Properties of water

High school (ages 12+)
Environment & Earth

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/properties-of-water

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the formula?H2O
2. What is the molecular polarity?Due to uneven electron distribution, creating partial charges
3. What makes water special compared to other liquids?Water has a unique shape where the oxygen atom pulls electrons more strongly than the hydrogen atoms, making it polar. This polarity lets water molecules form many hydrogen bonds, giving it high boiling and melting points for its size.
4. Why does ice float on water?When water freezes, hydrogen bonds arrange the molecules into a spread-out lattice. This makes ice less dense than liquid water, so it floats on top.

Electronegativity: The tendency of an atom to attract a bonding pair of electrons.
Intermolecular Forces: Attractive forces between neighboring molecules.
Autoionization: The process where a molecule reacts with itself to form ions.
Specific Heat Capacity: The amount of heat needed to raise the temperature of one gram of a substance by one degree Celsius.