Teach:
Talk to students about the different kinds of metals. Ask them to name some and write their answers on the board. Tell student that metals are strong and that is why they are used to make many things. Brainstorm a list of objects that are metal (for example, cars, bridges, toys, appliances...). Some metals, however, are susceptible to rusting. Ask the students what they would gain by knowing which metals rust quickly and which metals seem less affected by rust. You should get a response that by knowing which metals are less likely will help us to learn which products will last longer. We will choose to build with the metals that are the most durable.
Materials:
- Six bowls
- Water
- Salt
- Tin
- Copper
- Aluminum
- Gold
- Stainless steel
- Iron
- Notebooks and Pencils
Procedure:
- Set out six bowls, one for each metal. Label the bowls with the metal you are going to put inside it.
- Add water and salt to each bowl and stir.
- Place one piece of metal in each bowl.
- Ask the students which of the metals they think will be affected the most by the salt. Which of the metals wont' be affected by the salt at all? Have the students write down their guesses and why in their notebooks under the heading "Hypothesis".
- Every two days check each of the six metals and have students write down what is happening in their notebooks. They should write what they observe and include any colors emerging. Students can draw and label pictures.
- After two weeks finish the science project.
Review:
Review the results from your science project. Discuss the affect that salt had on metal, if any. Ask students if they were surprised by anything they saw occur over the last two weeks. In every day life, where would we see salt affect metal? Ask them if their hypothesis were correct or incorrect and why. Finally, have the students record the conclusion of the experiment in their notebooks.
Substitution:
You can also try the following metals: Brass and Nickel
