floating stickman experiment

Floating Dry Erase Stick Man Trick

Supplies Needed:

• Dry Erase Marker
• Pie pan (glass or ceramic)

Make sure your pan has a flat surface. Draw a stick figure or any design you want making sure the lines are connected. Slowly pour water over the stick man and watch him come alive! You can use cold or warm water, it doesn't matter. Blow on him to make him dance!

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November 15, 2018

Make Your Drawings Float!

An animating science project from Science Buddies

By Science Buddies & Svenja Lohner

Draw away! Use a little chemistry to make your own moving sketches. 

George Retseck

Key concepts Chemistry Polymer Solvents Material science

Introduction Have you ever wished your drawings would come alive and the stick figures or objects on your paper could move around? It’s not as impossible as it sounds! In this activity you will make your drawing move around by letting it float on water. What makes this possible is the interesting chemistry of dry-erase markers. These markers are usually used to write on whiteboards or glass surfaces and can easily be erased. It turns out they are also perfect for doing science!

Background You might have a whiteboard in your school classroom. To draw on this surface, your teacher probably uses a whiteboard pen or dry-erase marker. The writing from these markers can easily be erased from the whiteboard without leaving any marks.

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This is possible because dry-erase markers contain special ingredients. They include a solvent, which is usually some kind of alcohol. This is used to dissolve the color pigments that determine the marker’s color. In addition, a resin or polymer is added, which is the key to making the ink erasable. In a dry-erase marker the resin is an oily silicone polymer, which acts as a “release agent.” This makes the ink of the marker very slippery and prevents it from sticking to the whiteboard’s surface. This is why the ink can easily be wiped off from a very smooth nonporous surface such as a whiteboard or glass.

You might know dry-erase markers can stain other surfaces such as clothes permanently. This is because fabric doesn’t have a smooth surface, so the ink can soak into its pores—staining them forever! In real permanent markers the resin used is an acrylic polymer that functions as a “binding agent” and makes the ink stick to the surface. Only the type of polymer differentiates a permanent marker from an erasable marker. Find out how this difference affects how your drawings float in in this activity!

Two shallow trays or plates with smooth surfaces that you have permission to draw on with markers

Dry-erase markers (different colors)

Permanent marker

Rubbing alcohol

Paper towels

Preparation

Find a work area that can tolerate water spills.

Fill your cup with room-temperature water and set it next to your trays or plates.

Choose one color of your dry-erase markers and make a drawing on your first plate such as a stick figure, a heart or word. Does it look like the ink is sticking to the surface of your plate?

Let it dry for a couple of seconds and then use a dry finger to wipe across your drawing. Does your finger wipe off the drawing, or can you still see it afterward?

If the drawing came off, make a new drawing. Otherwise, keep the old one. Then pour just enough water onto your plate to cover the drawing. Wait and observe. If nothing happens, shake the plate a little bit. What happens to the ink after a while? Does your drawing begin to float and come to life?

Next use a permanent marker to make a drawing on the second plate. Do you see a difference from how the dry-erase marker looked on the surface?

Let it dry for a couple of seconds and use a dry finger to wipe across your drawing. Does your drawing disappear once you wipe it with your finger? Can you explain why or why not?

If the drawing came off, make a new drawing. Otherwise keep the old one. Then pour some water on your plate to cover the drawing. Wait and observe. What happens to the drawing this time? Does it float? How are your results different from the previous ones?

Extra: Make drawings with different colors of dry-erase marker. Do all of them behave the same way or are they different? Which color floats best?

Extra: What happens if you pour rubbing alcohol on top of your drawing instead of water? Does your drawing still float? Do dry-erase and permanent markers give you the same result? Why or why not?

Extra: Can you erase your floating drawing? Try to pick up your drawing from the water's surface with your fingers. What happens to it when you pull it out of the water? What do you think the material you now have in your hand is made of?

Observations and results Did you get your drawings to float? You should have—but only when using the dry-erase marker. When you make your drawing on the surface of a smooth plate or tray the solvent, or alcohol, that dissolves the ink ingredients will evaporate. This leaves the color pigment and polymer behind on the surface. With the permanent and dry-erase markers, it actually looks like the color is sticking. When you wipe across your drawing with your finger, however, only the drawing that you made with the dry-erase marker will disappear. This is because the oily silicone polymer in the dry-erase marker prevents it from sticking whereas the acrylic polymer resin in the permanent marker makes it stick to the surface.

The fun starts when you pour water on your drawing. You should have observed your dry-erase marker drawing magically detached from the plate and rose to the water's surface. There, it could float and move as if it were alive! The permanent marker drawing should have remained stuck to the plate. This difference is due to the special polymer in the dry-erase marker ink—because this ingredient prevents the ink from attaching to the plate, and the water can slip underneath. And because the ink is lighter than water it can float. When you poured rubbing alcohol on your drawings, however, you should have seen them both slowly dissolve. This is because alcohol is used as the solvent in both markers.

Cleanup Remove all remaining drawings from your plates by rubbing them with a paper towel soaked in rubbing alcohol. Then rinse them with warm water and soap before reusing them.

More to explore Make Your Own Markers , from Science Buddies Chromatography: Be a Color Detective , from Scientific American Soluble Science: Making Tie-Dye T-Shirts with Permanent Markers , from Scientific American Science Activity for All Ages! , from Science Buddies

This activity brought to you in partnership with Science Buddies

How to Draw on Water Using Dry Erase Markers (Dancing Drawings)

• October 16, 2020
• 10 Minute Science , 3-4 Year Olds , 5-6 Year Olds , Household Items , Physics , Rainy Day Science

Amazing Physics science activity to teach kids about density! The magical ingredient in dry-erasers makes ‘floating pictures’ off your child’s drawing board. Sounds impressive?

In this activity, we are going to make the drawing objects float using just 2-3 simple ingredients. Also, this is a great indoor activity that reveals the magic of dry-erasers.

Dancing Drawings on Water

Objective: To teach children how dry-erasers work and about density.

