The Shape of Floatation
Source Institutions
-
Twin Cities Public Television
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In this activity (on page 2 of the PDF under GPS: Sailboat Design Activity), learners will discover how the shape of an object, not just its weight, determines whether it floats or sinks. After a ball of aluminum foil sinks in a bucket of water, the ball is opened up into a flat sheet that learners will shape into a sided tray or another shape they may come up with, then placed back in the bucket. If it floats, carefully add pennies until it sinks. Relates to the linked video, DragonflyTV GPS: Sailboat Design.
- Under 5 minutes
- 45 to 60 minutes
- $1 - $5 per group of students
- Ages 8 - 14
- Activity
- English
Quick Guide
Materials List (per group of students)
- a large bucket (5-quart ice cream pail, or even a 5-gallon bucket)
- aluminum foil, in squares approximately 12 inches on a side
- some pennies
Subjects
- Engineering and Technology
- Engineering
- Transportation Engineering
- Technology
- Transportation
- Engineering
- Mathematics
- Geometry
- Solid Geometry
- Geometry
- Physical Sciences
- Motion and Forces
- Gravity
- Structure and Properties of Matter
- Volume and Density
- Motion and Forces
- The Nature of Science
- The Scientific Process
- Conducting Investigations
- The Scientific Process
- The Nature of Technology
- The Design Process
- Invention and Innovation
- The Design Process
Informal Categories
- Transportation
Audience
To use this activity, learners need to:
- see
- touch
Learning styles supported:
- Involves hands-on or lab activities
Other
Components that are part of this resource:
This resource is part of:
Access Rights:
- Free access
By:
Source Collection:
- DragonflyTV
Rights:
- All Rights Reserved, Twin Cities Public Television, Inc., ©2006
Funding Source:
- National Science Foundation, 515566
