Our Sink or Float Inquiry

Our Sink or Float Inquiry

This week we started a new inquiry at the water table! First, we made a hypothesis about what objects would sink or float. Next, we tested our hypothesis! Then, we sorted the objects by objects that float and objects that sink. 

We Wonder:

What objects will sink in the water?

What objects will float in the water?

New Learning:

-“The lock sinks. It is heavy.”

- “The shark floats on the water. It is not heavy.” 

- “The cube starts to sink. It has a crack and water gets in.”

- “The shark floats but it sinks when the water goes in the mouth.”

Consolidation: heavy things sink the fastest. 

New Wonderings:  

- How do really heavy boats float on water?

- What boat can hold the most without sinking? 

- What materials float the longest?

  

This week, we read the book Who Sank the Boat, by Pamela Allen. We concluded that we would need a much bigger boat than a row boat to hold animals. We inquired about the boats at our water table. We wanted to find out what boat could hold the most. First, we estimated how many rocks each boat could hold before it sunk. Next, we tested each boat. Finally, we  tracked our observations. 

We can retell a story at the water table!

Our sink or float inquiry continued

We wanted to learn about different types of boats. This week we read the book Busy Boats by Tony Mitton and Ant Parker.

Our New Learning:

- "There are lots of different boats"

- "Some boats are very big!" 

- "Boats can carry cars and trucks!"

- "Boats float because they are hollow inside - like a cup or bowl"

- "Boat are made out of special materials"

- "Fishing boats have big nets to catch lots of fish"

- "Motor boats go fast in the water" 

We wonder:

What materials do we need to make a boat?

What materials are best for making a boat?

What materials repel water?

What materials absorb water?

We explored different materials at the water table. We found materials that float in the water and that do not absorb water.

"The sponge floats. It is light!"

" The water doesn't go in the rubber"
"The rubber floats"

"The aluminum does not absorb water"
"The aluminum floats on the water"

"The water goes in the sponge but it still floats"
"The sponge has air bubbles in it so it can float"

"This is hollow. It will float"

 Making our boat plans. We are planning to build a boat with materials that float.

Our Boat Investigation:
- The boat made with sponge floats
- Boats made with plastic float
- The boat made with paper sinks. The water gets in the paper
- The boat made with aluminum foil floats 
 

The paper boat sinks