Students will collaborate on an investigation into the sticky factor of Post-it® Notes with an activity exploring adhesion.

GUIDING QUESTION
What are the adhesive properties of sticky notes and what variables influence how much
weight a sticky note is able to hold?

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Students will be able to:
• work with other students to discover some adhesive properties of sticky notes.
• test sticky notes for their adhesive strength.
• interpret student-collected data in order to draw conclusions.

OVERVIEW
Students use sticky notes often, but they rarely think about them in terms of using them
to learn inquiry skills. Sticky notes readily stick to most surfaces and require a small, but
measurable, force to remove them. In this lesson, students will work in small groups to gather quantitative data about the amount of force needed to pull a sticky note from the surface of a CD along the plane of the CD. They will initially be offered the chance to explore the adhesion conditions and properties of the sticky notes in an open inquiry setting. Later, in a more directed inquiry approach, students will focus on two variables that affect the degree of adhesion on a sticky note, the force used to attach the sticky notes to the CD and the surface area of the adhesive part of the sticky note that is attached to the CD. Students will continue their inquiry at home by involving their parents/guardians in additional investigations of sticky notes in everyday situations around the house.

Includes follow-up family activity

Grades 3 – 5