Curated OER
Density Currents
Students study how fluids of differing densities interact with one another, how densities of fluids can be changed, and how density currents transport and deposit tremendous amounts of sediment in lakes and in the ocean.
Curated OER
Density of Glass Fragments
Students explore how the density of an object is determined and determine what a "physical property" is. They demonstrate how science can be applied to police work.
Curated OER
Get Down With Density
Students define density and observe that things that are less dense than water will float. Students find the density of copper, iron and aluminum
Curated OER
Density and Lift
Learners, after reading from a NASA Web-based textbook, demonstrate an understanding of the text by solving problems on density and predicting which density give the most lift.
Curated OER
Can You Make A Penny Float?
Students explore the concept of density by trying to make a penny and other materials float.
American Chemical Society
Middle School Chemistry: Temperature and Density
Observe how heating and cooling affect the density of water. Combine the concepts of temperature, molecular motion, and density to learn that hot water is less dense than room temperature water and that cold water is more dense.
NOAA
Noaa: Boat Building Challenge [Pdf]
Read to find out about the first boat builders. Construct your own boat out of common materials to explore buoyancy.
American Chemical Society
Inquiry in Action: Defining Density
Do heavy things always sink and light things always float? In this introductory demonstration and activity, students are introduced to the concept of density as they explore a rock and a wooden block in water.
American Chemical Society
Inquiry in Action: Compare the Density of an Object to the Density of Water
In this activity, students use tea light candle holders and a student-made balance to compare the weight of equal volumes of wax, water, and clay. Students will discover that since the wax weighs less than an equal volume of water, it is...
American Chemical Society
Inquiry in Action: Comparing the Density of Different Liquids
How do the densities of vegetable oil, water, and corn syrup help them to form layers in a cup? Students will carefully pour vegetable oil, water, and corn syrup in any order into a cup and discover that regardless of the order they are...
American Chemical Society
Inquiry in Action: Changing the Density of a Liquid: Adding Salt
In this activity, students will see that a carrot slice sinks in fresh water and floats in saltwater. Considering the placement of the carrot slice in water and salt water, students will infer that the density of salt water must be...
American Chemical Society
Inquiry in Action: Changing the Density of a Liquid: Heating and Cooling
In this activity, students will investigate whether the temperature of water affects its density. Students will place colored hot and cold water in a cup of room-temperature water to see that cold water sinks while hot water floats. Then...
American Chemical Society
Inquiry in Action: Changing the Density of an Object: Adding Material
In this activity, students see that a can of regular cola sinks while a can of diet cola floats. As a demonstration, bubble wrap is taped to the can of regular cola to make it float. This high-volume but light-weight material increases...
American Chemical Society
Inquiry in Action: Changing the Density of an Object: Changing Shape
Throughout the activities in this investigation, students may have wondered how a boat made out of steel, which is more dense than water, can float. This activity addresses that question. Students will see that changing the shape of an...
Georgia Department of Education
Ga Virtual Learning: Chemical Oceanography
Students study the chemical characteristics of the World Ocean, water chemistry, element cycles, and chemical resources in this multi-media learning module.
Georgia Department of Education
Ga Virtual Learning: Physical Oceanography
A student learning module with a focus on the relationship of temperature and salinity with density, ocean-influenced weather patterns, and how light and sound move through ocean water.
University of Oregon
Welcome to the Pressure Chamber
This site has an online experiment for testing the ideal gas law.
Science Buddies
Science Buddies: Project Ideas: How Much Sugar Is Really in That Soda?
In this science fair project, use a precision hydrometer to measure the amount of sugar in soda. The Science Buddies project ideas are set up consistently beginning with an abstract, objective, and introduction, followed by a section on...
Science Buddies
Science Buddies: Project Ideas: What Makes Foams Stand Up Straight
In this food science fair project, students will determine which foods make good edible foams, with high volume and longevity. The Science Buddies project ideas are set up consistently beginning with an abstract, objective, and...
Science Buddies
Science Buddies: Buoyancy of Floating Cylinders
This project presents an interesting puzzle. A disk of wood will float face-up, that is, with its circular cross-section parallel to the surface of the water. A long log of wood, however, floats with the circular cross-section...
Science Buddies
Science Buddies: Sand Structure: Measuring Density and Porosity of Sand
For many kids, a day at the beach would not be complete without building a sandcastle. Have you ever wondered how it is that you can pack sand into a mold for a sandcastle? Do some kinds of sand pack better than others? This project will...
Science Buddies
Science Buddies: Ocean Currents: Modeling 'Global Conveyor Belt' in Your Kitchen
Ocean currents have a profound effect on the climates of the continents, especially those regions bordering on the ocean. The Gulf Stream makes northwest Europe much more temperate than any other region at the same latitude, and the...
Science Education Resource Center at Carleton College
Serc: Investigating Rocks: Seeing Your School's Area
In this earth science lab, students will find, identify, and create a visual presentation of the rocks that are found around their school. They will determine the mass, volume, density, color, texture, and hypothesize what each rock is....
Science Education Resource Center at Carleton College
Serc: Investigating the Effects of Density and Volume of a Cartesian Diver
In this lesson, young scholars will investigate why the Cartesian diver dives and rises in a 2 liter bottle. They will also, through their own discovery, come up with a question and then change one variable and record their results....