Friday, April 1, 2016

Homemade Sailboats (the Science of Wind)


Our youngest son (age 6) loves to tinker. Forget toys, he'd rather raid our recyclables, fire up his imagination, and make something entirely new. I knew he'd dig this activity.

We made a bathtub sailboat.


It took just a few minutes and a few supplies.

For each sailboat, you'll need the following:
wide, shallow plastic jar lid (ours was from mayo)
plastic drinking straw
card stock cut to 3-inches by 5-inches (or an index card)
hold punch
tape or glue (we used a low-temp glue gun)

How to Make It
Punch a hole in each of the cards short sides in the middle. Thread the straw through the holes. It will fit snug.


If your lid isn't threaded, tape will hold your straw and paper sail upright. If you have threads, parents should use a glue gun to assist with getting the sail stabilized.

Now simply, place your boat gently in a basin of water. We played with ours before bath time. Blow the sail and see how it propels the boat.


Will the boat swivel around so the sail's facing a certain way based on the direction of your breath (i.e. the wind)?

This is our second fun activity from Science Play! by Jill Frankel Hauser. It's loaded with other great ideas!

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