In this activity, students explore a concept cartoon related to escaping from quicksand and test their ideas by planning and carrying out an investigation.
By the end of this activity, students should be able to:
- create a non-Newtonian fluid1 (oobleck) and explore its properties
- make a hypothesis2 based on their knowledge of the properties of a non-Newtonian fluid
- plan and carry out an investigation based on their hypothesis.
Download the Word file (see below) for:
- introduction/background notes
- what you need
- what to do
- discussion questions
- extension idea
- concept cartoon.
Nature of science
Scientists design investigations to test their prediction and develop explanations through the use of models. Making and using models is a way to clarify ideas that might otherwise be hard to carry out in a real-life situation or be hard to understand.
Related content
Find out more about the properties of liquids and non-Newtonian fluids. See Walking on custard – this resource aims to help teachers use video as an effective teaching tool.
Useful links
Visit this website for educational research and pedagogy regarding the use of concept cartoons
For an extension idea, use these instructions to make slime, a non-Newtonian fluid3.
- Newtonian fluid: A fluid that maintains constant flow rate regardless of the amount of stress applied.
- hypothesis: A tentative explanation for a fact or observation that can be tested.
- non-Newtonian fluid: A fluid that changes in flow rate depending on the amount of stress or length of time that stress is applied.
