Lesson Plan
Curated OER

1st Grade - Act. 19: Will it Float?

For Teachers 1st
First graders drop items into water, and discuss why some things float and others sink.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Will It Sink or Float?

For Teachers 3rd
Learners conduct a science experiment to determine whether a variety of objects will sink or float. They discuss the concept of density, and then make predictions about whether the objects will sink or float. They then conduct the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Water: Float and Sink

For Teachers 1st
First graders work in small groups to observe the tendency to float or sink for a variety of objects in water. They sort the objects and discuss their observations. They use aluminum foil to construct a boat and test it for weight capacity.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Investigating the Effect of Salinity on the Density and Stability of Water

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Water with varying amounts of dissolved salt are dyed and then used to compare densities. The objective is to discover the effect of salinity, and therefore density, on ocean water on the stability of the ocean. Many branches of science...
Unit Plan
University of Southern Indiana

Manifest Density

For Teachers 5th - 8th Standards
There's a lot content packed into the four lessons of this physical science unit on density. From salad dressing to the water cycle and hot air balloons, these lessons engage students in hands-on activities that explore real-world...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Sink/Float Discovery bottle

For Teachers K - 4th
Investigate which items float and which ones sink using this resource.  Learners participate in an activity in which they investigate this phenomena. Then they describe the experimental process, and learn how to display their results.
Worksheet
Curated OER

Floating on Salt Water

For Students 5th
Mixing substances together causes their properties to change. This resource illustrates that concept for fifth graders by having them consider four questions that have to do with buoyancy and boiling point. Learners begin to understand...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Water and Ice

For Teachers K - 2nd
Students investigate how water goes from a solid to a liquid then back again.  In this experimental lesson students conduct their own experiment and see how water changes form. 
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Sink or Float

For Teachers K - 2nd
Using a variety of objects, learners conduct buoyancy experiments. They make predictions on which object will sink or float and test their predictions. They use a graphic organizer to record their findings.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Sink or Float

For Teachers 2nd
Second graders explore floating and sinking and make predictions about whether certain objects are likely to sink or float. They read the story Who Sank the Boat? by Pamela Allen. Pupils loacate rhyming words and discuss the events of...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

What's The Matter: A Sinker or Floater?

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students conduct an experiment. For this water lesson, students watch the lesson "Float and Sink" on an interactive website. Students learn how to test items in water and then work in groups to test their items. Students discuss their...
Lesson Plan
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Teach Engineering

What Floats Your Boat?

For Teachers 7th - 9th Standards
Clay's as good a material as any to build a boat, right? An introductory lesson sets the stage for two activities associated with buoyancy. The first involves building boats out of clay, while the second uses these boats to measure the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Sink or Float?

For Teachers K - 2nd
Learners make and test predictions about sinking and floating, and classify objects according to whether they sink or float.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

To Float or Not to Float - Density

For Teachers 7th - 9th
Students experiment floating a variety of objects in various liquids. They discover how density affects the ability of an object to float and apply the concept of density to solve problems.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Floating Fishes: Boat Sinking Lab

For Teachers 4th - 8th
Cut milk cartons in half to make boats and let investigators attempt to sink them. They add dividing walls and observe what happens if marbles are put into only one of the newly formed compartments. Vocabulary is provided: buoyant force,...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Buoyancy: Integrating Science and Literature

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Integrate science and literature by using the scientific method to test the veracity of the floating peach described in Roald Dahl's James and the Giant Peach. Clips from a Bill Nye: The Science Guy episode about buoyancy frontload...
Worksheet
Curated OER

Science - "Why does it float?" - Exploring the Concept of Density

For Students 6th - 9th
In this density worksheet, students read about density, volume and mass. They then use what they learned to answer the 8 questions on the page. The answers are on the last page.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Barge Building: What Floats Your Boat?

For Teachers 4th - 8th
Students construct aluminum foil boats that float while holding the greatest number of pennies. They investigate the concept of water displacement, record their results, and watch a Bill Nye video on buoyancy.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Will it SINK or Float?

For Teachers 1st - 4th
Students predict whether objects will sink or float in water. They classify objects as sinking or floating in water. Students identify and explain similarities between objects that sink and float.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Sink or Float

For Teachers 2nd - 4th
Students explore water properties by conducting a class experiment. In this buoyancy lesson, students make predictions as to whether or not specific objects will sink or float in water. Students conduct the experiment and record their...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Floating Golf Ball

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Pupils explore density by floating golf balls. They explore having their golf balls float halfway in a container of water and discuss density and its realtionship to where the golf balls are floating. After adding food coloring, they...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Sinking and Floating

For Teachers 3rd - 6th
Students examine why some objects float or sink. In this physics activity, students engage in several mini-experiments which challenge them to draw their own conclusions regarding why certain objects sink or float. An example of one...
Lesson Plan
Cornell University

Buoyancy

For Teachers 3rd - 8th Standards
Swimmers know to float by turning their bodies horizontally rather than vertically, but why does that make a difference? In an interesting instructional activity, scholars explore buoyancy and the properties of air and water. They test...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Floating and Sinking

For Teachers 3rd - 4th
Students 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...