With Covid-19 forcing children to study at home, it can be easy to fall into a routine of learning behind a screen with the odd Joe Wicks workout chucked in for good measure. As a scientist, I am a little biased when I say that studying science is the best thing ever, and part of the reason for that is because I love doing experiments. They are fun, engaging, a tad messy but also very enriching for children. Therefore, I have compiled a list of fun, easy to do experiments that you can try at home (even if you don’t have any kids!).
Volcano Experiment:
An old favourite, the volcano experiment only requires a few materials.
A volcano made out of paper mache (art lesson and science all in one!)
An old container such as a baby food jar or something of similar size.
Red and yellow food colouring
Vinegar
Washing up liquid
Method:
Go outside or prepare for some clean-up inside
Put the container into the volcano at the top
Add two spoonfuls of baking soda
Add about a spoonful of dish soap
Add about 5 drops each of the red and yellow food coloring
Now for the eruption!: Add a big gulp of vinegar into the container!
In order to make this experiment into a lesson, you could pre plan some questions for your child to answer as they conduct the experiment in the form of a mini lab-report. Ideas include: what did you see when the volcano erupted? Why did the volcano erupt?
Speedy Ice Cream
Everyone will enjoy this one, especially parents. You will need:
Approx 110ml of milk
Approx 110ml of cream
Flavouring (vanilla essence, chocolate syrup etc)
4 tsp of sugar
Food colouring (optional)
Ice
Half a cup of salt (rock salt works best)
One small and one large zip-lock bag
Method:
Put the milk, cream, sugar, flavouring and food colouring into the small zip lock bag.
Put a large cup of ice and a handful of salt into the big bag. Put the small bag inside the big bag.
Zp it shut and shake the bags for approx 5-8 minutes. After this time you should find ice cream inside the smaller bag!
Eggshell Geode Crystals
This is a fun, arty experiment that results in beautiful egg shells.You will need:
Clean eggshells
Water
A collection of some of the following: table salt, rock salt, sugar, baking soda, epsom salts, sea salt, borax and cream of tartar
Coffee mugs
Spoons
Food colouring
Egg cartons with wax paper or mini muffin tins
Method:
When cracking the eggs for this project, crack them as close to the narrower end as possible to give yourself more space to work with. Clean them with hot water. After cleaning you should be able to pull the egg membrane out of the inside using your fingers.
Using a mini muffin tin or an egg carton lined with wax paper, position your egg shells upright.
Heat some water to boiling. Pour half a cup into the coffee mug and add ¼ cup of your chosen solid. Stir it until dissolved. Following this, add more solid until no more will dissolve.
Add food colouring.
Pour into your egg shell carefully until it's full.
Leave the egg shells to dry so the water can evaporate and crystals can form.
Hopefully this is useful and fun for you and your little ones!