Materials Required

1) Ceramic Plate

3) Dry-Erase Markers (Make sure you are using new ones)

*Product Links are affiliate links – Your support is highly appreciated

That’s it, it is very easy to gather these supplies to conduct this super cool science activity. Since this activity requires very few supplies and takes a minute to set-up , kids will love to do it again and again.

Duration to conduct this Activity: 5 minutes to 10 minutes

What do you think how the writings of markers on the white board are able to erased easily? Even if we write anything on glass, ceramic, etc. the marker writings are easily erased without the witnessing any tiny mark. Ask your children to do their own guesses. A science teacher may answer this question perfectly. However, we are going to do a simple investigation that reveals a great demonstration about dry-erasers.

Instructions to Make Floating Pictures

Here are the simple step-by-step instructions to follow in order to make pictures dance in the water. Have a look!

Step-1: The first important step is to check whether your picked markers are suitable for this science activity.

Step2: Second, you need to keep a small mark on the ceramic plate and add water to it. Observe carefully whether the mark is going off the plate. If the mark floats, then your markers are perfect to perform this simple science activity.

Step-3: Now, let your children draw their own drawings on the ceramic plate. A small tip to hold the color together is to fill the drawing completely without any breaks. Of course, the simple line drawings also work but not effective as complete color filling drawings. See the pictures attached to get an idea on how to draw pictures on ceramic plate.

Step-4: The next step is to add some water on to the plate where there are drawings of markers. You can use normal or warm water to pour on to the plate. You will see the drawings getting separated from the surface, coming alive, and floating on the top of water.

Step-5: When the drawings start dancing on the water, ask your child to blow the floating pictures using a straw. Kids enjoy this floating pictures experiment while learning simple science behind dry-erasers.

Extension Tips

Here are a couple of tips that help to extend this science activity.

1) Try to place a paper on the floating drawings and check whether the dancing pictures get attached to the paper again. If yes, then observe the drawings are attached in the same way they are drawn or there is any disturbance.

2) Try to draw pictures or drawings of any objects using other types of pens such as sketches, felt-tip pens, ball point pens, sparkling pens, ink pens, normal markers, etc.

3) Try using different types of waters like soda water, sparkling water, ice cold water, etc. And check whether these waters also make the drawings float on top of the water.

Try our other density science experiments:

9 Layer Density Tower Hot & Cold Water Science Experiment Create Fireworks in Water & Oil Make a Lava Lamp at Home

What are the questions to be asked during or after the experiment?

It is always fun having discussions on the magical ingredients that make the experiment work at its best. And it is highly recommended to children to make observations and record data during science investigations. Such that children would be able to make out what factors are causing the success of the activity they have done. So, I have included a few questions that help you to discuss with your child during and after experiment.

1) Do you observe any specific color that makes the drawing float faster when compared to other colors?

2) What is that drawing surface on which the pictures gets separated so easily?

3) Among color filled drawings and line drawings, which one floats faster?

4) Is it possible to pick up the floating pictures?

5) In what way the temperature of water effect the results of the experiment?

Science Behind This Simple Activity?

Mainly, the science behind ‘Draw on Water Using Dry Erase Markers ’ activity is associated with dry erasers. Yes, let us see how?

Dry erasers are made of minimal adhesive inks so that the drawings made are easily wiped off from the solid surfaces. Also, the ink used in dry erasers is kind of plastic i.e. a polymer . Therefore, when it is written on the solid surfaces, the ink is turned in to a solid film. And this solid film has the magical power of not dissolving in water plus does not wish to secure itself by sticking strongly to the surface. That is the reason, when we pour water to the ceramic plate, the drawings get easily separated off the plate.

The science between water and dry erase markers

In this activity, water also plays major role to lift the drawings off the plate. The water is denser than the solid film formed by the ink of dry erase markers when drawn on the plate. Therefore, when the water is spread under the drawings, it can easily lift off the lesser dense solid film drawings.

The Science Facts about Dry Erasers and Permanent Markers

Permanent markers use the ink that is favourable to stick strongly when written on any surface. That means the ink used here is strongly adhesive in nature so it will not come off easily from the surface. Whereas the dry erasers use minimal adhesive inks that are easily wiped off from any surface.

The Science behind Insoluble Inks

The nature of ink used to make dry erase markers is absolutely insoluble that means it cannot dissolve in water. And also becomes less dense compared to the density of water. So, when you draw on a smooth surfaced ceramic plate, the ink stays insoluble with lesser density. And when the water slipped under these drawings the thick solid film formed by the ink gets off the smooth surface. This happens because of the formation of buoyancy force which makes drawings to dance or float on top of the water.

When the pictures are drawn on any smooth surfaced object using dry erase markers, the ink becomes a thick solid film. This film is insoluble and less dense in nature. Since the water poured is denser than the ink, there happens the formation of strong buoyancy force. This is the force which makes the drawing easily lifted by the water. In this way, dry erase markers float in water.

A floating marker is called a buoy. This directs the places where the boats are tied up, presence of submerged dangers, etc.

The surfaces on which the dry erase markers work at its best include ceramic plates, mirrors, glasses, metals, etc. Because all these are of non-porous surfaces which makes the ink of dry erase markers lift off easily. The dry erase markers ink can easily tint the leaky porous surfaces. So, it is recommended to check the surface type if you are using dry erase markers on it.

You need to gather a smooth surface, water, and a dry erase marker to get a stickman to move in water. Draw the picture of stickman on the smooth surfaced object (whatever you have picked). Then, pour warm water on to the plate. When the water slips under the drawing, it lifts up the stickman’s solid film formed by the ink of dry erase marker. Finally, you can see your stickman floating on top of the water.

Take a dry erase marker and draw a floating man on the smooth surface. Firstly, draw a neat circle and give a vertical line attached at one side of the circle. Then, give hands and legs by drawing slanting lines to the vertical line. A pair of slanting lines at the joining point of vertical line to the circle and the other pair at the end of the vertical line. That’s it! You are done with drawing a floating man.

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Floating Dry Erase Marker Experiment

The floating dry erase marker experiment is a simple and education science project that’s safe for young children. But, you don’t have to be a kid to enjoy it! Basically, it involves drawing a picture and floating it off the surface using water. The project demonstrates key science concepts, including adhesion, solubility , and density .

