Soaking Up Math

Here is a cool activity that my students did last week.  It combines science and math and it was a hit!  We got in all of our math and added in some great science observations all at the same time.

Step 1:  Collect a variety of items, including: rice, beans, corn and potatoes. Choose some items that will expand when soaked and some items that won’t.  (My class also did pasta, but it made for a stinky classroom – so be warned if you choose to use pasta, they look cool but they don’t smell cool.)

Step 2:  Have students weigh each item and record the weight on a table. 

Step 3:  Place each item in a bowl and cover with water.  Let the bowls sit overnight.

Step 4:  The next day, strain all of the items and and have students   re-weigh the items. 

Step 5:  Talk about why some items absorb water and others don’t.

I’ve become a collaborator to a great new collaborative blog called Tips of Teachers.  Stop by there and grab this free sheet to use with your class.