Change Stories Reading

Every morning, Maria walks into her classroom and sees the empty desks arranged in neat rows. By the end of the day, those desks might be in clusters for group work or pushed against the wall for a reading corner. Maria notices how the room changes to help everyone learn best.

Far away in a quiet garden, a tiny caterpillar munches on green leaves. After a few days, it forms a hard shell around itself called a chrysalis. Inside the chrysalis, the caterpillar changes into a beautiful butterfly and then flies away.

In another part of the world, winter snow covers the ground in a soft, white blanket. When spring arrives, the warm sun melts the snow into sparkling puddles. Those puddles soak into the soil where seeds begin to sprout and grow into tall flowers.

Sometimes change happens in the kitchen. Dani helps bake chocolate chip cookies. She mixes butter, sugar, and flour into dough, then places the dough balls into a hot oven. After a few minutes, the dough changes into warm, gooey cookies ready for snack time.

Change can be planned, like moving desks to work with friends, or natural, like a caterpillar becoming a butterfly. All around us, things change every day, and by watching carefully, we can learn why those changes happen.

Session 1 Discussion: Exploring Change

Objective: Help students think more deeply about why things change—both in the story and in their own lives—and practice explaining causes of change.

Materials:

• Change Stories Reading copies
• Chart paper or whiteboard
• Markers

1. Review the Reading (5 minutes)

1. Invite a volunteer to briefly summarize one part of the story (e.g., Maria’s classroom, the caterpillar, melting snow, or baking cookies).
2. On chart paper, draw two columns labeled “What Changed?” and “Why?”
3. Ask the class to help fill in one row for that part of the story:
   • What changed?
   • Why did it change?

Example:
What Changed? → Snow melted into puddles
Why? → Warm sun heated the snow and turned it into water

2. Guided Discussion Questions (10 minutes)

1. Classroom Changes

   • Question: What changes did Maria notice in her classroom during the day?
   • Follow-up: Why do you think those changes were planned? (Hint: How do rearranged desks help students learn?)
     
     
     
     

2. Caterpillar to Butterfly

   • Question: Why did the caterpillar make a chrysalis?
   • Follow-up: What had to happen inside the chrysalis for a butterfly to appear?
     
     
     
     
     
     
     

3. Seasonal Change

   • Question: How does melting snow help new plants grow?
   • Follow-up: What might happen to the ground if the snow never melted?
     
     
     
     

4. Kitchen Chemistry

   • Question: When Dani bakes cookies, what ingredients change in the oven?
   • Follow-up: How is this change different from the changes we see outside?
     
     
     
     

3. Personal Connection (5 minutes)

1. Ask students to think back to the Warm-Up: one thing that changed today in our classroom or on the way to school.
2. Turn and talk with a partner:
   • What changed?
   • Why did it happen?
3. Invite 2–3 pairs to share with the whole class.

4. Wrap-Up (3 minutes)

• Summarize: Changes can be natural (like seasons, caterpillars) or planned (like moving desks, baking cookies).
• Emphasize that scientists (and curious learners) watch carefully to ask “Why did that change happen?”
• Tell students we’ll use these thinking skills again in our next session to explore even more changes!

Change Observation Worksheet

Work with a partner to observe and explain a change you notice at school.

1. Draw the Change

In the box below, draw a picture of one change you observed at school today (for example, leaves falling, chairs being moved, or water dripping).

2. Describe What Changed

Write one sentence that tells what changed.

3. Explain Why It Changed

Write one sentence that tells why you think this change happened.

Change Match Game Cards

Use these cards for a matching game. Split into two piles: Scenario Cards and Before/After Cards. Students match each scenario to its correct before and after description.

Scenario Cards (6 cards)

1. Ice Melting
2. Caterpillar to Butterfly
3. Desk Rearrangement
4. Cookie Baking
5. Falling Leaves
6. Snow Melting

Before/After Cards (12 cards)

Session 2 Warm Up: Changes and Predictions

Time: 5 minutes

1. Think back to our last lesson on change.

   • Write down two changes you remember discussing or observing.
     
     
     
     
     
     
     

2. Turn to a partner and share your two changes.

   • Listen to your partner’s ideas and add one new change to your list if you hear something you missed.
     
     
     
     
     
     
     

3. Now, looking at our lesson title “Why Things Change”, predict one new example of change we might explore today.

   • Write one prediction below.
     
     
     
     
     
     
     

4. Volunteers: Share your prediction with the class!

   • We’ll check these predictions during today’s activities.

Change Exploration Reading

Every day, things around us change in different ways. Some changes are called physical changes, and some are called chemical changes. Let’s look at three common kinds of change: melting, dissolving, and bubbling.

