'Things which are used to make other things'

'These,' says Virginia, pointing to her tights.....

'are made from cotton and paper is made from a tree.'

'If something is broken,' continues Tatiana, 'you fix it with materials.'

'Some things are liquids.  Some things are solids.  Their names are materials,' confirms Tommy emphatically.

'This,' points out Meghna, waving towards the bookshelf, 'is made out of paper.'

So began our discussion on what materials are.

Then Amelia provided a definition for us.  'Materials are things which are used to make other things,' she explained.

Next we tried to think of as many different materials as possible.  As we were working we reminded ourselves of our definition, by asking the question, 'Can things be made from this?' or by thinking of something and asking, 'What is it made of?'

Between us we came up with an impressive list, including resin and rubber, cotton and wool, leather and bamboo.  And then of course there was wood and glass and metal and plastic.  Although not everyone had heard of resin and not everyone knew that bamboo was a material, nearly everyone had added those last four to their own list; wood and glass and metal and plastic.  Quite clearly, as far as we were concerned, these were some of the more common materials.

So we decided to take a closer look at them; using scissors, glue and a heap of magazines.  A furious flurry of snipping followed, resulting in four separate towering piles of pictures; these were subsequently stuck onto paper to make four separate posters - of things made from wood.....

and glass.....

and metal.....

and plastic.

Next we had a bit of a 'treasure hunt' in the classroom.  Our challenge?  To find as many different things as possible made from wood and glass and metal and plastic.

This is what we found:

Things made from wood

Things made from glass

Things made from metal

Things made from plastic

After looking at the photographs, what would you say is the most common material in our classroom?  And what is the least common (of the four)?  Why do you think this is?