supplemental stem

aluminum penny boats

This weeks supplemental STEM project here at museum is one that is easy to recreate at home and with a little imagination has the opportunity to take us anywhere. Even out to the stormy seas! This project is pretty simple and only requires a couple of materials to get started. You will need...
​

• Aluminum foil 
• Pennies (between 100-150, if you don't have pennies you can use rice, cereal, etc. these materials just are not reusable. Whatever you use try to make them as close in weight as much as possible.)
• A bucket half way full with water 
• For a more advance experiment you will also need a bouncy ball as well as a yard stick.

Your challenge is to see how many pennies (or penny substitutes) your boat can hold before it sinks to the bottom of the bucket. 

STEP BY STEP INSTRUCTIONS...

1. Start by creating your boat! It can be any shape or size that you think will be able to hold the most pennies
**TIP: To make this a real challenge make sure that every time you try a new boat design you use the same size piece of foil so it may be a good idea to rip a couple uniform pieces at the beginning of this experiment. **

2. Make sure it floats. Put your boat into the water and double check that there are no tears or holes that would make your creation sink faster. 

3. Start adding your pennies! Gently place them into the foil boat (do NOT toss or throw them in). Consider your penny placement during this phase. Do you want them all in one area of spread out across the boat? Is one side starting to sink? Place the pennies in one by one to keep an accurate count. 

4. Record how many pennies your boat is able to handle before it takes on water. Once it starts to take on water allow the boat 15-30 seconds to see if it will sink or if it is able to stay above water. If it stays above the water line you can continue adding pennies. Once the boat has begun sinking (is fully submerged) the experiment is over and the final count can be recorded. 

5. Lastly make new creations and try and beat your own record or challenge a friend! Compare and contrast what worked and what didn't. Think about what made your boat stronger and why it did so?

6. **BONUS CHALLENGE** If you happen to have a bouncy ball (or a small weighted object) try taking what you think is your strongest boat and putting it back in the water. Instead of weight in pennies you can now test to see how strong of waves it can handle. Place the yard stick vertically in the bucket in order to measure how high up you are creating waves from. Place your hand at your chosen height and from that point drop (not throw) the bouncy ball into the water around the boat (not into the boat). Notice if you are able to make bigger waves with your hand being closer or farther from the bucket. Eyeball how much water your boat can handle and think about the design options that would allow it to take on even more. 


Happy Sailings!