Science Club: Buoyancy

This week's science club was about buoyancy. After a brief video on what makes boats float, I set the kids a task: create a boat that will stay up and can move through the water when you blow at it with a straw.

It was really interesting to watch the way they approached this task.  Many of them learned from last week's science club and created their boats out of aluminum foil, but there was a wide variety in the shapes and sizes of these boats.  Of course, I had a couple of large tubs near the front of the room so the kids could test their boats on the open waters.

I intentionally placed this activity after the previous one (make a boat that will hold passengers and not sink) and before the next one (make a LEGO car that can be powered by a balloon).  I wanted there to be a logical progression where possible, and these related activities allow kids to try different methods to accomplish similar tasks. Indeed, I fielded far fewer questions this week than I had last week. 

You can access my buoyancy slides here.