Teacher’s Guide: H20 FO SHO!
1. Purpose: The purpose of this laboratory investigation is to explore the properties of
water by completing a series of stations. The properties of water are an abstract
concept and this lab creates a more concrete representation. After completion of this
lab, the students will be able to:






Describe polarity of water
Explain surface tension
Identify the differences in vegetable oil and salt as solvents
Interpret and explain cohesion
Give an example of adhesion in their lives
Design an experiment that tests density of different temperatures of water.
This laboratory also covers the Illinois Learning Standards:





ILS Stage H 11 A 2: Interpret and represent analysis of results by
evaluating survey validity and reliability
ILS Stage H 11 B 3: Collect and record data accurately by recording data
accurately in appropriate format.
ILS Stage I 12 A 1: Apply scientific inquiries or technological designs to
explain metabolic processes within cells and between organisms and their
environment.
ILS Stage H 12 B 2: Apply scientific inquires or technological designs to
distinguish the properties of matter.
ILS Stage I 13 A 2: Apply scientific habits of mind to curricular
investigations in life, environmental, physical, earth, and space sciences.
2. Materials needed:
 Computer
 Petri dish
 2 paper clips
 3 250 mL Beakers
 2 500 mL Beaker
 Washable Marker
 Chromatography Paper
 1 cup Vegetable Oil
 1 cup of Salt
 6 pipettes
 2 pennies
 Stirring Rod
 2 Test Tubes
 Test Tube Rack
 Food coloring







Paper Towels
Spoon
6 small Plastic cups
Tap Water
3 different salt solutions (varying amounts of salt in them)
Goggles
http://www.biology.arizona.edu/biochemistry/tutorials/chemistry/page3.html
3. Preparation and Set Up:
 Acquire materials
 Make 3 different salt solutions with varying amounts of salt in each.
 Station 1: You will be using the website,
http://www.biology.arizona.edu/biochemistry/tutorials/chemistry/page3.html, to
describe the polarity of water to your students.
 Station 2: Open the petri dish so that and place lids face down. Fill one petri
dish with tap water and the other with the least concentrated salt solution. Have
paper clips and paper towels next to the petri dish. The students will be
attempting to make the paper clips float.
 Station 3: Put out 2 250 mL beakers and 1 500 mL beaker. Also located at this
station will be two small plastic cups. One will have vegetable oil and the other
will have salt in it. You will need a pipette for the oil and a spoon for the salt.
Students will fill the 500 mL beaker with water, and then divide that water into
the 2 250 mL beakers. They will then pipette vegetable oil into one of the
beakers and stir, and in the other they will put salt and stir. They will record
how water worked as a solvent.
 Station 4: Cut the large chromatography paper into strips. Draw a line in
washable marker about a quarter of away from the bottom. Fill a 250 mL beaker
with a ½ and inch of water. Place the chromatography paper in the beaker.
MAKE SURE THE WATER DOES NOT GO OVER THE MARKED LINE. The students
will be observing adhesion as the ink travels up the paper via water.
 Station 5: Put two small plastic cups out and two pipettes. Label one cup tap
water and the other salt water. Add tap water to one and salt water to another.
Have two pennies at this station also. Students will be observation cohesion of
water on the surface of the penny.
 Station 6: Put the three different salt solutions in three different small cups and
add food coloring and stir with the pipette for that solution. You will also have a
test tube rack, test tube, and 500 mL beaker at this station. The students will be
observing the density of water by adding the different salt solutions to the test
tube and recording their results.
4. Time: This lab will take anywhere from 30 to 50 minutes to complete depending on the
level of your students.
5. Safety Issues:
 Students must always wear goggles
 Students must be careful when handling glassware
 Never ingest any material in lab
6. Pre-Lab Discussion: The previous day the students will have been introduced to what
water is, how life depends on it, and they will be given a brief introduction on the
properties of water via demonstration. For the demonstration you will put water in a
large beaker then put pepper on top of the water. Notice how the pepper floats. Then
you will add a drop or two of soap and have your students observe what they think is
happening on an exit slip. The day of the lab we will review some of the ideas on the
exit slips, and then they will be shown the YouTube clip.
7. Post-Lab Discussion: Depending on how long the lab took the students, the post lab
discussion may be immediately after the lab or the following day. However, the post-lab
discussion will mainly be a review of the concepts learned. Then make a connection to
the extension activity. The extension activity was created to do much of the explaining
about how the properties of water occur in nature.
8. Adaptations for Students with Special Needs: For students with special needs,
prompt them, or read the prompt to them at the more difficult stations. Explain what is
meant by the prompt and allow them to ask questions. Another thing to do is to pair
them with a very strong student and discuss with the strong student that they need to
spend a little more time at each station for the student with special needs.