All you need are basic household materials:

• Dry erase markers
• Flat-bottom plate or dish

Make sure the dish you use is very clean and dry. If it is at all greasy or damp, writing on it is difficult.

What You Do

It’s easy:

• Write words or draw simple pictures on the bottom of the dish. For example, write you name, draw hearts or stars, or create a scene.
• Make sure the lines are thick and connected. You don’t want any blank spots or else you might wind up with a torn image.
• Carefully pour water into the container. Pour it down the side of dish and not right on top of the picture. Using a measuring cup with a spout or else pour water over the back of a spoon helps in gently adding water.

Depending on the brand of marker, the images either detach and float when wet or they need a bit of help. If the ink does not float, gently rock the container side to side to give the water a bit of a current. Or, carefully slide the back of a spoon beneath the ink and release it so it floats. If you like, capture the images using a spoon and examine them or place them on a new surface.

How the Floating Dry Erase Marker Experiment Works

The floating dry erase marker experiment works because the ink in the marker easily lifts off of the surface in water, the pigment particles stick together so the image remains intact, and the pigment is less dense than water so that it floats.

The main chemicals in dry erase markers are pigments, solvent (usually SD-alcohol 40 or isopropyl alcohol), and a release agent (resin or a silicone polymer ).

The alcohol is the solvent that holds the pigments suspended in the marker. It’s much less toxic than other solvents that also work, like xylene and methanol. But, like these other solvents, it readily evaporates. That’s why markers don’t last very long if you leave them uncapped and also why the ink dries so quickly when you draw. The special ingredient in dry erase markers is the release agent. It sticks or adheres to a flat surface. It’s soluble (dissolves) in both alcohol and water, but sticky enough when it’s dry that it holds the pigment molecules together and onto the writing surface. It holds the pigment molecules to each other and to the surface mainly using van der Waals forces, where the slight electrostatic charge between the ink and surface loosely binds them together.

Keep in mind, dry erase markers only float away in water if you apply them to flat surfaces, like metal, glass, or plastic. If you use a rough surface, like a paper plate, the ink flows into the pores in the surface and ab sorbs rather than ad sorbs . Your image won’t detach.

Why Permanent Markers Don’t Work

Permanent markers are much like dry erase and wet erase markers, except that they use an acrylic polymer instead of a release agent. Basically, it’s a permanent resin that adheres to the surface and does not dissolve in water.

If you accidentally use a permanent marker instead of a dry erase marker for this project, it’s not forever. The acrylic layer is thin enough that it comes off pretty easily using rubbing alcohol, acetone, or products that contain these ingredients, like nail polish remover.

Make It an Experiment

Really, this is a science project. But, it easily turns into a science experiment if you ask “what if” questions, make a prediction, and then perform an experiment and assess the outcome. For example:

• Does water temperature matter? Try the floating dry erase marker experiment using hot water, room temperature water, and cold water. (Hint: Increasing the temperature increases the rate of chemical reactions , including dissolving.)
• Do the floating images stick onto surfaces? For example, if you slide a plate underneath the image and lift it off, will it stick to it once it dries? Can you transfer the image onto your skin?
• Does floating off the image change the color of the ink? If so, why do you think this happens?
• Do all colors of dry erase marker work equally well? Do all brands work equally well?
• What do you think happens if you use wet-erase instead of dry-erase markers?
• Black, David A. (1966). “Fiber Tipped Pens”. J. Crim. L. Criminology & Police Sci . 57 (4): 521–525. doi: 10.2307/1140564
• Chapman, Kit (2022). “ Help! I’ve used the wrong marker “. RSC Education.
• “ Water base erasable ink composition for use in marking pens .” () European Patent Application 93113335.9.

Related Posts

Floating Dry Erase Marker Science Experiment

This floating dry erase marker  science activity  is incredibly fun! All you need are dry erase markers and water! Read on for instructions and tips. Your kids will have a blast with this science experiment!

This simple science experiment is a favorite for our kids. Your kids will love trying out different combinations of colors and drawings. It’s super easy to rinse out and then try a new variation.

You just need these 3 simple supplies – a bowl, water and dry erase markers.

*Note: This should be done with adult supervision at all times.

Setting Up the Floating Dry Erase Marker Science Activity

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Supplies Needed:

• Bowl or Dish with a flat bottom
• Dry Erase Marker

Instructions:

• Grab your bowl and draw a design or write letters on the bottom with your markers!

• Gently pour your water into the bowl. You can pour near the edge or in the center slowly and that will be enough to get the ink to lift up. If the marker doesn’t lift up, you’ll want to pour it closer to the ink to help force it up.
• Pour a small amount initially. Once you see the ink start to lift up, wait and the rest of the drawing or letter will lift up too.
• That’s it! Your kids will have fun moving the bowl around and watching the ink designs float around the water!

Video of Floating Dry Erase Marker Experiment

• Some colors worked better for us than others. This will be different for every pack. For our pack, the blue worked great. It lifted up no problem. Other colors, like red, stuck to the bottom more and took more force from the water to lift. Lighter colors like green and yellow would disintegrate with any force from the water. So experiment with different colors to find what works best for you.
• The less water you use initially, the better. We found using less water and waiting for the rest of the ink to lift up our shapes worked well. When we used more water the ink didn’t lift as well. Once the ink is floating feel free to add as much water as you like. Carefully though, as you don’t want the ink to break apart.
• Some designs worked better than others. Shapes with more lines like letters and stick figures worked great. Closed designs like a heart or circle had a harder time lifting from the bottom.
• Use new dry erase markers.

Floating Dry Erase Marker Variation

Another fun option to try this experiment is to use a spoon. In this version, simply fill the bowl with water and then draw your design on a metal spoon. Then dip the spoon in the water and the design will peel off and start floating!

The Science Behind this Floating Dry Erase Marker Experiment:

Dry erase markers contain an oily silicone polymer, which facilitates easy removal of the ink from nonporous surfaces like whiteboards or glass. This polymer imparts slipperiness to the ink, preventing it from adhering to the whiteboard. In contrast, permanent markers utilize an acrylic polymer that encourages ink adhesion to the surface.

