A Little Boat for Mira

Mira had a small blue basin.

She filled it with water.

Then she put a plastic cap on the water.

The cap floated.

Mira smiled.

“It is like a tiny boat!”

Her father came to look.

“Would you like to make your own boat?” he asked.

“Yes!” said Mira.

Mira Had an Idea

Mira looked around the house.

She found:

• a small piece of clean cardboard;
• a drinking straw;
• some tape;
• a small piece of paper.

“Can I use these?” she asked.

Father looked at the cardboard.

“Cardboard can get wet very quickly,” he said.

Mira thought for a moment.

“What can we use instead?”

Father gave her a small piece of aluminium foil.

“This will be better for our water test.”

Mira nodded.

The First Boat

Mira folded the foil.

She made it flat.

Then she put it on the water.

Splash!

Water came over the side.

The foil sank.

“Oh no!” said Mira.

Father smiled.

“That is all right. What can we change?”

Mira looked at the foil.

“It needs higher sides.”

“Good idea,” said Father.

Try Again

Mira took another piece of foil.

This time, she folded the edges upward.

She made a small shape like a tray.

Slowly, she placed it on the water.

The boat floated.

“It works!” shouted Mira.

She clapped her hands.

Father smiled.

“You changed your design.”

Mira looked proudly at her little boat.

A Sail for the Boat

Mira wanted to add a sail.

Father helped her fix a short straw in the middle.

Mira cut a small triangle from paper.

She taped it to the straw.

Now the boat had a sail.

“It looks beautiful,” said Mira.

She blew gently at the sail.

The little boat moved across the basin.

Mira laughed.

“It can move too!”

One Small Stone

Mira found a tiny clean pebble.

“Can my boat carry this?” she asked.

“Let us test it,” said Father.

Mira placed the pebble inside.

The boat went lower into the water.

But it still floated.

Mira added another pebble.

The boat went even lower.

Then she added a third pebble.

Water came over the side.

The boat sank.

Mira stared at it.

“Too heavy,” she said.

Father nodded.

“Yes. A boat can only carry so much before its shape and weight become a problem.”

Mira Made a Better Boat

Mira wanted to try again.

She made a wider boat.

This boat had:

• a flat bottom;
• high sides;
• more space inside.

She placed one pebble inside.

It floated.

Two pebbles.

Still floating.

Three pebbles.

Still floating!

Mira smiled.

“My new boat can carry more.”

“What did you learn?” asked Father.

Mira thought carefully.

“A wider boat with higher sides worked better.”

Father nodded.

“And what did you do when your first boat failed?”

“I tried again.”

The Boat Was for Mira

Mira decorated the sail with a little star.

Then she wrote:

MIRA

on the side.

Father took a photo.

“That is your first little engineering project,” he said.

“What is engineering?” asked Mira.

“It is when people use ideas to design and solve problems.”

Mira looked at her boat.

First it sank.

Then she changed it.

Then it floated.

Mira smiled.

“I like engineering.”

She blew gently.

The little boat sailed to the other side of the basin.

Mira’s Little Boat: Design, Test and Try Again

Activity After Reading

Build a Tiny Boat

With a teacher, parent or guardian, make a tiny boat using a safe material such as aluminium foil.

Use only a small basin or tray of water.

Try changing:

• the width;
• the shape;
• the height of the sides.

Then test how many small objects your boat can carry.

Record:

Boat 1 carried: ______ objects
Boat 2 carried: ______ objects

Complete the sentence:

“My better boat worked because __________.”

Do not carry out this activity near rivers, ponds or deep water.