American Chemical Society
Changing the Density of a Liquid - Adding Salt
Fourth in a set of several little lessons on density, this one compares the density of fresh and salt water. First by demonstration, and then by a hands-on activity, learners find that adding salt increases the density, as is evidenced...
Curated OER
MEASURING THE DENSITY OF WATER
Students perform an experiment to measure the density of tap water vs. salt water.
Curated OER
Saltwater: Nifty Aqueous Colorful Layers
A classic investigation on the density of liquids is explained for you in this lesson plan. Te begin, you prepare water samples of different salinities and then add different food coloring to keep them separated and easily identified....
American Chemical Society
Density: Sink and Float for Liquids
We don't think of liquids as floating typically, but a quick look at any oil spill tells a different story. Lesson explores various densities of liquids and why this fact is important. After observing the density variation, scholars...
Curated OER
Investigating the Effect of Salinity on the Density and Stability of Water
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...
Curated OER
Exploring Density with Salt and Fresh Water: Part 5
This particular lesson was written by the National Earth Science Teachers Association, but density is a concept that you can teach at the beginning of the school year in your life, physical, or earth science classes. It would be fun to...
PBS
Sea Surface Temperature, Salinity, and Density
Earth's vast ocean is full of mysteries! Science scholars discover the big-picture properties that influence its characteristics at different latitudes using a lesson from PBS's Weather and Climate series. After completing a background...
Curated OER
Density Dynamics
Students set up working models demonstrating lake turnover and the formation of deep water masses in the oceans.
Curated OER
The Floating Egg Problem
This is the grown-up version of the classic "float an egg in salt water" experience, plus an experiment in soap making. High schoolers explore density, but more importantly, practice accuracy, precision, and the use of significant...
Polar Trec
Sea Ice Impact
The arctic seas contain currents that are both warm (with high salinity) and cold (relatively fresh water) that circulate throughout the year. Through discussion, a lab, and a web quest, participants explore the impacts of melting and...
Curated OER
Water Density and Salinity
Students observe how different water densities control the depth at which different water masses occur. They explain one fact that they comprehend about salt water. Students comprehend that temperature and salinity affect the density...
Curated OER
Densities
Young scholars explore the concept of density. In this density lesson plan, students determine the density of a crown and a sample of clay. They hypothesize about the densities of 4 liquids they are given including molasses, cooking oil,...
Curated OER
Sea Water Mixing and Sinking
Students investigate the role of temperature and salinity in determining seawater density. They use a Temperature-Salinity Diagram to examine the effects of mixing on density.
Curated OER
Causal Patterns in Density Phenomena
Pupils investigate the relationship between volume and mass in different liquids such as vegetable oil, rubbing alcohol and water. They measure the mass of several different volumes of each liquid and then graph the results as well as...
Curated OER
Freshwater/Saltwater "Eggs-Periment"
Students explore water properties by conducting a class experiment. In this buoyancy lesson plan, students utilize freshwater, saltwater, plastic cups, hard boiled eggs and food coloring to experiment with the floating capabilities of...
Curated OER
Saltwater Science
Students conduct an experiment that shows them how salt water allows things to float. In this salt water lesson plan, students mix ingredients together to create salt water and observe how it makes the oceans dense. They then interpret...
Curated OER
Salt Water Wedge
Students conduct an experiment to observe the properties of both salt and freshwater. They explain why freshwater will stay at the surface while salt water will travel up a river bottom because of density. Students also research the...
Curated OER
Density: Floating, Sinking, and Suspending
Students observe teacher demonstrations that illustrate density. In this density lesson plan, the teacher demonstrates how air bubbles in a carbonated drink can cause a raisin to float and how an egg sinks in fresh water, but floats in...
Curated OER
Specific Gravity-The Relative Density of Liquids
Students explore a hydrometer. In this gravity lesson students construct a hydrometer and create a liquid density column.
Curated OER
What Floats Your Boat?
This open-ended boat building exercise is meant to be part of a three-lesson series on ships. Links to the other two lessons are included. This particular part is mostly a group lab activity in which they build a boat, find its load line...
Centers for Ocean Sciences
Ocean and Great Lakes Literacy: Principle 1
Is your current lesson plan for salt and freshwater literacy leaving you high and dry? If so, dive into part one of a seven-part series that explores the physical features of Earth's salt and freshwater sources. Junior hydrologists...
Curated OER
Make An Egg Float!
Students analyze density. In this density activity, students experiment with floating an egg. Students discover that salt added to water changes the density of the water allowing an egg to float.
PBS
Ocean Circulation in the North Atlantic
Swirling and churning, the waters of the North Atlantic play a vital role in Earth's climate! Discover the many factors that produce circulation using a multimedia lesson from PBS's Weather and Climate series for high schoolers. Scholars...
Curated OER
Liquids of Different Densities
Students compare the densities of different liquids. In this liquids lesson plan, students compare color, viscosity, weight, volume, and graph their findings.