When you draw with your dry-erase marker, the silicone polymer will prevent it from sticking to the bottom of your tray. The water can then slip underneath, and because the ink is lighter than water it will float.

I hope your kids have a great time with this fun floating dry erase marker science experiment!

Check out these other science experiments and activities for kids.

Your kids will really love watching the fun reactions in this  Fireworks in a Jar  experiment!

This rainbow  Walking Water Science Experiment  is one of our most popular experiments!

This fun color changing flowers experiment is always a hit!

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Crafts and Activities for Toddlers and Preschoolers to Tweens

Dry Erase and Water “Floating Ink” Experiment

Last updated on February 18, 2021

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• Pinterest 45.7K

If you’re looking for cool things to do with dry erase markers, you have to check out this floating ink experiment ! It’s a fun and easy science activity to do with kids and a great party trick that will “wow” the grown-ups too. 

I have another very cool dry erase activity for your kids to try. It’s a dry erase and water trick that’s going to blow your kids’ minds! We’ve used the Dry Erase Markers with Ink Indicators that the good folks at  EXPO sent us, and we’ve made drawings that float on water!

I didn’t even know that dry erase ink could float until I saw the dry erase stick-man trick  (more on that in a bit) making its way around the web a few months back.

That trick looked so awesome that we were inspired to try it ourselves but instead of making floating stick-men, we made floating hearts.

Check out this video that I shot for you: How fun is that?!!

The kids were fascinated! They did the experiment over and over again, testing different colours of ink and different writing surfaces. This is definitely a science activity that kids AND adults will love.

You may also love these 5 dry erase activities that don’t require a white board.

To do the Dry Erase and Water Experiment, you’ll need:

• EXPO Dry Erase Markers  (affiliate link)
• dinner plate or baking dish
• jug of water (we also experimented with medicine droppers)
• Towel or vinyl table cloth to protect your work surface

A note about our drawing surface:

We experimented with a few different surfaces for this activity. I’ve heard you can use any glass surface or even a laminate table top, but we wanted to contain our water, so we tried the experiment with 3 types of plates:

• a white ceramic quiche dish
• a white dinner plate
• white disposable plastic plates

How to Make Dry Erase Ink Float

Test your markers to make sure the ink is flowing well.

Draw shapes, stick figures or letters on your plate or baking dish.

Pour water into the dish close to the edges of your drawings. Within seconds, you’ll see the dry erase ink reacting with the water, and the edges of your drawings will begin to lift. As you add more water, the ink will lift away from the bottom of the dish and float to the surface of the water. Note : Some of your drawings may only lift a little, and some might not at all. Our results were different every time.

Experiment again and again

We had a great time doing the experiment over and over again, pouring out the water, drying the dish, and trying new shapes and colours to see what would happen.

Make observations

It was fun to make observations to try and determine what factors made the experiment work best. Have your kids do the same. Here are some questions to ask your kids to think about when doing the dry erase and water experiment:

1. Is there a colour of ink that works best? 

Is it the colour of the ink? Does it depend how thick the layer of ink is? See if your kids can nail down what works best for them.

We found that a thicker layer of ink worked best, and the colours we used had varying results. We had the least success with the black ink. Sometimes the red ink floated quickly, and other times, like in the video above, the red wouldn’t come away from the plate at all. Was this due to how hard we pressed? How much ink we used? Which colours work best for you?

2. Which drawing surface works best?

The disposable plastic plates didn’t work as well as our dinner plate, and the quiche dish worked best of all. For some reason, our drawings seemed to stick to the dinner plate more than the quiche dish. The quiche dish was ideal too because of the rim. We could pour quite a bit of water into it and not have to worry about spills.

3. Do solid shapes float better than stick figures or letters? 

Experiment with different types of drawings – letters, pictures, outlines, solid shapes etc. to see which ones float best.

4. Can you pick up your floating shapes!

What’s really cool is that we were able to pick up our floating shapes with our fingers. When we did, they completely deflated and looked like a little strand of rubber, but when we gently placed them back on the surface of the water and jiggled them a little, they expanded back into their original shape and floated again.

5. Does the temperature of the water make a difference?

Try your experiment with hot, cold and room temperature water and observe your results.

And have fun trying the experiment over and over again!

Why DOES dry erase ink float?

If you’d like to know the science behind the dry erase and water experiment, this dry erase stick-man article explains how dry erase ink floats.

Learn more about  EXPO Dry Erase Markers with Ink Indicator here . #EXPOTeacherWin

This post was sponsored by EXPO Markers. The ideas and opinions are my own.

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Reader Interactions

Brenda Penton

September 19, 2017 at 6:17 am

I use them to write reminders on the bathroom mirror. We also use them on the patio door to play around. One person will draw something and a few hours or days later someone else will add to it until we have a whole scene, then we start again.

September 19, 2017 at 10:32 am

Very cool! Certainly something to do at home now that the rainy season is here!

September 19, 2017 at 2:08 pm

Looks like a great experiment!

September 19, 2017 at 3:27 pm

We have a busy household. My daughter and I use dry erase markers to leave messages on her mirror. This helps us remember what’s happening and when.

happyhooligans

September 20, 2017 at 10:04 pm

I love that idea!

September 19, 2017 at 4:25 pm

try lifting out with very porous paper or such … that might wor.

September 19, 2017 at 5:00 pm

So cool!! My kindergartener loves expo markers, this will be a fun experiment for her, thanks!

I have one of thoe giant whiteboards on my fridge; this would be great!

Jessica Gipson

September 19, 2017 at 5:23 pm

I use it in our classroom to demostrate class activity on the white board.

September 19, 2017 at 8:02 pm

I have used dry erase markers on different surfaces over the years. My favorite surface is a small porcelain sign(5X7) that I write on and then put on a stand. I sometimes write the menu or a greetings of a holiday! Such fun!!!

Jessica Mcfarlin

September 19, 2017 at 9:08 pm

I Love using it in the playroom/den on the dry erase board.

September 19, 2017 at 9:14 pm

making all kinds of art. i like these!

