What is fire?

Fire is energy that jumps around and makes things hot, like when you run or jump really fast.

Fire needs three friends: fuel, heat, and oxygen.

• Fuel is like something you can burn, like a log in a campfire or a matchstick.
• Heat starts the fire, it’s like giving that log a little push so it begins to glow.
• Oxygen helps the fire grow, it’s like air, and we breathe it every day.

When you light a match, the fuel (the matchstick) gets hot from the heat (from the match head), and the oxygen in the air joins in to make the flame bigger. The fire keeps going as long as there’s fuel, heat, and oxygen, just like how you keep running if you keep getting pushed!

If you take away one of those friends, like putting out a fire with water, it stops jumping around and gets sleepy. Fire is energy that jumps around and makes things hot, like when you run or jump really fast.