Young scholars have seen that solids, which are more dense than a liquid, that sinks in that liquid and solids, which are less dense than a liquid, that floats on that liquid. They use a metal boat to float in water. Pupils comprehend...

  Students build boats out of clay to test the buoyancy of the boat in water.  Students break into pairs and construct their boat to specific guide lines, then experiment with their boat in the water.   

Young scholars perform experiments to see if items will sink or float. In this sink or float lesson plan, students work in groups to make predictions, and record the results. After the experiments are complete young scholars make a book...

First graders discuss why some things sink and some float after dropping a variety of items into water.

Students build a boat out of cardboard and tape. They apply Archimedes' Principle to their design.

Students memorize poems and songs to recite and sing at a Fourth of July concert. In this poems and songs instructional activity, students practice reciting 9 songs and poems while holding small flags.

Learners conduct experiments in which they investigate which materials float and which sink. They examine what qualities the materials that float have in common. They carry out a scientific investigation, predict, and test their...

Learners participate in an experiment to determine if a toy boat will sink or float. They make the boats out of different materials and determine its carrying capacity by adding pennies. They graph their findings on a classroom graph.

Whatever floats your boat—with some additional weight. The first activity in a five-part series challenges pupils to design a boat to hold pennies. Using the design process, learners design, build, and test their boats, making sure they...

Students design and contrast a boat made out of aluminum foil. They test the boats to see which boat floats the best using three different solutions and steel ball weights. Students work on their own to construct a boat of their own...

Students explore the principles of buoyancy and Archimedes' Principle and design their own flotation device. They compare the dimensions of a model to the real object to determine scale and analyze the models to suggest improvements.

Learners use simple materials to make model sailboats which must stay upright and sail straight in a testing tank.

How can you determine the maximum speed of a sailboat? A sailing presentation included with a straightforward lesson plan prompts learners to calculate the maximum speed of a sailboat with a displacement hull. The...

Fourth graders, in groups, experiment with density and the displacement of water by creating and designing their own boats and seeing which boat holds the most centimeter cubes without sinking..

Students examine whether objects will sink or float.  For this buoyancy lesson students bring in objects and experiment to see if they sink or float.

Middle schoolers define the purpose of several different types of boats. They develop a list of materials one would ideally use in the construction of a particular type of boat. Students work cooperatively in a group to decide what type...

Lesson 16 is part of a twenty-two lesson unit on boat safety and water sports. Pupils practice the proper hand signals to retrieve a water skiier who has fallen down in the water. It is suggested to click on the resource link at the...

Students design clay boats and test their floating ability. They sketch and record each test different boat designs. They compare their designs to those of native Inuit vessels by looking at images and attempting to determine the...

Don't just sink the boat. Using a closed container as a submarine, pupils experiment to see what to add to the container to make it float, sink to the bottom, and hover in the middle. After finding one option, learners see if they can...

Fifth graders investigate buoyancy by conducting a science experiment.  In this water properties lesson, 5th graders predict which of their different paper boat designs will float for the longest period.  Students conduct the...

Students explore the concept of density by trying to make a penny and other materials float.

High schoolers explore the genre of American literary naturalism by reading,"The Open Boat" by Stephen Crane. They examine the relationship of man and nature through analysis of the characters, narration and descriptive vocabulary.

Students build a boat and make predictions. In this geometry lesson, students design a cargo boat. They must show that the boat they designed can carry the cargo.

Continuing with the concept of volume and its effect on density, learners now work with a piece of clay to see if they can get it to float in water. This is a memorable end to a seven-part investigation of density. Make sure to check out...