Lyrics

Chorus
Let’s discuss the difference between weight and mass
People confuse it everyday in every way and let it pass

Weight is the measurement of force of gravity on a matter
And mass is the quantity of matter on the platter

It’s easy: volume is space I’m taking, getting fatter
density is the ratio of mass to the volume in the place
And this data is all you need to know
So let me break it down really quickly before I go

Verse I
When you’re holding a bowling ball before you bowl it
You know that there’s a force on your hand, you can’t control it

It’s gravity pulling down on the mass of the ball
And that force is called weight, what we’re mastering y’all

But just wait: wait just a minute, man
The ball doesn’t weigh 3 kilograms
That’s the mass of the ball, just so understand
The weight is the gravitational constant known as G
Multiplied by the mass of the earth
Multiplied by the mass the ball, which is 3
Divided by the radius between the center of the earth
And center of the ball squared

If you’re asking, mass is a unit. It’s a quantity of matter
Weight is a force that occurs when gravity happens to be present
On the earth or the moon, measured with a balance,
The mass is the same, cousin

Chorus

Verse II
volume is the space occupied by a body
Abide by the laws of physics just to record it
When you look at it, it’s easy to see
The volume of a cube is the length of any side to the power of three

When you wanna measure the volume of a sphere, dude
It’s 4∕3πr³

You can be a beginner and still figure out
The volume of a cylinder with these steps here:
The height times π times the radius squared

So extensively, we move on to density
A measurement of mass over volume
For example: the density of water is 1 g/cm³
So you understand
It’s all a part of the plan to get the knowledge
From my rhyme to your mind to your hand

Measure the volume of a can in simplicity
With weight, mass, volume, and density

Resources

Further Reading

ABCTeach
Units of Measurement
This website has conversion charts for mass and volume, in addition to others.

ABCTeach
Volume and Area
This website has diagrams of various shapes with the equations for finding their volumes.

Lesson Plans & Activities

Discovery Education
Gravity Gets You Down
This classroom activity teaches students how gravity works in relation to mass, weight and density.

The Educator’s Reference Desk
Does Air Have Mass and Density?
Using a basketball, students conduct an experiment to determine if air has mass, and therefore, density. It will help them to better understand both concepts.

Middle School Dense
Density Demonstration: Coke vs. Diet Coke
By comparing the amount of sugar in Coke vs. Diet Coke, students gain a better understanding of what density is and how it can be measured.

Middle School Science
Making Cents Lab
Students get to practice recording the mass of pennies in this activity.

Middle School Science
Metric System and Matter
This crossword puzzle features terms about matter and the Metric System.d

Middle School Science
Properties of Matter
This worksheet covers the main concepts of matter in an easy-to-study format.

Middle School Science
Volume Lab
This lab teaches students how to measure the volume and regular and irregular objects.

Middle School Science
Volume of Irregular Objects
This activity teaches students how to use water displacement to measure the volume of irregular objects.

Science Learning Network
Liquid Layers
By layering different types of liquids, students learn more about density.

Teachers.Net
Density
This experiment demonstrates the concept of density = mass/volume.

Teach-nology.com
Discovering Gravity: What Goes Up Must Come Down
This activity shows how weight affects gravity.

Teach-nology.com
Mass/Weight/Data Graphing - “What is the Mass of a Dinosaur?”
This activity demonstrates the difference between weight and mass.

What’s the Matter?
Deducing Density
This experiment will give students a more complete view of what density is and how to measure it.

Media

YouTube
Eureka! Episode 25 (video)
This cartoon explains that volume refers to the amount of space an object envelops and that density refers to the amount of mass that is compacted in a given volume.