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Dad Field Manual · Field card 163 · Indoor & Rainy Day

How many helium balloons lift a stuffed animal?

Will five balloons lift a teddy bear? Measure one balloon's pull with paper clips, make a prediction, test it and graph what happened.

Time
45 min
Cost
About $15
Ages
6 to 12
Where
Any room with a ceiling

What you need

  • 8 to 12 helium latex balloons on ribbons, filled at the store the same day
  • A small, light stuffed animal
  • A box of paper clips and a paper cup
  • A kitchen scale, if you have one
  • Paper and a pencil for the chart

Before you start

  • Never breathe in helium, from a balloon or a tank, not even for a funny voice. It can replace oxygen and cause fainting, and deaths have happened. If someone passes out, call 911.
  • Buy the balloons filled at the store. If you use a home tank, only you touch it. Helium straight from a tank is much more dangerous than from a balloon.
  • Balloons are a choking risk for kids under 8. You handle any balloon that goes soft or pops, and pick up every piece right away. Keep toddlers out of the room.
  • Don't let them go outside. Released balloons come down as litter that animals eat or get tangled in. When you're done, you deflate them and throw them away.

Steps

  1. Measure one balloon's pull. Tie one balloon to a paper cup. Add clips until the cup stays down. Write the number.
  2. Add balloons and graph. Add one balloon at a time and count the clips each time. Dot each result on the chart.
  3. Weigh the passenger and predict. Weigh the animal and one balloon's cup of clips. Divide to predict how many balloons it needs.
  4. Test it. Tie on the predicted number of balloons and let go. Add or remove one until it just floats.
  5. Compare and explain. Write the real answer next to the prediction. Talk about why they're different.
  6. Wrap up safely. You deflate the balloons and throw them out, every piece. Nothing goes outside.

If it stalls

  • If counting clips one by one drags, drop them in five at a time, then go back one by one at the end.
  • If the animal won't lift even with every balloon, try a lighter toy, like a finger puppet or a sock with eyes.
Prediction · real answer
Signed off: can do this.Signed by Date