A Hole in my Bucket

A Hole in my Bucket Organiser’s Card About the activity This activity is designed to get children thinking about materials, liquids and testing methods. Just like the song ‘There’s A Hole In My Bucket’, the children are asked to find a way to plug the hole in a container to stop water pouring out. Through this activity you will support your group to: • Carry out their own tests to compare different sticky materials • Observe, measure and record results carefully • Respond creatively, writing new lyrics for a well-known song. Kit list • A selection of different materials for testing, eg: sticky tape, fabric, Blu-Tack, cotton wool, tissues, straws etc. • Plastic containers with holes cut into the bottom • Ruler • Timers • Washing up bowls or containers • Measuring jugs • Scissors • Plastic aprons • Paper towels

There’s a hole in my bucket, dear Liza, dear Liza There’s a hole in my bucket, dear Liza, a hole. Then mend it dear Henry, dear Henry, dear Henry Then mend it dear Henry, dear Henry mend it. With what shall I mend it, dear Liza? . . . With a straw, dear Henry . . . The straw is too long . . . Then cut it . . . With what shall I cut it? . . . With a knife . . . The knife is too blunt . . . Then sharpen it . . . Material With what shall I sharpen it? . . . With a stone . . . The stone is too dry . . . Blu-Tack Then wet it . . . With what shall I wet it? . . . Sticky tape With some water . . . With what shall I fetch it? . . . With a bucket . . . Glue BUT THERE’S A HOLE IN MY BUCKET! Chewing gum We are going to use clean plastic drinking cups, with the same sized holes cut in the bottom of each, then try out our ideas. Some of your fellow investigators have some ideas! “I think we should try to fix the hole, then put water in and just watch what happens.” “We could do some timing to find out how long it is before the water starts to leak out.” “Let’s measure how much water leaks out in 2 minutes. We could put marks up the side of the ‘buckets’ to help us.” What do you think? Do you have another idea? Straw How much water leaked through? Liza and Henry need your help. Can you find something that will stop Henry’s bucket Were from there leaking? any problems with your tests? How Liza suggests using straw to fix the hole. Do you think that would work well? could you improve them? What about sticky materials? Would any of them be better for mending the hole How in Henry’s easy did bucket? you think it was to keep your tests fair? Why? Which material should Liza and Henry use to fix a hole in their bucket? • Which materials will you test? • How many different materials will you compare? • Does it matter how you use your material to fill the hole? British Science Association Registered Charity No. 212479 and SC039236 • What will you need to observe or measure in your tests? On which side of the hole should they stick it? Why have you chosen this material? Why not re-write the words to the song to include what you have found out? What to do 1. Introduce the activity using the song ‘There’s a Hole in my Bucket’, ask them if they think they can help Liza and Henry by finding out the best way to fix the hole in their bucket. 2. Give out activity cards and equipment to the children. 3. Explain that they will be using the equipment provided to test the best way to stop a leak. 4. Encourage children to discuss their ideas and how to carry out their investigations. Prompt questions: • What materials will they test? • How will they cover the leaky hole? • How will they make sure their test is fair? • How will they record their results? 5. Support children to conduct their tests and make their own records of their results. They could also take photographs or make drawings. 6. Ask the children to present their findings to the rest of the group, they can be as creative in their presentation as they want - the activity card suggests they could re-write the words to the song, using their findings. Getting started A Hole in my Bucket Test your ideas Do you know the tune to this well-known You could song? use a table like this to record your findings: If not, see if you can find out about it. Your challenge Do some tests to find out the best method of fixing a leak! Discuss Activity Card Share your ideas 2/2 Discuss Children may have difficulty keeping some tests fair, e.g. how to compare sticky tape with glue or Blu-Tack etc. The following prompts will help them to think about how to keep their tests fair. Make sure they place a bowl under the bucket or cup to collect the leaking water. If they use just one bucket for all of the tests, it must be dried thoroughly after each test. A new material might not stick properly to a wet surface and results will be inaccurate. If they succeed in stopping the leak, they will need a new bucket! Keywords • Observation • Measurement • Volume Watch out! Cut holes in buckets, cups or clean yoghurt pots before any tests begin and check that there are no rough edges around the hole. When using water, make sure you have paper towels handy to mop up spills, especially on the floor. British Science Association Registered Charity No. 212479 and SC039236