The student will:

understand how a submarine works.

Materials:

A plastic bottle, like a one liter plastic coke bottle

some plastic tubing

Modeling clay

A container wider and deeper than your plastic bottle filled with water

1. Cut a hole into the cap of the plastic bottle.

2. Run the plastic tubing through the cap of the bottle.

3. Make sure there is enough tubing on the outside of the cap to come far enough out of the water for someone to blow into the tubing.

4. Place modeling clay around the tubing on both sides of the cap.

5. Cut a hole into the bottom of your plastic bottle.

6. Cover the hole you just made in the bottom of the plastic bottle so that no water can leak through. ( You could use your finger.)

7. Fill the plastic bottle with water all the way to the top.

8. Screw the cap on the plastic bottle. (Keeping the hole on the bottom of the plastic bottle covered.)

9. Keeping the hole on the bottom of the plastic bottle covered, place the plastic bottle into the container filled with water.

10. Take your finger or whatever obstruction used to cover the hole on the end of the plastic bottle off.

11. Have someone blow as hard as they can through the plastic tubing.

12. Air should go into the plastic bottle causing it to rise.

13. Relate this experiment to how a submarine works. (A submarine has air chambers that can be filled with water or air to help the submarine sink or float in the water.)

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