Kim Crichton-Struthers

September 19, 2017 at 9:31 pm

We like to use dry erase markers on the fridge.

September 19, 2017 at 10:42 pm

Just the traditional way here- we use it on the whiteboard to draw pictures, fill out the monthly calendar and sometimes list chores.

September 19, 2017 at 10:53 pm

Dry erase markers have so many uses, but I can’t wait to try these experiments.

Velma Garcia

September 19, 2017 at 11:06 pm

I can’t wait to try these experiments with my 3-year-old grandson!

Linda Madden

September 19, 2017 at 11:56 pm

I use them in a walk in my kitchen to show which chore each of my children need to complete before I get home from work. It works out great!

September 20, 2017 at 10:03 pm

September 20, 2017 at 1:49 am

These look like so much fun!!

September 20, 2017 at 2:46 am

I love using dry erase markers to keep our family calendar in order. It’s colour coordinated and the dry erase makes it so easy to make changes.

September 20, 2017 at 7:27 am

Why not send sets of these to the teachers who were in hurricanes in tx and Florida as supporting them in time of loss and help them rebuild their classrooms just thought much love from tx

September 20, 2017 at 10:02 pm

I think that’s a wonderful idea! I’m hopeful that EXPO will make a corporate contribution to relief efforts.

Shelley Brewer

September 20, 2017 at 9:33 am

What a cool project! Definitely need to try this.

September 20, 2017 at 10:06 am

We use dry erase markers to help with our music lessons and also to practice our multiplication tables. We sometimes use them to leave messages for each other as a way of encouraging each other to always try our best. Sometimes I write chores on the white board so that once the boys get home from school, they know what is expected of them that day. Much easier than walking around behind them and constantly reminding them :-).

Amanda Wilcox

September 20, 2017 at 11:39 am

I love this! I can’t wait to try it with my daughter. Regularly we keep a dry erase calendar in our kitchen which I religiously update to keep us on track. My daughter also has her own collection of fun colored dry erase markers and a board in the garage which she draws on while spending time with daddy in the garage…and there’s always hangman too!

Cari Herrera

September 20, 2017 at 11:40 am

We love using expos to decorate our windows and tables. It comes right off with water! Can’t wait to try this. Thank you.

September 20, 2017 at 9:57 pm

So fun! We played Hangman on our glass sliding door!

September 20, 2017 at 12:48 pm

This is so cool!!

Sue Meyerson

September 20, 2017 at 2:28 pm

I am a pediatric occupational therapist so I use a lot of dry erase markers to work on handwriting, pencil grasp, hand and finger strength, etc. I use dry erase alphabet and number books, or I put worksheets into a plastic sleeve. We work on hand, finger and arm strength when bunching up a paper towel and pressing hard to erase.

sharon drapela

September 20, 2017 at 7:22 pm

We use them for directed drawings and graphing/voting

September 20, 2017 at 9:05 pm

I am boring…I just use them on dry erase boards and laminated pages.

September 20, 2017 at 9:55 pm

Hey, nothing boring about that!

September 20, 2017 at 9:18 pm

I use my Expo markers everyday to update the parents of my students on my whiteboard

Kids and moms

September 21, 2017 at 12:07 am

These colors so so cute and bright, we use for art and craft. hehe. When free, please visit my youtube channle- cute art ideas for kids and moms 🙂

September 21, 2017 at 11:19 am

We do homework every night with a dry erase board. It helps my daughter to be able to erase if she had the wrong thing and we can write it a bit bigger than on a sheet of paper and use fun colors to make the homework experience a bit more enjoyable….Love our Expo Markers!!!!

September 21, 2017 at 2:29 pm

That’s a great idea, Kimberly!

September 22, 2017 at 9:07 am

I use dry erase markers during OT with my students. They love writing letters and erasing them as they trace with their fingers. Or, we play games – hangman, tic-tac-toe, etc. Doesn’t waste paper and the kid shave fun!

Donna VanHook

September 23, 2017 at 11:55 am

This will be great in my science class!

September 24, 2017 at 3:15 am

I like to use dry erase markers during presentations in class.

Kerrie Gregory

September 24, 2017 at 3:16 pm

My favorite way to use dry erase markers in the classroom is having my students use them to trace over laminated cards or fill in the answers on the laminated cards

October 1, 2017 at 8:55 am

Wow, this is a seriously cool activity that I know my kids would get a kick out of. I can’t wait to do this with them. Thanks so much for sharing!

January 31, 2019 at 2:44 pm

This looks great. Will be fun to try. Thanks.

April 4, 2019 at 4:07 pm

It was so much fun to do with the kids and they were so amazed they wanted me to do it over and over again adventualy I ran out o fink in my expo markers so we had to stop doing but we did dinosaurs hotdogs and other fun kid things like a xbox controller a baseball bat but thank you some much for sharing it my kids had a blast

Christian Shebchuk

May 18, 2020 at 8:55 am

Hello! I just tried this and I had a great time thanks for sharing!

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Science Fun

• A glass plate, bowl, or picture frame
• Dry erase marker

Instructions:

• Draw a simple picture on the glass. A stick figure is a good one to start with
• Pour water onto the plate or into the bowl slowly to lift up the drawing
• Swirl the water around to make the picture dance and move

WATCH THE QUICK AND EASY VIDEO TUTORIAL!

How does it work?

The marker leaves behind mixture of pigments and a type of alcohol mixed together. The alcohol dissolves and the pigments are left behind as a solid. Glass is so smooth that the solid slides right off when it gets wet!

Video of experiment here!

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Floating Dry Erase Marker Experiment for Kids – Valentine’s Day 

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Floating Dry Erase Marker Experiment for Kids – Valentine’s Day 

Oh golly 🙂, this is by far one of our favorite stem experiments for kids we have ever tried , let me tell you, my girls absolutely loved this, looking for a valentine’s day printable yes, i want it  , or get this busy book printable and one for each month of the year with preschool themes for the entire year , you only need 2 ingredients . , that’s right, an only 2 ingredient science experiment for kids , and, it’s perfect for valentines day , of course, you can try this on any given day by not only adding hearts but by adding letters, numbers, swirls and curls… , so many fun ideas you can try besides hearts. 🙂, so, would you like to learn how i made the magic happen , i’ll be sharing below how i made this, what i used and the how easy peasy it is to make. , note: if you’d like to learn about our preschool busy book that is one of our most popular products on our website, check it out here  .

