NCERT Solutions Curiosity Chapter 4 Activity 4.1: Let us explore — Malleability

Book page 42 Updated on2026-09-05

Q1.

Recall the chapter ‘Materials Around Us’ in the Grade 6 Science textbook Curiosity and observe the appearances of the above items. Are they lustrous? Also, note whether they are hard or soft and record your observations in Table 4.1.

Answer

Look at each item in good light before you touch the hammer. Try to scratch it with your nail, then with an iron nail, to judge hard or soft.

S.No.	Object/Material	Appearance (lustrous/non-lustrous)	Hard/Soft
1.	Piece of copper	Lustrous (reddish-brown shine)	Hard
2.	Piece of aluminium	Lustrous (silvery shine)	Hard
3.	Iron nail	Lustrous (greyish shine)	Hard
4.	Piece of coal	Non-lustrous (dull black)	Soft, crumbly
5.	Lump of sulfur (pea-sized)	Non-lustrous (dull yellow)	Soft
6.	Block of wood	Non-lustrous	Softer than the metals

Tip: an old copper or aluminium piece may look dull because of a coating formed in air. Rub it once with sandpaper and the true metallic lustre appears — judge the fresh surface, not the old one.

Q2.

Now, place each of these items one by one on any hard surface and beat them with a hammer (Fig. 4.2). What do you think will happen? Do the objects become slightly flattened or do they break into pieces? Record your observations in Table 4.1.

Answer

Prediction: the shiny, hard ones will spread out; the dull ones will shatter. That is exactly what happens.

S.No.	Object/Material	Effect of hammering	What this tells us
1.	Piece of copper	Flattens	Malleable
2.	Piece of aluminium	Flattens	Malleable
3.	Iron nail	Flattens	Malleable
4.	Piece of coal	Breaks into pieces	Brittle
5.	Lump of sulfur (pea-sized)	Breaks into pieces	Brittle
6.	Block of wood	Neither flattens nor breaks	Neither malleable nor brittle

Why it happens: in a metal the particles can slide over one another and settle in a new position, so the piece simply spreads and gets thinner. In coal and sulfur the particles cannot slide; the blow travels as a crack and the lump splits.

Caution: do this only under your teacher's or an adult's supervision, hold the hammer with a firm grip, and keep your other hand well away from the striking point.

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