Partnerships for Reform through Investigative Science and Math

Sink or Float
Sandy Shores
Summary
Students will investigate and discover the types of objects that sink or
Concepts float in water. They will make predictions about which items will
Marine debris can be sink or float and record their predictions on a datasheet. They will
hazardous to animals discover through hands-on experimentation whether their predictions
living in the ocean or on were correct or not. They make connections between what they have
the land. Marine debris discovered and the concept of marine debris in our oceans and on our
is carried to the sandy beaches.
shore from many
different sources Objectives
including wind, waves, • Students will classify materials that float or sink in water.
tides, currents, and • Students will learn about the characteristics of objects that
humans. Materials that either sink or float.
make up marine debris • Students will understand how and why man-made objects
that are transported to become marine debris.
the sandy shore can • Students will understand the ways the marine debris can be
either float or sink. hazardous to marine life in the ocean and on the sandy shore.
• Students will understand how objects that sink or float are
HCPS III Benchmarks transported to the sandy shore through natural processes.
SC 2.1.1
SC 2.1.2 Materials
1 clear plastic tub per group
Duration 1 bag of 6 sink or float objects per group
1 hour (i.e. wood, metal, aluminum, coins, plastic, paper, fishing
line, netting, rubber, etc. )
Source Material 2 paper towels per group
PRISM 1 sink or float worksheet per student
Vocabulary Making Connections
Entanglement
Students may recall visits to the sandy shore when they have seen
Hazard
marine debris and trash on the beach. They may even have
Strangle
participated in organized beach clean-ups on the island. This lesson
Choking
will help them understand what marine debris is, how it is generated,
Drowning
and how it made it to the sandy shore.
Recycle
Teacher Prep for Activity
Fill each plastic tub about
full with water and place on each
group’s worktable. Copy one sink or float worksheet for each
student. Make the bag of objects to experiment with for each group
plus a bag of extra objects in case objects are lost during the
experiment.

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 Partnerships for Reform through Investigative Science and Math

Background
Marine debris is trash that gets put into the marine environment from careless handling or
disposal by humans. Trash can be buoyant making it easy to be blown around or can sink which
makes it easy to be moved by physical processes in the ocean. Marine debris includes all objects
found in the ocean that do not naturally occur there. The most common categories of marine
debris include plastic, glass, rubber, metal, paper, wood, and cloth.
Marine debris comes from many different sources. The main sources are humans,
improper disposal of trash on land, storm water overflow, ships or other vessels dumping, and
many others. The main contributors are humans who visit the sandy shore habitat everyday and
leave behind trash and other materials that can become marine debris. Examples of these items
include food containers or wrappers, cans, cigarette butts, toys, and others. These items can then
be blown into the ocean or washed in when it rains.
Marine debris affects marine life and other wildlife in many ways. However, the two
main hazards (harms) are entanglement and ingestion. Entanglement refers to instances where
wildlife gets caught in or encircled by debris. This can lead to loss of limbs, choking or
strangling, and loss of mobility that can lead to starvation and drowning. Marine mammals,
turtles, birds, fish, and crustaceans have all been entangled in or eaten marine debris and suffered
severe consequences and even death as a result.
There are many ways that we can work together to reduce the amount of marine debris in
our ocean and on our beaches. Recycling, not littering, and doing beach clean-ups are just a
couple of ways we can help. (For further reading on this topic see the resources listed below)

Procedure
1. Read, define, and write the new vocabulary words on your list. Begin the lesson with a
discussion about what types of things the students think sink or float. Ask the students to
think about things they have seen sink or float and make a list for both categories on the
board. Write the names of the items they recall under the correct category. (HINT: write
down the type of material each item is made of. For example, if the students say plastic
bags, then write plastic or if they say coins, then write metal, etc.) (~10 minutes)
2. Introduce the activity by explaining to the students that they will now have a chance to
experiment with different objects to determine if they sink or float. Also, write the
headings found on the student datasheet on the board so students can follow along.
3. Separate the students in groups (HINT: groups of four or five is recommended)
4. Give each group a tub of water, one bag of sink or float objects, and a sink or float
worksheet.
5. Have each group take the sink or float items out of their bags and place each one on the
table neatly in front of them. Have the students write the names of each item in the
column on the left of the worksheet. Then, explain that in the second column they should
make a prediction or guess about whether each object will sink or float. Have students
fold the datasheet so only the object name and prediction columns are showing. (This will
prevent students from starting the experiment before a prediction has been made and
prevents them from confusing these similar columns with one another).Give them a
minute to think and then instruct them to circle the word sink or float to show what their
prediction is. Repeat this process for all six items until the entire guess column is
complete. (steps 2, 3, 4, &5 should take ~10 minutes)