This post contains affiliate links. 

Dry Erase Marker

Water (regular temperature water), a glass plate  (a follower friend told me she tried it on ceramic and it worked also), straw (optional), and, that’s all folks 🙂, easy peasy right, preschool themes for the entire year, why does dry erase marker float in water , it’s really simple. , the ink in dry erase markers is insoluble. , the definition of insoluble is, “impossible to dissolve.”, therefore, when water is poured onto dry erase marker that is written on a glass plate, a heavy upthrust prevails a part of the dry erase markers ink, pulling it upwards and in turn causing it to float. , how neat is that , below is a video of our floating hearts science experiment.

How do you make a floating stickman? 

You may be asking yourself, “how do you make a dry erase marker float on water”, there are so many fun ideas you can try. , we chose to make floating hearts which are perfect for valentines day . , but you can try doodles, swirls, letters, numbers, a floating stickman…, it’s all up to your imagination 🙂, free 5 senses printable below: , how do you do the dry erase water trick , here are the steps i took to create our floating hearts dry erase water trick:, lay a plate on the table (i used a glass plate .), draw a figure on it with dry erase markers (i drew hearts.), pour water onto the sides of the plate. , watch the magic unfold as the hearts/images start to float around, i hope you enjoyed this 2 ingredient floating dry erase marker experiment. , have you ever tried it what was your experience, if you are looking for a fun valentines activity , i hope you try this one out, my girls had so much fun watching the hearts float around. , we used a straw to blow them around. , this is not necessary but it was fun with it, make sure to keep the straw away from the water. , you can also cut a piece of the straw so if it accidentally goes in the water, the water will not go upwards through the straw 🙂 , as always supervision is advised. , hope you give this kids activity a try , will you give this floating dry erase marker experiment for kids – valentine’s day  a try, pin it for later, preschool interactive activity binder 🙂, looking for a fun play to learn, all in one preschool activity binder, we have been loving this binder so so much it’s perfect for on to go or if you’re on a vacation., don’t forget to check out preschool interactive activity binder an all in one basics for preschool learning. want to learn more, click here ., related products, looking for free printables and activities.

Need a simple and effective set of hands-on, low prep printables? Here is one of my Early Learning Freebies just for you!

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February 7, 2021 at 8:01 pm

can you use a clear plastic plate?

May 30, 2021 at 11:56 pm

We haven’t attempted on a clear plastic plate but I do know a ceramic plate works too!

February 9, 2021 at 7:34 pm

I could not get this to work! Do you have any pointers? I tried different dry erase markers, different types of plates, hot water, cold water etc

May 30, 2021 at 11:55 pm

Yes! We have found that the dry erase markers in the colors black and red worked well. Also, by not pressing hard onto the plate works wonders for us!

February 14, 2021 at 1:43 pm

Does it have to be a paper plate.

May 30, 2021 at 11:53 pm

Hmm.. I don’t believe it will work on a paper plate!

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Floating Dry Erase Marker Experiment

This simple floating dry erase marker experiment is a lot of fun for kids to try! You only need a dry erase marker, a bowl, spoon and water! Kids can learn how to make their drawings float with this simple experiment!

RELATED: Dry Erase Marker Snowflakes

Dry Erase Marker Experiment

Have you ever wanted to make your name float? Learn about science and create floating words with this fun floating dry erase marker experiment!

What is the Science?

Dry erase markers contain an oily silicone polymer. This makes the ink easy to wipe off nonporous surfaces such as a whiteboard, glass, metal or ceramic. This polymer makes the ink slippery and prevents it from sticking to the whiteboard.

In contrast, a permanent marker has an acrylic polymer that makes the ink stick to the surface, instead of being slippery.

How Does it Work?

You can get your drawings to float with a dry erase marker. When you make your drawing on the spoon (or a plate) the solvent that dissolves the ink ingredients will evaporate. Then, the color pigment and polymer is left on the spoon. However, since it has an oily silicone polymer this prevents it from sticking to the spoon.

When you dip the spoon into the water, the water can slip underneath the drawing since the polymer prevents it from sticking to the spoon. Finally, since the ink is lighter than the water, it floats!

Science Experiment

Make this a science experiment by testing the dry erase marker and a washable marker. Have kids make a hypothesis about which one they think will float and why.

See if you can spell different words or make your name! You can even do snowflakes or make other shapes like hearts!

Supplies Needed

Dry Erase Marker s – we tested the Ikea Brand and the EXPO brand. Make sure the marker says it is NOT washable. If it is a washable marker it will not work. We used these markers. Fine tip or larger is recommended.

A round bowl or dish

Metal spoon

Water – we used regular tap water. It was cold water.

Watch the Video Tutorial Here

How to do a floating dry erase marker experiment.

1.  Fill a bowl or container with water

2. Start by drawing a letter or shape on the metal spoon with the dry erase marker.

• Draw thicker lines (but don’t overline it too much or it will ruin the ink already there, just draw a thicker line)
• Make sure all of the lines are connected to each other
• You want to press down so that a lot of ink comes out (if it’s too light it might not be thick enough to hold together)

3. Slowly dip the spoon into the water.

Slowly and carefully move the spoon into the water and let it lift off. This can be tricky to do. Alternatively, you can draw on the bottom of your dish and slowly add water into the bowl or dish and see which letters release and float.

If you have any that break as you are trying to get them into the water, just scoop them out and try again.

See tips above.

Go slowly and try to shake it off gently so that it doesn’t break as you’re trying to get it into the water.

Now that you have your letters floating, use one of the markers to gently push the water around and see if you can get the letters to spell a word!

Try not to touch the letters too closely or the letter may stick to the marker.

Instead of letters, what else can you draw and make float? Try different shapes, a heart or snowflakes next!

More Science Experiments

How to Make Oobleck

Rain Cloud in a Jar

Grow a Rainbow Experiment

Oil and Water Experiment

Related ideas:.

