ExplorerGrades 1–2⏱ 10 min
Sink or float?
Drop things into the water and discover what makes them float.
Standards: 2-PS1-1
1Wonder
A huge ship made of steel floats on the sea, but a tiny coin sinks straight to the bottom. How can that be?
2Explore
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👆 Drag a thing into the water, or tap it
⬆ Floats (0) —
⬇ Sinks (0) —
Try this
- Guess first, then drop each thing in. How many guesses did you get right?
- Which things float? Which things sink?
- Find a big thing that floats and a small thing that sinks.
- What are the floaters made of? What are the sinkers made of?
3Explain
Step 1 of 5
Some things float, some sink
A floating thing stays at the top of the water. A sinking thing goes down to the bottom.
4Practice
Question 1 of 5
Will it float or sink?
5Recap
- Some things float and some things sink.
- Being big does not mean something will sink.
- What a thing is made of matters: wood floats, most metal and stone sink.
- Shape matters too: a clay boat floats, a clay ball sinks.