museum at home - floating devices
/
Mamma’s crew love a bit of inventive play - especially ones that involve getting a bit wet! We checked out the Museum at Home guide from Scienceworks and followed their steps to create some awesome floating devices. It was so much fun, the kids didn’t even realise they were learning about density!
Step 1: The first thing you need to do is grab some house-hold objects. We used some building blocks, toy figurines, pebbles and spoons. Get the kids to have a go at putting each item into the water and sussing out which ones float and which ones sink. They should then get a pretty good idea of the materials they should use to help construct their floating devices.
Step 2: Construct your device! Use Aluminium foil and some objects that you think will make your device float extra well. Mamma’s crew found some sticks, plastic building blocks and polystyrene worked well.
Step 3: Test them out! Put them into the water and see how they go. Add some toys - or passengers - and set sail! For extra fun, add some teaspoons - one at a time - to see how many you can get before it sinks. Mamma’s crew made this into a competition to see whose device was more sturdy.
Age suitability:
We think this activity is fun for everyone from 2 to 200 (with parent supervision!). And can take 30 mins or more depending on how many you make!
the nitty gritty
Follow Museums Victoria on FACEBOOK HERE
