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Materials
- several plastic lids, from yogurt or other food containers
- water table or large container of water
- the books Toy Boat and Who Sank the Boat?
Key Science Concepts
- If you add enough weight to a floating object, it will sink.
Directions
Tell children that in today’s book, you read about a boat sinking, and in yesterday’s book, Toy Boat, you read about a boat almost sinking. Tell children they’re now going to sink some boats themselves!
- Float a plastic lid in the water. Ask, Do you remember what almost caused the little toy boat in the story to sink? (big waves; boats speeding by) Can we make that happen in this water? Have a volunteer demonstrate sinking the boat. (A child might use his/her hands to make waves or to imitate a boat going by.)
- Float the plastic lid again. Ask, Do you remember why the rowboat sank in today’s story? (If children say the mouse, ask, What was it about the mouse and the other animals that made the boat sink?) Can we make that happen in this water? Have a volunteer demonstrate sinking the boat. (A child might rest her hand on it, or place an object on it.)
- Float the plastic lid a third time. Ask children if they remember an animal in the book who tilted the boat. Have a volunteer demonstrate sinking the boat by tilting it.
- Put all the trays in the water and let children take turns sinking them any way they want.
Tell children that starting today, you are turning the water table into a boat center where they can build and float (or sink) boats during learning center time. (Clear away some of the tools from earlier weeks, and replace them with toy boats and boat-building materials.)
