The Floating Ship

Wednesday (18/02/2009)

a) Reason of a floating ship.
* Eugene and Sharlene said it was because of the air a ship has within.
* Jin Nan said it was the powerful sea that causes a ship to float.
* Ze Yan said it must be the evaporation.

b) Experiment: a clay ship.
* We decided to try Sharlene's idea. Each kid was given a clay. They had to be creative at forming a clay ship.
* The ball of clay sank. However, it was tough for them to make a clay ship. They tried and tried.
* Finally only Jin Nan was successful. It floated for a moment.
* However, it sank when some kids accidentaly touched the pail of water.
* As the clay ship sank, the kids started shouting" Not successful! Not successful!"
* I was furious not because of the volume but because of the team sirit.

c) Detention
* The good news was some kids cheered for Jin Nan. They were Jen Ning, Le Xin, Jen Ning, Justin, Foo Soon and Shu Wei. They were allowed to continue with the experiment while the others only watched from the corner.
* I explained that Jin Nan was the only successful kid at this experiment. However, as the detented kids accidentally pushed the pail of water, they caused some water to go into the ship. Thus, less air cause the ship to sink easily.
* They were quite ashamed of themselves and apologised to Jin Nan. I am so glad with Jin Nan as she was able to handle the situation calmly! An improvement.

d) Book: Sinking and Floating
* We read about things that sink and float and their importance.
* Some boats float such as rubber boat, cargo ship and also ferry. Submarines sink.
* Jen Ning said that the submarine sinks due to the engine. I added it's also because of its programmed structure and model.
* Floats and life jackets help us to float.
* When a ship needs to stop, it will throw down an anchor.
* Immediately, Yun Zhe said..."anchor" sounds like "ankle"...haaaa! The class laughed!
* A fishing rod and its thread liner is light. Thus, we need a sinker to sink the bait.
* The class thought of fishing the fish in our school pond.
* Sharlene and Jin nan disagree as the fish might die.
* Thus, I asked the kids to think of suitable activities if they wanna fish!