Melting

On a hot day, an ice cube left in the sun turns into water. At first, the ice is hard and cold. As it warms up, it becomes liquid. This change from solid to liquid is called melting. The ice didn’t turn into a new substance—it just changed its shape and form.

Dissolving

When you stir sugar into a glass of water, the sugar seems to disappear. The tiny sugar grains mix with the water and form a sweet solution. This is called dissolving. Even though you can’t see the sugar anymore, it’s still there, making the water taste sweet. Dissolving is another kind of physical change.

Bubbling (Chemical Change)

Put baking soda into a cup, then pour some vinegar on top. Immediately, bubbles form and fizz! The baking soda and vinegar react to make a new substance called carbon dioxide gas. This bubbling is a sign of a chemical change, because the ingredients turn into something different—from solid powder and liquid vinegar into gas bubbles and liquid leftover.

Watch carefully:

• Does the ice disappear when it melts? (No, it just changes form.)
• Can you get the sugar back if the water dries up? (Yes, the sugar will stay behind.)
• What new things appear when baking soda and vinegar mix? (Bubbles of gas.)

By noticing these changes and asking, “Why did that happen?,” we learn how the world around us works!

Session 2 Discussion: Understanding Types of Change

Objective: Identify and distinguish natural, physical, and chemical changes using examples from our reading.

Materials:

• Change Exploration Reading copies
• Chart paper or whiteboard
• Markers

1. Chart the Examples (5 minutes)

1. On chart paper, draw a table with three columns:

2. Invite students to help fill in one row at a time:
   • What changed?
   • Type of change? (Hint: Natural = happens in the environment; Physical = same substance; Chemical = new substance created)
   • Why did it happen?

2. Guided Questions (10 minutes)

1. Natural vs. Physical
   • Question: Is melting ice always a natural change? Can you think of a physical change that isn’t natural?
   • Follow-up: How is dissolving sugar in water similar to melting ice? How is it different?

2. Physical Changes in Daily Life
   • Question: Besides our reading, what is another example of a physical change you see at home or school?
   • Follow-up: Why do scientists call these changes “physical” even though the substance may look different?

3. Chemical Changes Observations
   • Question: How did you know the baking soda and vinegar reaction was a chemical change?
   • Follow-up: What new substance formed, and how can you tell it’s different from the original ingredients?

3. Personal Examples (5 minutes)

1. Think of one physical change and one chemical change you’ve observed recently.
   • Physical change: _________________________
   • Chemical change: _________________________

2. Turn and talk with a partner. Compare your examples and explain why each fits its category.
3. Invite 2–3 pairs to share their examples with the class.

4. Wrap-Up (3 minutes)

• Summarize:
  • Natural changes happen without our actions (e.g., ice melting in the sun).
  • Physical changes alter the form but not the substance (e.g., sugar dissolving).
  • Chemical changes create new substances (e.g., baking soda + vinegar making carbon dioxide).
• Emphasize that asking “Why did that change happen?” helps us understand and classify changes in the world around us.

Change Experiment Worksheet

Group Members: _________________________ Date: ____________

Experiment 1: Salt on Ice Cube

Procedure: Sprinkle a small pinch of salt on your ice cube and watch what happens.

1. What did you predict would happen when you added salt?

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2. Observations: What did you see, hear, or feel? Describe or draw below.
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   

3. What changed? Write one sentence describing the change.

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4. Why did this change happen? Explain in one sentence.

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Experiment 2: Baking Soda and Vinegar

Procedure: Place a spoonful of baking soda in a cup and pour vinegar on top.

1. What did you predict would happen when baking soda and vinegar mixed?

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2. Observations: Describe or draw what you saw and heard.
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   

3. What changed? Write one sentence describing the change you observed.

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4. Why did this change happen? Explain in one sentence what caused the bubbling.

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Reflection

1. Which experiment showed a physical change? Why?

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2. Which experiment showed a chemical change? Why?

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Change Charades Game Cards

Use these cards for a charades game. Divide students into teams. One student from each team picks a card and silently acts out the change described. Teammates guess the change and explain why it happened.

How to Play

1. Shuffle the cards and place them face down.
2. A student draws a card and acts out the scenario—no words or sounds!
3. Teammates guess the scenario and name the type of change (natural, physical, or chemical) and explain the cause.
4. Rotate until all cards have been used or time is up.

Charades Cards (10 cards)

1. Ice cube melting into water
2. Sugar dissolving in a glass of water
3. Caterpillar forming a chrysalis
4. Butterfly emerging from a chrysalis
5. Desks being rearranged from rows to clusters
6. Cookie dough transforming into baked cookies
7. Leaves falling off a tree
8. Snow melting into puddles
9. Baking soda and vinegar bubbling and fizzing
10. Morning dew turning into sunshine (water evaporating)

Session 2 Quiz Answer Key

Use this key to grade Session 2 Quiz. Provide full credit for correct multiple-choice answers and evaluate open-response items using the guidelines below.

