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    Home » Primary Science » Key Stage 1 Science » Everyday Materials » Is wood waterproof?

    Is wood waterproof?

    March 22, 2015 By Emma Vanstone 1 Comment

    This is a fun activity I’ve done with a group of Year 1 children this week as part of their Materials topic to investigate whether wood is waterproof.

    We talked about the materials we tested being waterproof or not and if they were absorbent or not.

    Is wood waterproof

    Is wood waterproof?

    Materials

    LEGO house with no roof

    Materials to test – paper, wood, plastic etc

    Water sprayer

    Instructions

    First we chatted about the house needing a roof and what properties a good roof should have. We decided a roof should be waterproof.

    I then asked the children to predict which of our materials would make the best roof.

    We placed a piece of paper inside the house so we could easily tell if the water had leaked through the roof.

    To keep the amount of water used constant we tested each material with 3 big sprays of water.

    Results

    As correctly predicted by the children the paper was not waterproof and absorbed the water which then leaked onto the floor of the house, we also noticed that the paper tore easily when wet.

    DSC_0099

    The wood was a tricky one, as the water didn’t pass straight through the wood to the floor of our house, but was absorbed by the wood, so it wasn’t waterproof.

    The plastic was clearly waterproof, you can see here how the water beads on the surface.

    is wood waterproof

     

    To illustrate the different between the wood and water further, we set the roof to a sloping angle and observed the difference between the wood and plastic. Again the water was absorbed by the wood, but rolled straight off the plastic.

    Things to think about

    How could you improve the accuracy of this activity?

    Should we have used the same thickness of wood, paper and plastic to make it a fair test?

    Extension Ideas

    Could you test to see how strong the different roof materials are?

    Great for Key Stage 1 Science

    Compare and group together a variety of everyday materials on the basis of their simple physical properties.

    Identify and name a variety of everyday materials, including wood, plastic, glass, metal, water, and rock.

    Describe the simple physical properties of a variety of everyday materials.

    Early Years Foundation Stage

    Understanding of the World

    Is-it-waterproof

    Last Updated on August 25, 2016 by Emma Vanstone

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    Safety Notice

    Science Sparks ( Wild Sparks Enterprises Ltd ) are not liable for the actions of activity of any person who uses the information in this resource or in any of the suggested further resources. Science Sparks assume no liability with regard to injuries or damage to property that may occur as a result of using the information and carrying out the practical activities contained in this resource or in any of the suggested further resources.

    These activities are designed to be carried out by children working with a parent, guardian or other appropriate adult. The adult involved is fully responsible for ensuring that the activities are carried out safely.

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Tom Shrill

      July 01, 2015 at 3:59 pm

      Though wood isn’t inherently water proof, there are ways to make it so. All and all though, this is a fun experiment for kids. I am sure my kids would love to try something like this out.

      Reply

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