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Lesson 1 of 10

5 min

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A man swirls a pan of wet river sand. Every few turns, he tips a little off the edge. Why?

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Rice and stones sit mixed in a bowl.
Step 1 of 4
  1. Rice and stones sit mixed in a bowl.
  2. Fingers pick out each stone.
  3. Stones go into one pile — removed.
  4. Rice stays clean in the other pile — kept.

The rule

The man tips away sand to keep the tiny bits of gold.

A mixture is two or more different things mixed together.

We separate a mixture for two reasons:

  • To keep what we want. The man wants the tiny bits of gold.
  • To remove what we do not want. A cook wants clean rice, not stones.

Often both are true at once.

Try the lab to finish this lesson.