Name: ______________________________________________________________
6 th Grade Science
Date: ________________
Period: ______________
Engineering Team Roster:
Decide upon roles within your group: Task Manager, Recorder, Sketch Artist, Discussion
Leader, Material Manager, and Math Specialist – Some students may need to take on more than one role to assist in completing this project
Student Name Job Title
Ship Name: ___________________________________________________________

Introduction:
Have you ever wondered how a ship made of steel can float? If you drop a steel bolt into a bucket of water, the bolt quickly sinks to the bottom. Then how can a steel ship float? And better yet, how can a steel ship carry a heavy load without sinking? It has to do with the density of the ship (including its cargo) relative to the density of water. In this activity, you'll make little "boats" out of aluminum foil to explore how their size and shape affects the amount of weight they carry and how this relates to water density.
Background:
What determines whether an object floats or sinks? It's the density (mass per unit of volume) of the object compared with the density of the liquid it is in. If the object is denser than the fluid, the object will sink. If the object is less dense, then it will float.
With a steel-hulled ship, it is the shape of the hull that determines how well it floats and how much of a load it can handle. On an empty ship with a steel hull enclosing a volume of air, the ship's density is equal to the sum of the mass of the steel hull and the mass of the enclosed air, all divided by the hull's volume: The ship floats because its density is less than the density of water. But when cargo or other weight is added to the ship, its density now becomes the sum of the mass of the steel hull, enclosed air and cargo, all divided by the hull's volume. If too much weight is added, the ship’s density becomes greater than that of the water, and it sinks. Excess cargo would need to be thrown overboard in a hurry or it's time to abandon ship!
Time Breakdown:
Day 1: Design, Pre-Sketch
Day 2: Finish Engineering Ship, Final Sketch, Calculate Mass & Volume
Day 3: Test Ship in Fresh Water and Salt Water, Collect Data
Day 4: Review Analysis/Results, Create Conclusion
Completed Rough Draft (Lab Packet) Due: Friday, October 24, 2014
Final Lab Report due: Monday, October 27, 2014

Purpose of Lab/STEAM Project: to utilize the concepts of density to design a boat hull that can carry the heaviest cargo load of pennies in fresh water and salt water.
Hypothesis: (How many pennies do you think your ship will hold? In which type of water will your ship be more buoyant?
Why?)
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Materials:
 Aluminum Foil
 Tub of water to level indicated
 Paper Towels
 Ruler
 Calculator
 Dry Rice/Beaker (optional)
 Tape
 Pennies
 Lab Packet
Final Sketch of Boat’s Hull
Include measurement of dimensions

Procedures: Check each step number after completed.
1.
After you have constructed your boat hull and completed your final sketch, solve for empty mass of boat. *Record DATA*
2.
Solve for volume of boat using dry rice. Make sure the volume you calculated for the
boat is in cubic centimeters (cm 3 ). *Record DATA*
3.
Take the boat hull and carefully float it in the container of fresh water deep enough to completely submerge the boat.
4.
Gently add one penny at a time. To prevent hull from tipping, carefully balance the load as you add pennies. (left to right, front to back – or port to starboard, fore to aft, if you’re feeling nautical)
5.
Keeping adding pennies until the hull finally sinks. Carefully take out the sunken hull and place it and the pennies on a rag or paper towels. Dump any excess water back into the container.
6.
Count how many pennies the hull could support before sinking in the fresh water
(the penny that sank the hull does not count). *Record DATA*
7.
Repeat this process in salt water. Be sure to only add dry pennies.
8.
Count how many pennies the hull could support before sinking in the salt water (the penny that sank the hull does not count). *Record DATA*
9.
Solve and complete the rest of your data chart.
Data:
Mass of Aluminum Foil Boat Hull ____________________________ (include units)
Volume of Aluminum Foil Boat Hull ____________________________ (include units)
Mass of One Penny (recall from previous lab) 2.5 grams
Table 1: Quantitative Data (Measured)
Box
A
B
Amount of Cargo
Number of Pennies to Sink
Boat
Mass of Cargo
Number of Pennies multiplied
by Mass of One Penny
Total Mass C
Mass of Cargo (Box B) added
to Mass of Aluminum Foil
Boat (from above data)
D Density of Boat/Cargo
Total Mass (Box C) divided by
Volume of Boat Hull (from above data
Fresh Water
__________ g + __________ g =
_________g
Salt Water
_______ x 2.5g = ____________ g _______ x 2.5g = ___________ g
_______ g / ________ cm
____________ g/cm 3
3 =
________g + ________ g =
_________g
_______ g / ________ cm
___________ g/cm 3
3 =

Table 2: Qualitative Data (Observations)
Analysis/Results: (Look over the quantitative data you collected)
1.
Why do you think it was important to only add dry pennies to the boat’s hull?
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2.
What was the density of the boat right before sinking into the fresh water? How do you think this relates to the density of water?
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3.
What was the density of the boat right before sinking into the salt water? How do you think this relates to the density of salt water?
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4.
How did the change in salinity (of the water) affect the buoyancy of your ship?
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5.
If you were able to build a larger boat hull with aluminum, do you think it would be able to support more pennies?
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6.
How do you think your calculations would change if you were able to build a build boat hull using a denser material than aluminum?
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Conclusion Tips:
Answer each of the following questions in complete sentences; these should all be included in your final conclusion paragraph.
 Restate your purpose (in your own words)
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 Was your hypothesis correct or incorrect?
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 Support your statement (about your hypothesis) with data from your data chart/ observations. Explain why it was correct/ incorrect.
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 Identify errors in your lab. (What factors could have affected the data in the lab?)
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 How could the lab been different? (What would you have done differently?)
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Lab Report Checklist
Before you hand in your lab report complete the following checklist to ensure you earn the best grade!
_____ Do I have a title page?
_____ Name of Lab
_____ My Name
_____ Period
_____ Due Date of Lab: October 27, 2014
______ Did I label and include all needed parts of my lab?
_____ Purpose (COPY FROM PACKET)
_____ Hypothesis (COPY/EDIT FROM PACKET)
_____ Materials (COPY FROM PACKET)
_____ Procedures (COPY THE LINE BELOW)
_____“Procedures: See Attached STEAM Procedure”
_____ Data (COPY THE LINE BELOW)
_____“Data: See Attached STEAM Procedure”
_____ Analysis Questions (COPY FROM PACKET – COMPLETE SENTENCES)
_____ Conclusion (USE TIPS IN PACKET TO FORM WELL WRITTEN PARAGRAPH)
_____ Did I include my rough draft (STEAM PACKET)?
_____ Did I try my hardest on the lab?
IF YOU CAN CHECK EACH OF THESE, THEN YOU ARE READY TO TURN IN YOUR LAB!
STAPLE EVERYTHING TOGETHER: TITLE PAGE, LAB REPORT, AND STEAM PACKET