| Documentation of Boat-Building Observations | ||
|---|---|---|
| Ideas for Materials | Things We Tried That Work | Problems We Had So Far |
| Paper | Crumpling up paper in a ball keeps it from sinking. | If paper stays in the water too long, it gets wet and collapses. |
| Plastic lids | We can use a lump of clay on the lid to hold up the sail mast, so it doesn’t make a hole in the boat. | If water gets on top of a lid, it sinks. |
| Sponges | The sponge will float with the green side up but not with the sponge side up. | |
| Marshmallows | Marshmallows float at first, then they melt. | |
| Wood | Wood definitely floats. | We can’t figure out how to attach a sail. |
| Other Ideas for Materials | Other Things We Tried That Work | Other Problems We’ve Had So Far |
| Foil Bottle caps Sticks Clay Cork |
Trying the materials in the water first to see if they float before we make the rest of the boat.
Making the bottom of the boat bigger than the sail keeps it from sinking. |
If we put a toothpick and paper sail in a cork, it falls over. |
Opportunities for routine documentation of a work in progress could include:
- Block constructions
- Different ways children sorted a collection of objects
- Progress of planted seeds as they sprout and grow
- Children using bubble wands
- Different strategies children use to finger paint and the resulting visual effects
- An easel painting from start to finish
- Children putting a puzzle together
- Figures constructed with pattern blocks
- Distances measured with plastic chain links