Question 1

Prompt: Which of the following is an example of a physical change?
A. An ice cube melting in the sun
B. Wood burning in a fireplace
C. Baking soda and vinegar bubbling
D. A nail rusting over time

Answer: A. An ice cube melting in the sun

Explanation: Melting is a physical change because the substance (water) changes form (solid → liquid) but remains H₂O. No new substance is created.

Scoring: 1 point for selecting A.

Question 2

Prompt: When baking soda and vinegar mix, bubbles form because:
A. The ice in the mixture is melting
B. A chemical reaction produces a gas
C. The substances are dissolving in water
D. Heat from the reaction creates steam

Answer: B. A chemical reaction produces a gas

Explanation: Vinegar (an acid) reacts with baking soda (a base) to produce carbon dioxide gas, which appears as bubbles—evidence of a chemical change.

Scoring: 1 point for selecting B.

Question 3

Prompt: Which scenario describes a natural change?
A. Mixing ingredients to bake cookies
B. Rearranging desks in the classroom
C. Leaves falling from a tree in autumn
D. Stirring sugar into a glass of water

Answer: C. Leaves falling from a tree in autumn

Explanation: Natural changes occur in the environment without human intervention. Leaves falling in autumn is a seasonal, natural process.

Scoring: 1 point for selecting C.

Question 4 (Open Response)

Prompt: Explain why sugar disappearing in a glass of water is considered a physical change.

Key Points to Look For:

• Student states that sugar mixes with water but remains sugar.
• Student notes no new substance is formed and sugar can be recovered (e.g., by evaporation).
• Explanation of change in form (solid dissolves) rather than composition.

Sample Full-Credit Response:
“Sugar disappearing in water is a physical change because the sugar crystals just break apart into tiny particles and mix with the water. No new substance is made, and if the water evaporates, you still get the same sugar back.”

Scoring Suggestion (up to 2 points):
• 1 point for identifying that no new substance is formed.
• 1 point for explaining that the sugar can be recovered or that it’s a change in form only.

Question 5 (Open Response)

Prompt: Give one example of a chemical change you have seen. Describe how you know it was a chemical change.

Key Points to Look For:

• A clear example of a chemical change (e.g., rusting iron, baking soda and vinegar, burning wood, cooking an egg).
• Evidence cited: formation of new substance(s), bubbling (gas), color change, temperature change, irreversibility.

Sample Full-Credit Response:
“I saw a piece of metal iron left outside turn orange and flaky (rust). It’s a chemical change because the iron combined with oxygen to make a new substance, iron oxide, and I couldn’t turn it back into shiny metal.”

Scoring Suggestion (up to 2 points):
• 1 point for providing a correct example of a chemical change.
• 1 point for explaining the evidence that a new substance formed (color change, gas, heat, or irreversibility).

Session 1 Quiz Answer Key

Use this key to grade Session 1 Quiz. Award full credit for correct multiple-choice answers and evaluate the open-response item with the guidelines below.

Question 1

Prompt: Which of the following is an example of a natural change from our reading?
A. Maria rearranging desks in her classroom
B. A caterpillar turning into a butterfly
C. Dani baking chocolate chip cookies
D. A cookie dough ball turning golden in the oven

Answer: B. A caterpillar turning into a butterfly

Explanation: This change happens in nature without human planning. A caterpillar transforming into a butterfly is a life cycle process, so it’s a natural change.

Scoring: 1 point for selecting B.

Question 2

Prompt: Which example from the story shows a planned change?
A. Snow melting into puddles when the sun comes out
B. Leaves falling from a tree in autumn
C. Maria’s teacher moving desks into clusters for group work
D. A caterpillar forming a chrysalis

Answer: C. Maria’s teacher moving desks into clusters for group work

Explanation: Planned changes are those arranged by people. Moving desks into clusters is an intentional classroom setup to help students work together.

Scoring: 1 point for selecting C.

Question 3 (Open Response)

Prompt: Describe one example of change you read about and explain why it happened.

Key Points to Look For:

• Student identifies a clear example from the reading (e.g., snow melting, cookies baking, classroom desks moving).
• Student explains the reason: natural cause (sun’s heat), human plan (teacher’s arrangement), or recipe/oven heat (baking).

Sample Full-Credit Response:
“Snow melted into puddles when the warm sun shone because the heat changed the solid ice into liquid water.”

Scoring Suggestion (up to 2 points):
• 1 point for correctly naming an example of change from the story.
• 1 point for accurately explaining why that change happened (reason or cause).