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Submarines: Using mass, volume and density to create a working submarine

The students will design a submarine that will float, subsurface, sink, and return once again to the water's surface by external manipulation of the submarine outside of an aquarium. In order to accomplish this, the students will use not only the concepts of mass, volume, and density but will also integrate buoyancy and ballast in their submarine design.

Format: lesson plan (grade 8 Mathematics and Science)

By Amy Koonce.

What's the matter?

Students will categorize matter according to its properties.

Format: lesson plan (grade 1 Science)

By Lisa Lawrence.

What causes sea level change, and why is it rising now?

In Evidence of rising sea level: Coastal erosion and plant community changes, page 2

North Carolina's coastal zone preserves evidence of both the current rise in sea level and the long decline that preceded it (see the Coastal Wetlands field trip included in this series). Evidence of declining sea level is found in the series of old shorelines...

By Dirk Frankenberg.

Port O'Plymouth Museum

This is primarily a Civil War museum revolving around the 1864 "Battle of Plymouth", the second largest Civil War battle fought in North Carolina. Impressive displays of cannon balls, bullets, buttons, buckles, guns, pictures, and thousands of battle artifacts can be found here.

Format: article/field trip opportunity

The capture of Plymouth

In North Carolina in the Civil War and Reconstruction, page 4.13

At 4 P.M. on April 17, 1864, an advanced Union patrol on the Washington Road was captured by Confederate cavalry. A company of the 12th N. Y. Cavalry attacked the Confederates, but was repulsed. Soon a large force of Confederate infantry appeared on the Washington...

Format: article

Float, sink, flink!

In this lesson, students will learn to make things flink, meaning they neither float to the top nor sink to the bottom of a fluid. They will discover that whether an object floats or sinks depends not only on the properties of the object itself, but also on the properties of the fluid (either gas or liquid) in which it is situated.

Format: lesson plan (grade 2 Science)

By Erin Denniston.

The destruction of the CSS Albemarle

In North Carolina in the Civil War and Reconstruction, page 7.3

Report of Lieutenant William Barker Cushing, U.S. Navy, on the destruction of the ironclad CSS Albemarle during the Civil War. Includes historical commentary and background on ironclad ships, including a podcast.

Format: letter

The Arrival of the Englishmen in Virginia

"The Arriual of the Englishmen in Virginia." Theodor de Bry's engraving of English ships arriving in North America, published in Thomas Hariot's 1588 book A Briefe and True Report of the New Found Land of Virginia. The image shows several ships...

Format: image/illustration

North Carolina as a Civil War battlefield, May 1862–November 1864

In North Carolina in the Civil War and Reconstruction, page 4.1

Summary of military operations in North Carolina during the middle three years of the war, including the Confederate raid on Goldsboro, Potter's Raid, the Battle of Plymouth, and the sinking of the CSS Albemarle.

Format: article

Assessing the learning process

In Math for multiple intelligences, page 3

Assessment, like instruction, needs to be geared toward various learning styles, and teachers can create rubrics for ongoing assessment that keep a formal daily record of what students are learning.

By Gretchen Buher and David Walbert.

Cherokee Nation v. the State of Georgia, 1831

In North Carolina in the New Nation, page 10.6

When Georgia tried to subject the Cherokee to state law, they sued the state in federal court. The Supreme Court ruled against them in 1831, in this decision written by Chief Justice John Marshall. Includes historical commentary.

Format: court decision

Commentary and sidebar notes by L. Maren Wood and David Walbert.

John White searches for the colonists

In Prehistory, contact, and the Lost Colony, page 4.6

In this excerpt from the report of his voyage, John White explains how he and the crew of two ships searched for the lost colonists on Roanoke Island but could not find them.

Format: article

All about life

A primary curriculum based around life and environmental science draws on children's natural curiosity to teach reading, math, and more.

By Myra Erexson.

Resources on the web

Sink it

This Science NetLinks lesson is designed to develop students' understanding of sinking and floating. (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade K Science)

Provided by: American Association for the Advancement of Science

Give me a tall ship

Students compare the similarities and differences of ancient and modern ships, including size, construction, building materials, and uses. (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 6–8 Science)

Provided by: American Association for the Advancement of Science

The Hunley: Complete the Journey

Over 140 years ago the submarine Hunley sank after sinking an enemy ship, the USS Housatonic, during the Civil War. This site explores the history of the Hunley and shows how she is being preserved today. (Learn more)

Format: website/general

Provided by: Friends of the Hunley

The Virginia Newspaper Project

Virginia newpaper coverage of the Titanic. This site includes the passenger list, a map of the disaster, headlines, and facsimilies of newspaper coverage, including first photographs of the survivors. Explore both history and culture by learning about the... (Learn more)

Format: website/general

Provided by: Library of Virginia

Understanding oceans

Students conduct an experiment to discover how differences in water temperature in different parts of the “world ocean” cause ocean currents. (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 9–12 Science)

Provided by: Discovery

Sink or float?

This activity provides practice in using a wide variety of objects and categorizing them according to their various observable properties. (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 1 Science)

Provided by: American Association for the Advancement of Science

Does soap float?

In this lesson, from Science NetLinks, students form hypotheses and carry out an investigation in order to answer a central question: Does soap float? They then demonstrate their understanding of the topic through oral or written reports. (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 5–6 Science)

Provided by: American Association for the Advancement of Science