Recognizing Useful and

Harmful Materials
for Science Grade 5
Quarter 1/Week 1
 FOREWORD

This Self Learning Kit will serve as a guide in understanding the

properties of materials to determine whether they are useful or
harmful. It will be your aid as you learn new ideas and enrich your
knowledge on identifying and differentiating things accordingly for
your own safety.

In this learning kit, pupils will gain knowledge in knowing

materials that are safe and harmful. They will also discover ideas
on how to maximize the use of materials that can still be used and
properly dispose the materials that are harmful.

This Self Learning Kit (SLK) is composed of three main parts:

I. What Happened in which you are given a situation or

activities that serv as a review and leading activities to the
new topic.

II. What You Need to Know in which you can find the discussion
part for you to understand better the lesson and
competency that you need to learn.

III. What Have I Learned in which you are going to test yourself
on what level was your mastery on the competency or
lesson.

After complying the tasks given, it is expected that pupils

would master and learn the competency or lesson and apply it on
their daily lives as learning is useless unless it is applied.

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 OBJECTIVE:

The learner should be able to:

• enumerate useful and harmful materials at home and in
school;
• differentiate useful and harmful materials; and
• value the importance of knowing useful and harmful
materials.

LEARNING COMPTENCIES:

Use properties of materials whether they are useful or harmful.

(S5MT-Ia-b-1)

I. What Happened

Hi there, Grade 5 learners!

I am Rue. I want to help
my mother in sorting things
out accordingly. The red
cabinet is for the materials
that are HARMFUL, and
green is for the USEFUL. Will
you please help me?

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PRE-ACTIVITIES/PRE-TEST:

Would you like to help Rue? If yes, then we need to recall on

the different Physical properties of matter for this will help us
decide if that certain material is USEFUL or HARMFUL.

Mission #1

Instructions: Tell whether the following matter is SOLID, LIQUID or

GAS. Write your answer in your notebook.

1. Glass
2. Rock
3. Water
4. Air inside the balloon

Mission #2

Instructions: Identify the characteristic of the following materials.

Write elasticity or brittleness based on the given picture. Write your
answer in your notebook.

1. 2. 3. 4.

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 Mission #3

Instructions: Complete the table below. Write your answer in

your notebook.

Name of material What is it made of? Is it safe or harmful

1. Car Battery
2. Paper plate
3. Plastic containers
4. News papers

II. What You Need to Know

How can we make sure

that a certain material
is useful or harmful?
Why is it necessary to
know the difference
between the two?

Discussion:

We are surrounded with different materials and used some of

them both in school and at home. But how can we differentiate
those materials from useful and harmful?
Useful Materials Harmful Materials
A material that serves its purpose Materials that are toxic
Can be used for other purposes Materials that can cause injury
Materials that cannot be dumped straight
Can be recycled
into a landfill
The table below would serve as your guide.
Can be dumped straight into the
Can pollute the environment
landfill
Something can be recovered Takes too much time to decompose

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 from It
material
is always important to distinguish material from harmful to
useful for our safety. In handling harmful material, you should be
cautious enough and better yet ask assistance from your parents as
much as possible. As these materials can cause serious harm to
oneself if not handled correctly.
There are also materials that are considered waste. These are
materials that have served its original purpose and needed to be
discarded afterwards. It is generally classified into two,
biodegradable materials and nonbiodegradable materials.

Biodegradable Nonbiodegradable
Can be decomposed by
bacteria or another living Do not rot easily
organism
Example: Example:
Fruit peelings Plastic
Dried leaves Styrofoam
Leftover food Cans
Paper and the likes Glasses and the likes

Dumped materials can either be safe or harmful. Safe

waste can be reused or recycled such as paper, cans, clothing,
parts of plant, and food.
Harmful waste on the other hand are toxic or harmful.
Example of toxic wastes are batteries, rubber tires and paint.
These should not be dumped directly to landfill but should be
disposed properly in order not to harm living things.

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III. What Have I Learned

We made it! The room is no longer

messy. Thanks for your help. Inside the
red shelf are harmful materials and in
the green shelf are useful materials.
I’m sure my mother would be glad to
see this too!
Now, go on and test yourself!

Evaluation/Post Test:

Self-Test #1

Instructions: Identify the following materials found inside the

box as to useful or harmful. Write your answer in your notebook.

candy wrappers plastic bags empty disinfectant

drained batteries food cartons empty paint cans
scratch papers plastic water bottles used paint brush
empty shampoo bottles empty hair gel worn out slippers
vegetable scraps empty glass jar worn out rubber tires

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 Useful Materials Harmful Materials

Self-Test #2

Instructions: List down 4 materials that are useful and 4

materials that are harmful that can be found in school or at home.
If it is useful, give example on how to use it. If it is harmful, explain
how you can dispose it properly. Write your answer in your
notebook.

