Bobo's Boat
Can clay float?
The story
Plop! Bobo's clay ball sinks straight to the bottom of the river. "Clay can't float, Bobo!" But Bobo has a plan: "Watch me make it float!" Milo, Lulu, Tiko and Kiki join a boat challenge and find out why some things sink and others float.
What your child learns
- Floating isn't about big or small: a tiny pebble sinks, but a giant branch floats.
- Water pushes up on everything in it. The more water something pushes aside, the bigger the push up.
- A clay ball pushes aside only a little water, so it sinks.
- The same clay pressed into a bowl shape, full of air, pushes aside lots of water, so it floats!
Try it together (with a grown-up)
Drop a ball of modelling clay (plasticine) into a bowl of water. Then press the same clay into a little boat with walls and try again. How many coins can your boat carry before it sinks? Stay close to little ones near water, and keep coins away from children under 3.
Fun fact
Giant ships are made of heavy steel, yet they float for the same reason as Bobo's boat: their hollow, bowl-like shape pushes aside a lot of water.
Talk about it after watching
- Why did Bobo's clay ball sink?
- What changed when Bobo pressed the clay into a boat?
- Can you find something at home that floats, and something that sinks?
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The science is real: try the clay test at home and see for yourself. Ball shape, it sinks! Bowl shape, it floats!