool
a boat

26. Assessment Statements
The water is sticking to the side of the glass.
adhesion
2. Water droplets combine together in the atmosphere to make rain drops.
cohesion
3. Salt dissolves in water.
universal solvent
4. When I dropped a rock in the river, it sank.
density
5. On the coast in the summer, the ocean takes a lot longer to heat up than the air and land.
specific heat
Water molecules have a positive end and a negative end.
polarity

27. Water Properties Practice
The suction cup will only stick to the window if I wet it first.
My mom used water to make Gatorade for the team. All of the powder dissolved completely in water.
Water striders are able to walk on water without sinking.
I tried to mix the oil with the water, but no matter what I did the two liquids would not mix.
The window was covered in rain. As the rain ran down the window, the drops came together to make larger drops of water.
Gina’s doctor suggested that she join a water aerobics class for exercise to keep from re-injuring her knee. He told her that the water takes the pressure off of her knee.
The paper towel soaked up the spill in a jiffy.
The log floated down the river.
The blue dye in the water traveled up to the petals of the white flower.
An iceberg floats on water in the Artic.

28. The Properties of Water
CH.2 section 1
Read pgs
CH. 2 section 2
Read pgs
Draw a picture of water molecules as a solid, liquid and gas.
Draw a picture representing buoyant force.
Read the article and answer the 7 questions.

32. How Stuff Works: WATER
What is a dipole? How does water’s dipole molecular structure affect its properties?
Why is water essential to life on earth? Why do scientists credit water with allowing life to form?
How do plants transport water from the roots to the leaves?
How does the Hoover Dam generate electricity? What are the environmental drawbacks of damming a river?
Why does water resist compression?
What is cloud seeding? How does cloud seeding encourage rainfall?

33. How Stuff Works: WATER