A. Useful Materials Ways to Use

1.
2.
3.
4.
B. Harmful Materials Ways to Dispose Properly
1.
2.
3.
4.

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 Self-Test #3

Instructions: Below are common materials that can be found

at home. Complete the table by identifying each material as
useful by writing check ( ) and ( ) if you consider it as a waste.
Afterwards, list down ways on how to properly dispose or ways to
maximize the use of each material. Write your answer in your
notebook.
Useful Harmful List down ways to
maximize the use of useful
Materials materials or ways to
properly dispose harmful
materials
1. Empty bottles
2. Fruit peelings
3. Expired medicine
4. Scratch papers
5. Shattered glass
6. Empty insecticide
spray
7. Empty sachets of
shampoo
8. Empty box

Self-Test #4

Instructions: Answer briefly.

1. Why is it important to know which materials are harmful and
useful?
____________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________.
2. How can you help minimize the garbage in the community?
___________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________.
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ACKNOWLEDGMENT

The author would like to express her heartfelt gratitude to the

following people who extended their guidance, support,
encouragement, and prayer for the realization of this Self Learning
Kit for without them this could not be made possible.

SDS Senen Prescillo P. Pauilin, CESO V, with his power team in

Negros Oriental to take the lead in making innovative strategy
with an aim to make education functional and available amidst
the pandemic crisis that the world is facing today.

Sir Arnold Jungco, the EPS in Science and Math, for trusting
and giving her the opportunity to be part of this great strategic
intervention which she believed very useful indeed.

Mr. Clidford S. Calijan, her husband; Benford G. Calijan, her

son; family and friends for the much-needed understanding,
appreciation, and love throughout the making of this Self Learning
Kit (SLK).

Most of all the Almighty God for all the blessings and the
opportunity given to share something to others even in a simple
way as this.
Thank you so much.

The Writer

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 DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
SCHOOLS DIVISION OF NEGROS ORIENTAL
SENEN PRISCILLO P. PAULIN, CESO V
Schools Division Superintendent
FAY C. LUAREZ, TM, Ed.D., Ph.D.
OIC - Assistant Schools Division Superintendent
Acting CID Chief
ADOLF P. AGUILAR
OIC - Assistant Schools Division Superintendent
NILITA L. RAGAY, Ed.D.
OIC - Assistant Schools Division Superintendent
ROSELA R. ABIERA
Education Program Supervisor – (LRMS)
ARNOLD R. JUNGCO
Education Program Supervisor – (SCIENCE & MATH)
MARICEL S. RASID
Librarian II (LRMDS)
ELMAR L. CABRERA
PDO II (LRMDS)
BENELMA G. CALIJAN
Writer/Illustrator
BENELMA G. CALIJAN
JANE C. RIVERA
Lay-out Artists
_________________________________
ALPHA QA TEAM
GENEROSE V. ACUZAR
ALICE A. ALATAN
GELISA F. LANGAN
MONA LISA A. ONGCO
BETA QA TEAM
ZENAIDA A. ACADEMIA
DORIN FAYE D. CADAYDAY
MERCY G. DAGOY
RANJEL D. ESTIMAR
MARIA SALOME B. GOMEZ
JUSTIN PAUL ARSENIO C. KINAMOT
ARJIE T. PALUMPA
DISCLAIMER

The information, activities and assessments used in this material are designed to provide
accessible learning modality to the teachers and learners of the Division of Negros Oriental. The
contents of this module are carefully researched, chosen, and evaluated to comply with the set
learning competencies. The writers and evaluator were clearly instructed to give credits to
information and illustrations used to substantiate this material. All content is subject to copyright and
may not be reproduced in any form without expressed written consent from the division.

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SYNOPSIS ANSWERS KEY

Young Grade V Scientist,

you should always remember
that harmful materials can
harm living things including
human being. One should be
careful in disposing them.
On the other hand, useful
materials can still be useful
after it served its original
purpose. If we make use of
them instead of dumping them
right away, we can help lessen
the amount of waste
contributed to our dumping
site. By doing so, we help save
mother Earth.

AUTHOR, ILLUSTRATOR, LAY-OUT ARTIST

Benelma Taub Geronilla-Calijan, 32 years old and a

public-school teacher for almost 10 years in the
Department of Education. She is a Grade 5 adviser
and Science teacher of Grades 4, 5 and 6 at
Tayasan Central School, Tayasan District 2,
Poblacion, Tayasan, Negros Oriental. She finished
Bachelor in Elementary Education at Negros
Oriental State University – Guihulngan Campus,
Guihulngan City, Negros Oriental. She studied
Master of Arts Major in Supervision and
Administration at Cebu Technological University,
Moalboal Campus, Moalboal, Cebu.

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