---
title: "Matter Is Made of Particles"
description: "Develop a model to describe that matter is made of particles too small to be seen, and that this explains properties of solids, liquids, and gases"
canonical: https://lightmysky.com/learn/science/matter-is-made-of-particles-mt_ylruY6VhOf
source: https://lightmysky.com/learn/science/matter-is-made-of-particles-mt_ylruY6VhOf.md
retrieved: 2026-10-19
---

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# Matter Is Made of Particles

Develop a model to describe that matter is made of particles too small to be seen, and that this explains properties of solids, liquids, and gases

Subject: Science · Area: Matter & Materials · Ages 10 to 11
Page: https://lightmysky.com/learn/science/matter-is-made-of-particles-mt_ylruY6VhOf

## Ready when they can

- Describe matter as made of particles too small to see with the naked eye
- Use a particle model to explain differences: particles tightly packed (solid), loosely arranged (liquid), spread far apart (gas)
- Use the particle model to explain a state change (e.g. heating makes particles move faster and spread apart)

## Lesson: Matter Is Made of Tiny Particles

Look around you. Your desk, the water in your cup, even the air you breathe. All of it is matter, and all matter is built from tiny particles. These particles are so small that no eye, not even with a magnifying glass, can spot a single one.

*(drawing: In a solid, particles line up close together in a tight, orderly pattern, like this grid. That is why a solid keeps its shape.)*

**Example.** Ice, water, and steam are all made of the same particles. In ice (solid), the particles are packed in a tight pattern. When it melts into water (liquid), the same particles stay close but can slide past each other. When it boils into steam (gas), the particles fly far apart and spread through the room.

**Tip.** You already know how to draw solid, liquid, and gas particles. Remember: the particles don't change size when something melts or boils. Only the space between them changes.

**Recap.** Everything is made of particles too small to see, and how tightly packed they are decides whether something is a solid, liquid, or gas.

## Practice

8 questions on this page, each with its working shown.

## Needs first

- [Drawing Particle Diagrams](https://lightmysky.com/learn/science/drawing-particle-diagrams-mt_htAYR-iCFF)
- [Heating & Cooling Changes](https://lightmysky.com/learn/science/heating-and-cooling-changes-mt_Pl-nsjYGZ3)
- [Solids, Liquids & Gases](https://lightmysky.com/learn/science/solids-liquids-and-gases-mt_YQkUdIHO8L)

## Opens up

- [The Particle Model](https://lightmysky.com/learn/science/the-particle-model-mt_b6kZgqolEd)
- [Conservation of Mass](https://lightmysky.com/learn/science/conservation-of-mass-mt_ehC1wsdmUz)