Fluffy Slime Recipe

How to Make Slime With Contact Solution

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High School    |    Daily Do

Why is the drawing floating?

Share Discuss

Chemistry Crosscutting Concepts Disciplinary Core Ideas Is Lesson Plan NGSS Phenomena Physical Science Science and Engineering Practices Three-Dimensional Learning High School Grades 9-12

Sensemaking Checklist

Teachers and families across the country are facing a new reality of providing opportunities for students to  do  science through distance and home learning. The   Daily Do   is one of the ways NSTA is supporting teachers and families with this endeavor. Each weekday, NSTA will share a sensemaking task teachers and families can use to engage their students in   authentic, relevant science learning.   We encourage families to make time for family science learning (science is a social process!) and are dedicated to helping students and their families find balance between learning science and the day-to-day responsibilities they have to stay healthy and safe.

Interested in learning about other ways NSTA is supporting teachers and families? Visit the  NSTA homepage .

Sensemaking is actively trying to figure out how the world works (science) or how to design solutions to problems (engineering). Students  do  science and engineering through the  science and engineering practices . Engaging in these practices necessitates students be part of a learning community to be able to share ideas, evaluate competing ideas, give and receive critique, and reach consensus. Whether this community of learners is made up of classmates or family members, students and adults build and refine science and engineering knowledge together.

Introduction

Dancing stick figures made out of dry erase marker ink ?!  In today’s task, Why is the drawing floating?, students plan and conduct investigations and use the thinking tools of patterns and cause and effect to explain why dry erase marker stick figures float and in water.

Experience the Phenomenon

Tell students you have an intriguing phenomenon to share. Play the Magic Water Marker Trick video for students and watch the stick figures float and dance! Watch the video again and this time ask students to write observations and question they have.

Have students share their observations with a partner. Then, asks students to share their observations with the class. Create a class list of observations.

Add a column next to the observations for questions, then ask students to choose one question to share with the class. Students might ask:

• How can that happen?
• Why does the ink "lift" to the top of the water?
• Why do the stick people stay together?
• Why didn't the stick figures dissolve in the water?
• Does this work with words and other drawings?
• Do all the colors float?
• Does the water temperature matter?
• Does the type of writing surface make a difference?
• Can this work with other markers/pens?
• Do other inks come off in water and stay in one piece?

Continue the conversation about what they are wondering. You might say many of us are wondering if other inks “come off in water” and stay in one piece? Do you think we should investigate this question first?

Investigation: Removing the m's from M&M's

Materials (per student pair)

• Room-temperature water
• 4-5 M&M's

Note: Other materials may be required. These materials will vary based on investigation plans designed by students.

The M&M® investigation will answer the question, “Do other inks come off in water and stay in one piece?” Students will see how “easy” it is to remove the m’s from M&M’s®.

Give each student one or two M&M’s. In the Alone Zone (independent thinking time) have students predict if the m’s will come off in water and stay in one piece like the dry erase marker ink. Why do think so? Ask students to record their prediction and explain their thinking using words, pictures and/or symbols. Then, ask students to set their predictions aside/put them away. Be sure to tell them they will return to their predictions later.

Next, tell students they will conduct an investigation with the M&M’s®. Ask students to create a data table to record observations of the M&M’s® at three points in the investigation: before water is added to the bowl of M&M’s®, while water is being poured into the bowl, and after the water is added. See example data table at right.

Share the following procedure with students:

• Place a few M&M’s®, m-side up, in the bowl.
• Slowly pour room-temperature water into the bowl. Add enough water to cover the M&M’s®.

Ask each pair of students to join another student pair and share observations. Consider asking students to place a check mark next to observations most students in the group noticed and circle observations that only one or two students noticed. You might ask the groups to share two common observations and one less common observation with the class.

Ask students to then generate questions they have from this activity. Record student questions on a class list. Student questions might include:

• Does the color of M&M’s® matter?
• What will happen if the m is facing down?
• Does the temperature of water matter?
• Would the results be different if the water was poured quickly?
• What if another liquid was used?
• Does the same thing happen with other candy that has letters (like Skittles®)?
• Why does the m float and not sink?

Next, ask students to work with their group to identify which questions might have answers that help explain the phenomenon of the dancing dry erase marker ink. Tell students to be prepared to share how they might investigate the question and the data they would need to collect. 

Students will likely identify the following questions (bold) as having answers that might help explain the dancing dry erase marker ink phenomenon:

Consider grouping students by the question they want to investigate. You may have multiple groups investigating the same question. This is OK. Allow groups time to plan their investigation. You might have groups investigating the same question share their plans and provide each other feedback.

Provide students time to conduct their investigations.

Have groups share their data with the class. They might post their data around the room or on a shared digital space. Ask students to look for patterns in group data as well as patterns in the class data (across group data sets). What patterns do they observe? You might create a class list of observed patterns in data. Patterns students might observe include:

• The candy coating dissolves faster in warmer water than colder water (as water temperature increases, the rate the candy coating dissolves increases)
• The candy coating dissolves faster in water than other liquids
• The candy coating dissolves in liquids that contain water (the higher the water content of the liquid, the faster the candy coating dissolves)
• The substance the m's (and other edible "letters" on candies tested) are made of do not dissolve or appear to change in any of the liquids
• The substance the m's (and other edible "letters" on candies tested) are made of do not dissolve or appear to change even when the water temperature changes
• The m's are less dense than water (if you break it up into pieces, the pieces still float to the top

Reach Consensus

Ask students to return to their predictions about the M&M’s. Allow students independent thinking time to explain why the m’s came off of the candy and stayed in one piece using words, pictures and/or symbols. Encourage students to support their ideas with relevant evidence from (class) data and share why this data counts as evidence using scientific ideas, principles or theories. What claim can they make?

Ask students to share their explanation in small groups. As you move around the room, listen for students to share ideas about solubility and polar nature of water molecules. When you bring the students back together, ask these students to share their ideas first.

