A liquid takes on the shape of the container it is in.

Materials:

• water containers of assorted shapes and sizes
• plastic tubs (to catch any water spills)

  Plan:

  DISCUSSION:
  1. Water is a liquid.
  2. Does a liquid have a special shape?
  3. What shape is water?
  4. What happens when it is put into something?
  5. Do you think that this water will change shape if I put it into this [name container]?
  6. Let's find out.
  EXPERIMENT:
  1. Let each child or group pour water into several different types of containers to see what will happen.
  2. Record the results on a worksheet with pictures representing each container. (The children will color water in each shape).
  RESULTS:
  1. Did the water change shape to fit into each container?
  2. Can you name other liquids that have the same shape as the bottle they are in? (syrup, milk, juice, etc.)
  EXTENDING THE LESSON:
  1. Put an ice cube into a container.
  2. Is this ice cube the same shape as the glass?
  3. Let the ice melt.
  4. Is the water from the ice cube the same shape as the glass?
  5. Why is the melted ice cube the same shape but the frozen ice cube is not?

  Comments:

  My kindergarten class loves to do water experiments! It is sometimes messy, but water does clean up easily, and our tables get a good cleaning!