Saturday, July 28, 2012

Mini Science "Camp"

This week instead of music we learned a little about science. We ended up doing quite a few different experiments and science activities. I'll probably post more about how we did each one later, but until I find time many of the experiments can be found at I Can Teach My Child.


The first day we made Oobleck. The boys had lots of fun playing with this weird substance and Aaron learned how to say Non-Newtonian liquid. But the funny kid said, "it really should follow the (Newton's) rules though." :) We also read Bartholomew and the Oobleck by Dr. Suess, which has nothing to do with science but was fun.


The second day we made lots of bubbles! We made more bubble fluid together and made bubble snake blowers and then headed outside to blow a bunch of bubbles. We learned that soap bubbles are formed because the hydophillic phospholipids in the soap form a film that wants to have the least surface area possible. That's why when the bubbles are individual they are always a sphere, but when they combine, they make other shapes. We then headed back inside to add food coloring to some of our bubbles and do bubble painting. This was Aaron's (our four-year-old's) favorite day.

On day three the boys went out with daddy to find bugs and plant materiel. They brought some "specimens" back home in jars and "cataloged" (drew) them. Then they were released. Andrew has been trying to find more "specimens" in the house since then and is very proud when he locates one.

The fourth day we did quite a few short experiments. We made it rain in a jar, which showed the different states of matter and a temperature reaction. Then we blew up balloons using vinegar and baking soda, which demonstrated a chemical reaction. The boys got to experiment with squirting green vinegar on baking soda and watching it fizz too. And then we took a piece of something like celery and stuck it in too different colors of water. The boys thought it was cool how the colors had climbed up the stalk hours later.

The last day we made a hover craft out of an old DVD, bottle top, and a balloon. The boys had lots of fun pushing it around as it hovered just off of the floor (like a puck on an air hockey table). Then we made a marshmallow slingshot and shot homemade marshmallows across the room. This illustrated Newton's third law (for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction). Aaron was glad that something finally followed Newton's rules, Andrew was very happy to eat marshmallows, and this was a good note to end the science camp on. :)






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