Consider leading a consensus discussion with students using the following prompts:

• How are our explanations similar? How are they different?
• What ideas are we in agreement about?
• I'm hearing X idea and Y idea. Why X? Why Y?
• Where should we go next to help us with areas where we are not sure about/not in agreement?

Students will likely reach consensus on the idea the candy coating is soluble in water but the “m” ink is not.

To help the class figure out where to go next, ask students to work in their small groups to complete the Venn diagram below.

Refer students back to their initial questions about the dancing dry erase marker stick figures. What questions can they now answer? What new questions do they have? Based on what the stick figures don’t have in common with M&M’s, what should we investigate next?

NSTA has created a Why is the drawing floating? collection of resources to support teachers and families using this task. If you're an NSTA member, you can add this collection to your library by clicking Add to My Library (near top of page).

The NSTA Daily Do is an open educational resource (OER) and can be used by educators and families providing students distance and home science learning. Access the  entire collection of NSTA Daily Dos .

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Parent Vault: Educational Resources, Lesson Plans & Virtual Classes

Worksheets, Daily Lessons & Resources for Parents, Students & Teachers

Make Your Drawings Float: READ THIS Before Doing the Dry Erase Water Trick

June 24, 2020 By Parent Vault 1 Comment

Kids have the most incredible imaginations. Every time my kids draw a picture, you can see that it “comes to life” in their minds. Well, how about if we can use science to actually make your drawings float? Your kids are going to LOVE the dry erase water trick! You definitely want to read the details below though, so that you use the right kind of dry erase markers and the correct plate or glass surface. I don’t want anyone ruining their grandmother’s delicate china! Plus, we will discuss the science behind why your drawings are able to float.

Science Experiment Virtual Camp

We are doing an entire science experiment virtual camp, using ingredients and stuff that you most likely already have around your house. Make sure that you join our  Facebook Group  and follow us on  Pinterest , so you that you won’t miss the additional activities! Here are the other daily activities, in case you missed any so far:

• How to Make a Lava Lamp (5 different ways!)
• Free Coding Programs for Kids

How to Make Your Drawings Float

After much trial and error, we have discovered the absolute BEST materials for making your drawings float.

What markers work best for the floating picture water trick?

As noted in the video below, you DEFINITELY want these Expo Chisel Tip Markers , versus these Expo Fine Tip Dry Erase Markers . In the name of science, we bought and tried out a variety of different brands and sizes, and Expo brand worked the best by far. The chisel tip are thicker and create pictures that are less likely to fall apart as they float around in the water.

Dry erase water trick (materials)

• A non-porous, smooth surface (we used a glass Pyrex 9×13 baking dish )
• Expo Chisel Tip Markers
• A large cup of water

How to make your pictures float (procedure)

The absolute BEST way to learn how to make your drawings float is to watch my daughter’s video below. It would mean the absolute world to her if you liked her video  here , and follow her Inspired Sparks YouTube channel  here !

As a recap, here are the steps to do the dry erase plate trick!

• Draw a picture on your non-porous, smooth surface. Please make sure to check with your parents first, as we do NOT want you to ruin any important objects in your home!
• It is best to draw solid drawings that do not use lots of thin lines, as delicate details will tend to break.
• Let the drawings dry for a couple of seconds.
• Slowly, pour warm water (not HOT, not COLD, but warm water!) into the side of the dish.
• Carefully move the water from side to side and stare in shock as your drawings float and come to life!

Why Do Your Dry Erase Drawings Float in Water?

In order to understand the reason why this science experiment works, you have to first understand how dry-erase markers work. If you draw on a white board at school with a permanent marker, it will not wipe off (do NOT try this!) The reason that dry-erase markers wipe off of white boards is because they contain a solvent that can dissolve the colored pigments used in the marker. The solvent is most often a type of alcohol.

In addition, dry erase markers contain a resin that helps them not stick to non-porous surfaces. The resin makes the ink “slippery” and is usually an oily silicone polymer. If you have ever accidentally gotten dry erase marker on clothing, you will know that it stains and is hard to get off (if not impossible!) That is because fabric has pores, and the oily silicone polymer only keeps the ink from sticking to NON-POROUS surfaces!

Important Scientific Terms

We just learned about two scientific terms (polymers and solvents) that I want to explain a bit further, in case you are unsure what those words mean.

What is a polymer?

A polymer is a long chain of molecules that is made up of smaller repeating units. You can have natural polymers (that occur on their own in nature) such as wool, protein, fingernails and DNA. There are also synthetic polymers, which humans make, such as plastic, silicone or nylon.

What is a solvent?

A solvent is a liquid (or other material) that can dissolve another solution. For example, if you use nail polish remover (acetone) to take the nail polish off of your fingernails, you are using a solvent! The acetone is the solvent for the nail polish!

Want to delve deeper into this science experiment?

Here are a few extensions for additional experiments to test out with this dry erase water trick!

• Does a disposable plastic plate work?
• What about a plastic cup?
• How about a paper plate?
• Does rubbing alcohol have a different effect than water?
• What about soda?
• Is salt water different from regular water?
• You can even try milk or juice!
• Does hot water work better or worse?
• What about cold water?
• What happens with broad tip vs fine tip dry erase markers? (Sorry for the spoiler alert above!)
• If you use washable markers, what happens?
• What about if you use a permanent marker? (ONLY try this with your parent’s permission and on objects that are ok to be thrown out!)

How to remove dry erase marker residue

We had absolutely no issue removing the Expo Chisel Tip Markers from our Pyrex baking dish . However, if you end up with any residue that isn’t coming off with water, try rubbing it with a paper towel dipped in rubbing alcohol. Try this on a small spot on the bottom of your dish first, just to be sure that the rubbing alcohol won’t hurt your dish. As I keep saying though, please do not do this experiment on a dish or container that would make you upset to throw out. As my grandma said, it is better to be safe than sorry!

Did Your Floating Dry Erase Picture Trick Work?

Don’t forget to join our  Facebook Group  and follow us on  Pinterest , so you that you won’t miss any of our homemade science experiments! Also, let me know if you were able to make your drawings float! I would LOVE to see photos and videos of your experiments in action! Please post your photos and videos in our  Facebook Group  to inspire others!

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