Once upon a time, there was a little girl named Nikki who loved to play with water. She liked to splash it in the bathtub, pour it into different containers, and watch it drip from the faucet. She was curious about water and wanted to know more about it.
One day, she asked her father, “Papa, what is water made of?” Her father smiled and said, “Water is made of tiny, tiny things called molecules. They are so small that you can’t see them with your eyes, but they are always moving and changing.”
“Really? How do they change?” Nikki asked.
“Well, they change depending on how much heat they have. Heat is like energy that makes things warm or hot. When water has a lot of heat, it becomes steam. Steam is water in the form of gas. Gas is like air that you can’t see or touch, but you can feel it when it blows on your face.”
“Wow, that’s cool! And what happens when water has less heat?” Nikki asked.
“When water has less heat, it becomes liquid. Liquid is water in the form of drops that you can see and touch. Liquid can flow and take the shape of any container. You play with liquid water every day.”
“I see. And what happens when water has even less heat?” Nikki asked.
“When water has even less heat, it becomes ice. Ice is water in the form of solid. Solid is water in the form of hard and cold shapes that you can hold and break. Solid can’t flow or change its shape unless you melt it or cut it.”
“Wow, that’s amazing! So water can be gas, liquid, or solid depending on how much heat it has?” Nikki asked.
“That’s right. And those are the three states of matter: gas, liquid, and solid. Matter is anything that takes up space and has mass. Water is one kind of matter, but there are many others. For example, air is matter in the form of gas, milk is matter in the form of liquid, and chocolate is matter in the form of solid.”
“I get it now! Thank you, Papa!” Nikki said.
“You’re welcome, sweetie. I’m glad you learned something new today.” Her father said.
And they hugged and went to have some ice cream together.
Short stories for kids 