Investigators construct a makeshift balance and compare equal volumes of wax and water. They do the same for clay and water. Then they discover whether the wax and clay will float or sink in water. Ultimately this is a comparison of...

Pique interest in water pressure, demonstrate buoyancy, and explore water displacement concepts with a homemade Cartesian diver. You may want to change the name of the toy, however, as is is not documented the Rene Descartes...

Put the pressure on as your class endeavors to construct an indestructible submersible! By watching a video, participating in class discussions, and the applying the complete scientific process, learners design a capsule that is slightly...

Want to get your students motivated in science class? Given only a piece of aluminum foil, assign groups the task of designing a "barge" that will support the weight of a bunch of pennies.  The group who is able to put the most...

Whatever floats your boat. Young engineers learn about density by measuring the masses and volumes of boxes filled with different materials. Using their knowledge of densities, they hypothesize whether objects with given densities will...

Begin with an introduction to famous deep-sea submersibles. Learners work in groups to gather information on different vessels and then share with the class. Each group then uses water displacement to help calculate the density of...

Middle-schoolers still enjoy playing with bubbles! In this series of eight laboratory activities, science learners explore convex and concave surfaces, angles, gas laws, buoyancy, density and more! 

Groups of young oceanographers get to use action figures to experiment with the property of buoyancy! This memorable lesson plan provides detailed background information, a link to the laboratory worksheet, and thorough instruction...

Have your class explore density and buoyancy using this resource. Learners read the book Who Sank the Boat, and use several items, such as rubber balls, bottle caps, wood, and other household items to conduct an experiment. Using a tub...

Groups of two to four work together to design, construct, and experiment with a boat. Each boat must include all of the major parts of a real ship, be less than 12 inches long, and be able to carry a load up twice its own weight in calm...

Collaborative groups work together with a variety of materials to design an eight-inch canoe that floats for at least three minutes. There is no direct instruction involved in this plan, just a list of materials and a procedure for...

  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.   

Fifth graders experiment with student-made aluminum boats to test for buoyancy. They design a boat and determine how many marbles it takes to sink it while recording their data in a spreadsheet. They design a graph using the data and...

Students work with "ice" in order to gain a practical application of math concepts that evolve into an inquiry-based study. They determine if the dimensions of the ice make a difference in the way the ice floats in the water.

Written to introduce pupils to buoyancy, this activity has collaborative groups work to design a floatable clay boat. They first observe that a stick of clay sinks in water and then are given their own stick to reshape into a floating...

Students investigate buoyancy by participating in a lab experiment. In this density instructional activity, students utilize vinegar and alcohol in beakers and attempt to float different items in them. Students analyze which items float...

Students examine the relationship between density and buoyancy.  In this physics lesson students use Archimedes' Principle to complete calculations on buoyancy and a lab activity.

Learners examine buoyancy.  In this density lesson students form a hypothesis, collect data and draw a conclusion using the data. 

Students investigate Ballast systems in submarines. In this ballast lesson, students conduct experiments that show how a Ballast system works. Students will then create a model of a submarine's ballast system.

In this density laboratory learning exercise, students complete 2 prior knowledge questions, then use the "Density Laboratory Gizmo" to complete several activities, answering short answer questions when finished.

For this Cartesian diver lab, learners explain using text and diagrams how the Cartesian diver works. Students evaluate ways in making their lab design better. Learners make predictions of how changing the variable would change the...

Pupils design a craft that safely floats vegetables across a classroom. The teacher provides some materials, but the child may as well. As the experiment is created, they have to fill out worksheets to keep the actiivity organized. After...

Students elicit data on the water cycle, ocean topography, and island formation in this six lesson unit. The ocean floor and the properties of water are examined through a variety of discussions and hands-on experiments.

Students explore the concept of buoyancy through experimentation. Given materials of various weights and composition, they drop them in club soda and determine which substances sink or float. Students discuss their results in terms of...