This chapter has several simple activities to get students better acquainted with their own transport system as well as exploring the systems of plants. The first activity in this chapter reminds students that materials are made from matter. The atomic structure of matter determines its usefulness for a particular purpose. Students are asked to list all the materials they see around them in the classroom and determine the physical properties of each material. In an excellent activity, students mix some mortar and cement and then test the properties of each.
First students make their own acid-alkali indicators out of red cabbage and flower petals.
Then they investigate household acids and alkalis. The measurement of pH is introduced through an investigation of soil and the importance of pH to growing healthy plants. By focusing on the bicycle this chapter explains the physics of speed and motion. A simple case study is described before students begin their own investigations. Australia's Natural Resources Students discover that familiar objects are made from various components and each of these components has its origin as a natural resource.