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🧊 Ice and States of Matter

Follow water as it turns from solid ice to liquid water to a gas, all by getting warmer or cooler.

lessons

~15 min

to learn

🔬 Science

subject

Ages 6–12

level

Start the course →

What you’ll learn

Water Wears Three CoatsIdentify water as a solid, a liquid, and a gas, and know these are called states of matter.Water can take three forms called states of matter: solid ice, liquid water, and gas called water vapour. A solid keeps its shape, a liquid flows and takes the shape of its container, and a gas spreads out to fill the space. Water is special because we can see it as all three.
Warmer and CoolerExplain how temperature causes melting, freezing, boiling, evaporation, and condensation.Temperature decides which state water is in. Water freezes into ice at 0 degrees Celsius and boils into vapour at 100 degrees Celsius. Melting turns ice back into water, while evaporation and condensation move water between liquid and gas without boiling.
Tiny Movers and Cool FactsDescribe how particles move in each state and explain why ice floats.Everything is made of tiny particles. In a solid they are locked in place, in a liquid they slide past each other, and in a gas they fly around freely. A cool fact is that ice is less dense than water, so it floats, and water keeps changing state as it moves through the water cycle.

Questions this course answers

What are the three states of matter that water can take?

Water can be a solid (ice), a liquid (water), or a gas (water vapour). These are its three states of matter.

What is water called when it becomes a gas?

When water turns into a gas it is called water vapour, which spreads out to fill the air.

At what temperature does water freeze into ice?

Water freezes into solid ice at 0 degrees Celsius, which is the same as 32 degrees Fahrenheit.

What is it called when ice warms up and turns into liquid water?

Melting is when a solid turns into a liquid, so ice melting into water is melting.

How do the particles behave in a solid like ice?

In a solid the particles are locked tightly in place, which is why a solid keeps its own shape.

Why does ice float in a glass of water?

Frozen water spreads out and becomes less dense than liquid water, so ice floats to the top.

Grounded in trusted sources

NASA
NOAA
Britannica Kids
National Geographic Kids

Every Wunder lesson is built from real, reputable sources — never invented.

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