Observing Objects Around Us
Class 6 Science · Chapter 6: Materials Around Us · NCERT Curiosity section 6.1
Learn
Look around your classroom: desks, a blackboard, a water bottle, a steel tiffin, a cloth bag, a plastic ruler, a glass window. Each object is made of one or more materials: wood, metal, plastic, glass, cloth, paper, rubber …
The same object can be made of different materials: a tumbler can be glass, steel, plastic or clay. And the same material can make many objects: wood makes chairs, pencils, doors and cricket bats.
Why is a cooking pot made of metal and not paper? Why is a raincoat plastic and not cotton? We choose a material for an object because of its properties: how it looks, feels and behaves.
People in ancient India were expert at choosing materials: baked clay bricks for cities, copper and bronze for tools, cotton for cloth, and glass for beads and bangles. Many of these are still in use today.
Explore: what is it made of?
- Sort each object by its main material.
Remember
- Objects are made of materials like wood, metal, plastic, glass, cloth and paper.
- We choose materials for objects because of their properties.
Quick check
Which statement is true?
- One object can be made of different materials
- Each material makes only one object
- All objects are made of plastic
- Materials have no properties
Answer
One object can be made of different materials. A tumbler can be glass, steel, plastic or clay.
Think about it
Why is a frying pan made of metal but its handle often made of wood or hard plastic?
One answer
Metal lets heat pass through quickly to cook the food. Wood and hard plastic do not let heat through easily, so the handle stays cool enough to hold.
Practice
Practise with fresh questions at three levels (easy, medium, hard), some answered hands-on, with hints and worked answers. Get 4 of your last 5 right to finish the topic.