1. Ocean Floater
Students will determine how
ships move at great lengths while at sea.
Materials:
square shallow
pan
cork or lightweight wood
water
drinking straw
Procedure:
a) Give each
student a drinking straw.
b) Fill the
square shallow pan with water.
c) The student
will place the cork in the water in the far corner and blow into the straw
while
attempting to make the cork move towards him.
Observations:
What caused
the cork to move?
Did you get
the cork to come to you?
What makes
water move from one place to another?
What predictions
about ocean currents can you make from what you observed from
this activity?
Materials:
plastic show
box
twist tie
tap water
food coloring
3 L hot tap
water
dropper
small plastic
bag
rock
ice cube
Procedure:
a) Students
will write a hypothesis explaining what they think causes ocean currents.
b) Fill the
box 3/4 full of water; place the rock in the plastic bag, fill the bag
1/2 full of
hot water. Tie the bag closed.
c) Place the
bag of hot water in a bottom corner of the plastic box.
d) In the
opposite corner from the bag float the ice cube.
e) Next to
the ice cube, using the dropper, add 4 drops of food coloring.
f) For several
minutes observe the food coloring.
g) In your
journal, make a drawing of what you observed.
Observations:
Where did
the water sink?
Where did
the water rise?
In what direction
did the current flow along the bottom?
Compare your
model to the earth's oceans. Where are the oceans cold? Where
are they
the warmest?
In what direction
do you think deep ocean currents move in the Northern Hemisphere?
In the Southern
Hemisphere? Why?