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 Partnerships for Reform through Investigative Science and Math

6. Explain that they should now place each object into the water tub one at a time, following
the order in which they wrote the names of their objects and circle the word sink or float
to show what happened to the object after they put it in the water. (~10 minutes)
7. After they have finished experimenting with each item and recorded their answers,
discuss the results as a group. Refer back to your original list on the board and discuss
which items are in the correct categories and add the items they did not mention but
learned about during the activity.
8. Some students may have found that the orientation and height from which the object was
dropped into the water affected whether it sank or floated. Discuss this as a class.
9. Explain to the students that marine debris can be anything that does not belong in the
ocean and is dumped, put, or dropped into the ocean by humans and gets washed up onto
the sandy shore. There are 4 main ways that marine debris can be carried to the sandy
shore including wind and waves or currents and tides. These may be new vocabulary
words for the students so some explanation may be needed. A simple way to explain the
terms for the purpose of this activity is:
Wind & Waves are found at the surface of the ocean
Currents & Tides are found below the surface of the ocean
A diagram like seen below is helpful for the students to visualize the methods of
movement in the ocean.
Surface:
wind and
waves

Bottom: tides
and currents

(Steps 7, 8, & 9 should take ~10 minutes)

10. After your brief explanation ask the students to think about these four types of
transportation and how they would move marine debris around in the ocean and onto the
sandy shore. (HINT: the students should make the connection that things that float on the
surface would be moved by wind & waves, while things that sink below the surface
would be moved by currents & tides – you may need to ask probing questions in order to
guide their understanding and help them make these connections). Direct questions so
students can make a connection between marine debris items they have seen at the sandy
shore and the materials (i.e. wood, metal, etc.) objects used in the experiment.
11. Now that the students have the knowledge about how marine debris is moved in the
ocean and transported to the sandy shore, have them complete their worksheets by
circling wind & waves or currents & tides in the last column.
(Steps 10 & 11 should take ~ 10 minutes)
12. To end the session, review the following key concepts of the lesson:

Marine debris is any object found in the ocean that was dropped, put, or dumped in
the ocean by humans.

Marine debris can either sink or float.

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 Partnerships for Reform through Investigative Science and Math

Objects that float are carried to the sandy shore by wind and waves.

Objects that sink are carried to the sandy shore by currents and tides.

Assessments
Predictions made
Answers found through experimentation

Resources
www.epa.gov/owow/oceans/debris/
marinedebris.noaa.gov/whatis/welcome.html

Extension Activities
See Human Impacts lesson plan for follow-up field trip and extension activities.

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 Partnerships for Reform through Investigative Science and Math

STUDENT NAME ________________________

Sink or Float??
1. Write the name of each object.
2. GUESS if it will sink or float in the water.
3. CIRCLE your observation once you try it.
4. CIRCLE how you think it moves in the ocean.
OBJECT NAME GUESS ANSWER HOW DOES IT MOVE?

FLOAT FLOAT WIND & WAVES

SINK SINK CURRENTS & TIDES

FLOAT FLOAT WIND & WAVES

SINK SINK CURRENTS & TIDES

FLOAT FLOAT WIND & WAVES

SINK SINK CURRENTS & TIDES

FLOAT FLOAT WIND & WAVES

SINK SINK CURRENTS & TIDES

FLOAT FLOAT WIND & WAVES

SINK SINK CURRENTS & TIDES

FLOAT FLOAT WIND & WAVES

SINK SINK CURRENTS & TIDES

FLOAT FLOAT WIND & WAVES

SINK SINK CURRENTS & TIDES

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