Try to clarify that you need a Material for an IconButton.

Fixes https://github.com/flutter/flutter/issues/2369

packages/flutter/lib/src/material/bottom_sheet.dart

@@ -80,7 +80,7 @@ class _BottomSheetState extends State<BottomSheet> {
       onVerticalDragUpdate: _handleDragUpdate,
       onVerticalDragEnd: _handleDragEnd,
       child: new Material(
-          key: _childKey,
+        key: _childKey,
         child: config.builder(context)
       )
     );

packages/flutter/lib/src/material/date_picker.dart

@@ -10,6 +10,7 @@ import 'package:intl/date_symbols.dart';
 import 'package:intl/intl.dart';
 
 import 'colors.dart';
+import 'debug.dart';
 import 'ink_well.dart';
 import 'theme.dart';
 import 'typography.dart';
@@ -403,6 +404,7 @@ class _YearPickerState extends State<YearPicker> {
   }
 
   Widget build(BuildContext context) {
+    assert(debugCheckHasMaterial(context));
     return new ScrollableLazyList(
       itemExtent: _itemExtent,
       itemCount: config.lastDate.year - config.firstDate.year + 1,

packages/flutter/lib/src/material/debug.dart

@@ -12,8 +12,15 @@ bool debugCheckHasMaterial(BuildContext context) {
     if (context.widget is! Material && context.ancestorWidgetOfExactType(Material) == null) {
       Element element = context;
       throw new WidgetError(
-        'Missing Material widget.',
-        '${context.widget} needs to be placed inside a Material widget. Ownership chain:\n${element.debugGetOwnershipChain(10)}'
+        'No Material widget found.\n'
+        '${context.widget} widgets require a Material widget ancestor.\n'
+        'In material design, most widgets are conceptually "printed" on a sheet of material. In Flutter\'s material library, '
+        'that material is represented by the Material widget. It is the Material widget that renders ink splashes, for instance. '
+        'Because of this, many material library widgets require that there be a Material widget in the tree above them.\n'
+        'To introduce a Material widget, you can either directly include one, or use a widget that contains Material itself, '
+        'such as a Card, Dialog, Drawer, or Scaffold.\n'
+        'The ownership chain for the affected widget is:\n'
+        '  ${element.debugGetOwnershipChain(10)}'
       );
     }
     return true;
@@ -27,8 +34,10 @@ bool debugCheckHasScaffold(BuildContext context) {
     if (Scaffold.of(context) == null) {
       Element element = context;
       throw new WidgetError(
-        'Missing Scaffold widget.',
-        '${context.widget} needs to be placed inside the body of a Scaffold widget. Ownership chain:\n${element.debugGetOwnershipChain(10)}'
+        'No Scaffold widget found.\n'
+        '${context.widget} widgets require a Scaffold widget ancestor.\n'
+        'The ownership chain for the affected widget is:\n'
+        '  ${element.debugGetOwnershipChain(10)}'
       );
     }
     return true;

packages/flutter/lib/src/material/drawer_item.dart

@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@
 import 'package:flutter/widgets.dart';
 
 import 'colors.dart';
+import 'debug.dart';
 import 'icon.dart';
 import 'icons.dart';
 import 'ink_well.dart';
@@ -55,6 +56,7 @@ class DrawerItem extends StatelessComponent {
   }
 
   Widget build(BuildContext context) {
+    assert(debugCheckHasMaterial(context));
     ThemeData themeData = Theme.of(context);
 
     List<Widget> children = <Widget>[];

packages/flutter/lib/src/material/icon_button.dart

@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@
 
 import 'package:flutter/widgets.dart';
 
+import 'debug.dart';
 import 'icon.dart';
 import 'icons.dart';
 import 'ink_well.dart';
@@ -53,6 +54,7 @@ class IconButton extends StatelessComponent {
   final String tooltip;
 
   Widget build(BuildContext context) {
+    assert(debugCheckHasMaterial(context));
     Widget result = new Padding(
       padding: const EdgeDims.all(8.0),
       child: new Icon(

packages/flutter/lib/src/material/ink_well.dart

@@ -12,6 +12,18 @@ import 'debug.dart';
 import 'material.dart';
 import 'theme.dart';
 
+/// An area of a Material that responds to touch. Has a configurable shape and
+/// can be configured to clip splashes that extend outside its bounds or not.
+///
+/// For a variant of this widget that is specialised for rectangular areas that
+/// always clip splashes, see [InkWell].
+///
+/// Must have an ancestor [Material] widget in which to cause ink reactions.
+///
+/// If a Widget uses this class directly, it should include the following line
+/// at the top of its [build] function to call [debugCheckHasMaterial]:
+///
+///     assert(debugCheckHasMaterial(context));
 class InkResponse extends StatefulComponent {
   InkResponse({
     Key key,
@@ -156,9 +168,14 @@ class _InkResponseState<T extends InkResponse> extends State<T> {
 
 }
 
-/// An area of a Material that responds to touch.
+/// A rectangular area of a Material that responds to touch.
 ///
-/// Must have an ancestor Material widget in which to cause ink reactions.
+/// Must have an ancestor [Material] widget in which to cause ink reactions.
+///
+/// If a Widget uses this class directly, it should include the following line
+/// at the top of its [build] function to call [debugCheckHasMaterial]:
+///
+///     assert(debugCheckHasMaterial(context));
 class InkWell extends InkResponse {
   InkWell({
     Key key,

packages/flutter/lib/src/material/list_item.dart

@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@
 
 import 'package:flutter/widgets.dart';
 
+import 'debug.dart';
 import 'ink_well.dart';
 import 'theme.dart';
 
@@ -85,6 +86,7 @@ class ListItem extends StatelessComponent {
   }
 
   Widget build(BuildContext context) {
+    assert(debugCheckHasMaterial(context));
     final bool isTwoLine = !isThreeLine && secondary != null;
     final bool isOneLine = !isThreeLine && !isTwoLine;
     double itemHeight;

packages/flutter/lib/src/material/tabs.dart

@@ -10,6 +10,7 @@ import 'package:flutter/rendering.dart';
 import 'package:flutter/widgets.dart';
 
 import 'colors.dart';
+import 'debug.dart';
 import 'icon.dart';
 import 'icons.dart';
 import 'icon_theme.dart';
@@ -330,6 +331,7 @@ class _Tab extends StatelessComponent {
   }
 
   Widget build(BuildContext context) {
+    assert(debugCheckHasMaterial(context));
     Widget labelContent;
     if (label.icon == null && label.iconBuilder == null) {
       labelContent = _buildLabelText();