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...

Explore the concept of density within states of matter—gases, liquids, and solids—through a group experiment in which young scientists test objects' texture, color, weight, size, and ability to sink or float.    

Students watch the teacher do a demonstration of density with diet and regular soda. Note: try this first, as different types of artificial sweetener have different densities. Students discuss density and volume. They discuss "Relational...

Second graders discuss why some objects float while others sink. They examine various objects and predict whether or not they will sink or float. Students discover the properties needed for objects to float.

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...

How does a scuba diver control whether they sink or float? Scholars observe the relationship between absolute pressure and depth below the surface in an undersea simulation. They control the diver size and depth to center of mass to...

Students explore how density can cause things to sink or float by experimenting with a jar, oil and corn syrup.

Students examine whether objects will sink or float.  In this buoyancy lesson plan students bring in objects and experiment to see if they sink or float.

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.

Experiment with mass and density as scholars figure out what makes things float or sink. First, they watch a podcast introducing these concepts. Be sure to use the comprehension question to test their understanding. Young scientists...

A video and laboratory investigation are highlights to this lesson on acidification of ocean water due to increased atmospheric carbon dioxide. Using bromothymol blue (BTB) as an indicator, pupils analyze the amount of carbon dioxide...

Students participate in an experiment to determine which objects float or sink. They use different amounts of salt for the objects and discover as the salt content increases, objects will float. They record their predictions and what...

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. 

Students predict and explore to discover which objects sink or float in fresh and salt water, predict how salt affect objects, write predictions on T chart, discuss difference between man-made and natural waters, and graph results.

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.

Students experiment to find which liquids are more dense.  In this density and mass lesson, students predict and then test objects to observe and measure their density. students observe which items sink and float. Students complete...

First graders work in small groups to observe the tendency to float or sink for a variety of objects in water. They sort the objects and discuss their observations. They use aluminum foil to construct a boat and test it for weight capacity.

Students use their background knowledge of how scientists work to discuss and predict if a given object will sink or float. They record their predictions on a data sheet. Students test the objects and organize them into floating or...

For this float or sink worksheet, 8th graders solve 1 science/math puzzle about displacement of water; the answer is available online.

Why does a seastar sink, but a jellyfish float? Through a fun investigation, learners examine the concept of buoyancy using simple household items. The challenge: create neutral buoyancy for an action figure in water. With ample...

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...

Learners predict when an object will float or sink based on comparison of density of the object to the density of the substance in which it is placed. The access a website and sketch the object in the first column of their table and then...

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...

Let's go sailing! An instructive unit includes six lessons with multiple activities to teach scholars about density, center of gravity, buoyancy, and the Archimedes Principle. They can complete the final project of building a boat...