Junior high schoolers explore possible theories for the cause of the Hunley submarine sinking. Through hands on activities, they investigate how to create a waterproof seal. Afterwards, they discuss how seals work and various...

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.

Swimmers know to float by turning their bodies horizontally rather than vertically, but why does that make a difference? In an interesting lesson, scholars explore buoyancy and the properties of air and water. They test cups to see which...

Students form hypotheses and carry out an investigation in order to answer a central question: Does soap float? The focus of this lesson is on scientific inquiry, but it incorporates scientific topics such as sinking and floating.

Students investigate ways to find the density of irregular shaped objects. In this physics lesson, students calculate density using its mass and volume. They explain why some objects float or sink in water.

Third graders sort objects into those they think will float and those that will sink and test their predictions. They experiment with clay molding it into shapes that float. They place pennies in them until they sink. They test other...

Tenth graders experiment with floating and sinking objects and heavy and light liquids, using correct terms, like density, to explain what happens.  In this Hindenburg lesson, 10th graders watch a demonstration called the invisible...

Don't just sink the boat. Using a closed container as a submarine, pupils experiment to see what to add to the container to make it float, sink to the bottom, and hover in the middle. After finding one option, learners see if they can...

In this density worksheet, students complete a science lab experiment to determine the density that an object will float or sink in water. Students fill in a chart with their data, answer 4 short answer questions and write 1 conclusion...

Students explore the concept of density by trying to make a penny and other materials float.

Learners construct clay boats and predict whether the boats will sink or float. Students will hypothesize what caused the boats to sink or float.

Middle schoolers are introduced to the concept of buoyancy. The Video used in this lesson plan demonstrates and explains the characteristics of objects that sink and float. It presents the concepts of displacement, weight, and buoyancy.

In this buoyancy worksheet, students read about the principles behind objects floating including density, buoyancy and Archimedes' Principle. Students complete a buoyancy lab where they use a balloon and water and a film canister and...

Students explore physical science by conducting an in-class experiment. In this density instructional activity, students define vocabulary terms dealing with physics and discuss their knowledge of density. Students conduct several "sink...

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...

Will your next buoyancy lab rise to the occasion? Make a splash with action figure divers! Teams of young physicists explore the relationship between mass and buoyancy by adding weights or balloons to achieve a diver that neither sinks...

Students design, build, and test the specifications (water displacement and load line) for a model boat. The lesson focuses especially on integrating design principles with inquiry-based experimental skills.

Learners perform experiments to examine if debris float, or blow in the wind. The effects of these characteristics on the marine debris are then discussed. They determine how a material can influence what becomes marine debris.

Students investigate why some objects float or sink in water. In this physics lesson, students calculate the density of clay ball using a mathematical equation. They write a complete lab report about the experiment.

Students must plan, design, and conduct an experiment that answers the scientific question: "Come up with a question that addresses the factors (variables) of the water and its effect on whether an object floats or sinks."

Students use hands on scientific observation to determine characteristics of wood. They work directly with the materials and record their observations. Students test if wood absorbs water, if wood floats or sinks, and if all wood...

Students measure the properties of two different types of soap and wood and calculate their densities. Then they predict whether or not whether or not each object would float or sink in fresh or salt water.

Students explore the density of soap. In this science instructional activity, students conduct an experiment to find which types of soap will float. Students make a hypothesis and record their observations.

In this density learning exercise, 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.