Sink-the-Egg Challenge
In this lesson, children will conduct their own science experiments to figure out what will sink and what will float.
Learning Goals:
This lesson will help children meet the following educational standards:
- Develop beginning skills in the use of science and engineering practices such as observing, asking questions, solving problems, and drawing conclusions
- Explore the physical properties of objects
- Use tools and technology to assist with science and engineering investigations
Learning Targets:
After this lesson, children should be more proficient at:
- Identifying, describing and comparing the physical properties of objects
- Recognizing the attributes of weight
- Understanding how to measure using nonstandard and standard units
Step 1: Gather materials.
- Assorted items that will fit into an egg:
- Coins
- Dice
- Feathers
- Gems
- LEGO bricks
- Mardi Gras necklaces
- Nuts and bolts
- Pom-Poms
- Rocks
- Screws
- Small toys
- Plastic eggs (if these eggs have a hole at one end, tape the hole to create a waterproof seal)
- Muffin tin
- Sensory bin to hold water (or a mixing bowl, sink or bucket)
- Towels to dry hands and arms and mop up drips
- Water
Step 2: Introduce activity.
- Fill your sensory bin with enough water to allow the eggs to sink to the bottom.
- Fill the muffin tin with the assorted items and then place the eggs next to the muffin tin.
- Younger children may enjoy sorting items by what they think will float and what will sink. Older children can list the items and then write down their hypotheses and the final results.
- When the children are ready, place an item into an egg and drop it into the water. Ask: "Is the egg floating? Are you surprised by the result?"
- Extend the experiment by seeing how many smaller items can fit into an egg and how many smaller items it will take to sink an egg.
Step 3: Engage children in lesson activities.
- Explain that you will read the book, Vivi Loves Science: Sink or Float, and then the children will conduct their own science experiments to determine what will sink and what will float.
- While reading the story, encourage the children to make predictions about the buoyancy of different materials.
- This challenge is about guessing (hypothesizing) whether the items that the children place in the plastic eggs will make the eggs sink.
- First, tell the children to drop an empty egg into the water and see if it floats. They may push on their eggs to test their buoyancy.
- Then give the children time to investigate the assorted items that will fit into the plastic eggs.
- Ask the children to predict which items will make the eggs sink.
- Give the children more time to experiment with the objects. Ask: "How many light objects are there? How many heavy objects are there?"
- Ask the children to make two piles: objects that sink and objects that float.
Step 4: Engineering vocabulary
- Heavier: Having greater weight
- Heaviest: Having the greatest weight
- Lighter: Having less weight
- Lightest: Having the least amount of weight
- Weigh: To measure according to weight
Step 5: Extensions
- Download this "Will it Sink or Will it Float" worksheet to help the older children record their results.
Suggested Books
- Float by Daniel Miyares
- Floating and Sinking by Ellen Sturm Niz
- Ria and Vik's Explorations: The Science of Floating and Sinking by Neeti Agarwal
- Toy Boat by Randall de Sève
- Who Sank the Boat? by Pamela Allen
Comment on this lesson.