Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Buoyancy: What will float and what will sink

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Students write and explain why an object sinks or floats.  In this buoyancy lesson students demonstrate how items float or sink and graph the results. 
Activity
It's About Time

Mass and Volume

For Teachers 7th - 12th Standards
Don't be so dense that light bends around you; study the relationship between mass and volume instead. Young chemists measure the density of a variety of liquids and solids. A reading passage and analysis questions introduce pupils to...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

What Floats Your Boat?

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Middle schoolers are introduced to the concept of buoyancy. The Video used in this lesson demonstrates and explains the characteristics of objects that sink and float. It presents the concepts of displacement, weight, and buoyancy.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Float Your Boat

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Learners investigate buoyancy, displacement and density.  In this flotation lesson students study the Archimedes' Principle, analyze data and draw conclusions. 
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Make An Egg Float!

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Students analyze density. In this density lesson, students experiment with floating an egg. Students discover that salt added to water changes the density of the water allowing an egg to float.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Science: Different Levels of Density

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Students observe experiments in density and describe the results. In the experiment, milk, corn syrup, and oil are added in different orders to three glasses, while one other glass contains only water. As objects are dropped into each...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Give Me a Tall Ship

For Teachers 6th
Sixth graders develop an understanding of floating, sinking, density, and buoyancy and apply it to the design of testing of ships.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

To Float or Not to Float - A Lesson on Density

For Teachers 7th - 8th
Students observe and experiment with the concept of density. This is done using a simple experiment that helps them to apply scientific principles of observation and proving a hypothesis.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Dragon Boats

For Teachers K - 3rd
Students create a model boat. In this art lesson, students identify what makes a boat float and use milk cartons to create their own boat.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Density Challenge

For Teachers 8th - 9th
Students calculate the densities of several liquids that appear similar.  In this physical science lesson, students go beyond understanding the way liquids of different densities behave to researching how this knowledge applies in...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Vegetable Olympic Swimming: Will it Float?

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students inspect nutrition by conducting a science experiment in class. In this vegetable identification lesson, students examine a group of different veggies and predict whether they will sink or float in a tub of water. Students check...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Wipe Out

For Teachers K
Learners examine the flow of water. They observe and test the properties of water by using sticks in flowing water. The lesson has streaming video, resource links to access, and a good hands-on activity that is clearly described in the...
Lesson Plan
Florida International University

Simulating Microgravity with Buoyancy

For Teachers 6th - 8th
How do astronauts know how to live and work in a weightless environment? It doesn't come naturally! Junior physicists conduct experiments to examine the link between buoyancy and microgravity. Each activity illustrates a different aspect...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Exploring Density with Salt and Fresh Water: Part 5

For Teachers 6th - 9th
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...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Sink or Float?

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Students analyze the relationship between density, buoyancy, and salinity. In this chemical properties lesson, students read a background activity for the lesson and experiments to the topics. Students discuss the questions and complete...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Density: Floating, Sinking, and Suspending

For Teachers 2nd - 6th
Students observe teacher demonstrations that illustrate density. For this density lesson, 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 salt...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Role of Density in Sinking or Floating: Relational Causality

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students consider density and how it affects sinking and floating. Students make predictions, test liquids, and observe why some liquids sink and others float. They perform experiments to determine relational causality and how liquids...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

How Does the USS Alabama Float?

For Teachers 3rd - 6th
Students investigate buoyancy. In this buoyancy lesson, students apply the Archimedes Principle of Buoyancy to the experiment conducted in class to determine how battleships float.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Water Exploration Station

For Teachers 2nd - 4th
Students explore the characteristics of water. In this water exploration lesson, students participate in various learning centers to inquire how water drains and how to increase the flow of water. Students use estimation and measurement...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Floating Soap

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Young scholars explore the density of soap. In this science lesson, students conduct an experiment to find which types of soap will float. Young scholars make a hypothesis and record their observations.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Our Ever Changing Earth

For Teachers 1st
First graders study ways in which the earth changes due to erosion and weathering in this series of lessons.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Cody's Science Education Zone

For Teachers 2nd - 4th
Learners observe a scientific experiment and pose a hypothesis. In this scientific inquiry lesson plan, students make predictions about the combination of alcohol in water and how it will affect a floating ice cube.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Sink or Float

For Teachers All
Students experiment with different objects to test if they sink or float. They predict what the object will do before it is put into the water. They are allowed to play with the items after the experiment is over.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Types of Marine Debris

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Students conduct an experiment.  In this marine debris and environment protection lesson, students categorize trash into piles, predict whether these trash items will sink, float or be picked up and carried by the wind and then test...