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1-16-01Teachers might enjoy this website on preschool science: www.csulb.edu/-sci4kids/ It is a National Demonstration Project of the National Center for Science in Early Childhood at California State University, Long Beach. Activities and opportunities for continuing education are included.
1-15-01My 3.5 year old loves to do this trick. In a saucer of water she shakes pepper all over the dish. The we put dish soap on her finger. Have them put their finger in the center of the plate to see what happens. (all the pepper goes to the sides!) Cute and fun!
12-28-00Discovery table with old unusable appliances can be a great way for children to explore how things work. Provide them with screwdrivers, pliers and supervision, and watch them take apart radios, toasters, clocks, tape players etc. and find out what makes things work.
11-18-00At our science table, we like to have an on going science experiment. One in which the children can observe the changes that take place over the course of several days to weeks. Here are several that have worked well. **Take an ear of Indian corn and place in a shallow dish of water. It will sprout within 4 to 5 days. Children are fascinated by this display of growth. We like to measure it every couple of days and record what we see. **Cavities--Take an apple and use a straw to poke a hole in it. Observe what happens to the apple over time. Discuss why it is important to brush your teeth daily and to visit your dentist regularly. **Germs/bacteria--Slice up raw potatoes. Pair children up. One child in pair cleans hands with baby wipe, other child puts hands in dirt. Give each child a potato piece to handle. Then place each child's potato in a plastic baggie with his/her name on it. Each day have children view their bags and record what they see.
11-5-00Fill muffin tin with sand, magnetic objects and non-magnetic objects. Cut Plexiglas to fit over top, add clips to seal it tight so the children can't open, add magnets and put at your science center, no mess.
11-4-00Test what color of playdough will dry out first: blue or white. Leave it out for a few days and come back to weigh it each day.
10-2-00Recipe for Silly Putty In a zip loc bag, place 1 tablespoon Elmer's glue, 1 tablespoon water and 2 drops of food coloring Mix well. In a container mix 1/2 cup water and 1 tablespoon Borax. After the glue, water and food coloring have been mixed, add 1 tablespoon of the borax mixture. Close Ziploc and mix well. The result is a very, very close resemblance to the real silly putty.
9-30-00Instead of using plastic bottles for water and oil experiments, I use tubes that liquid candy comes in now. They are just right for little ones hands. The tubes are usually found at the local mini-mart. Empty the tube and wash. Fill 3/4 of the way with colored water. Sprinkle some glitter or confetti into tube. Pour a little oil on top, leaving a small air bubble for movement. Have a very strong person tighten the cap down. It's ready to explore with.
9-13-00I was trying to teach the concept that sound travels better through liquids than through gases to my third grade class. I filled up plastic soda bottles (any plastic bottle with a screw on top would work) and let each child hold the bottle to their ears while tapping on the bottle. I had them take the bottles away and tap on them. I then asked them which way the sound was the loudest. This is an inexpensive way that is not messy to teach this concept and the kids touch something!
9-10-00We made wonderful sand search bottles at my preschool. We used Gatorade bottles. Put several items in the bottle, being sure to note what you used. We used items like pipe cleaners, crayons, markers, Lego pieces, small toys, funky key chains and more. After putting the items in the bottle, fill the bottle about 3/4 or a little more with sand. Seal well. The children turn and shake the bottle to see what they can find in the sand. For the older children, we labeled the bottles (i.e. "Can you find me? Red crayon, purple dinosaur, pink pipe cleaner, etc.") The children loved this, from the 5's down to the 2's!
9-8-00Fill your sensory table with salt and drop in iron fillings (purchased at the teacher supply store). Let the children run magnetic bingo wands over the salt and watch the iron fillings attach to the wand. Talk about why the salt isn't attracted to the magnet.
8-24-00To help the children learn the cycle of life water takes we make a bracelet. Using small strips of leather (inexpensively purchased at a local craft store) we string different colored beads to represent the different stages. Start with a white bead, (the clouds), then a light blue bead (the rain), then a brown bead (the earth where the rain lands), then a yellow bead (the sun is shining on the earth), then a clear bead (evaporation), then another white bead (the water is again in the clouds)!! You will be amazed at how the children will recall over and over again how it works.
8-23-00Have several already grown Sunflowers on trays. Have some tweezers on the tray and let the children pull the seeds from the sunflower. You could also add a few sunflower seed packets in the area and the pictures of the various stages of growth. You can use the seeds in an art project or have the children take them out to feed the animals.
7-23-00Have parents boil down chicken bones, steak bones etc. (Make sure there are no sharp ones!) Then when they are totally clean (white) have an adult hide them in the sand box. Have the children go searching for dinosaur bones or fossils. After months my niece thinks they are still real dino bones.
7-22-00Create and Invent Center Add household items: cartons, boxes, lids, buttons (anything you want) and let the children become inventors:) They can name their inventions and display them for others to play with and/or look at:)
7-21-00Sun Painting The children here love this activity! Take a dark color of construction paper outside with 4-5 distinct objects-blocks, letters, shapes, scissors, etc. Place the paper on the ground in direct sunlight (sidewalk works best), scatter the objects on the paper and let the sun work its wonders. After 2-3 hours of baking, the paper will fade around the objects. Take the objects off the paper and you will see that where the objects are, the paper hasn't faded! Kids are fascinated by this!
7-18-00Try this bubble solution out! Mix 12 cups of water, 3-4 tablespoons of glycerin (available at pharmacies) and 1 cup of DAWN or JOY dishwashing liquid. It gets better as it ages- like most of us!
7-14-00I like most of the ideas with plastic pop bottles or Ziploc sandwich baggies. The children tend to like to open them and glue may work for a while , but the glue does eventually not work even crazy glue. So we put Masking tape around the cap of the pop bottle and the zip part of the baggies. Some things are done with the glue. Most kids won't pull the tape off if it is an interesting activity, but if they do it's simple just add more tape. the tape seems to last longer and is stronger. It really does work great!
7-13-00At the beginning of each year, I introduce the concept of cooperation by performing this simple experiment: Gather a class supply of old, "dirty" pennies, a box of salt, and a bottle of vinegar. Tell the children you need to clean your pennies and sprinkle some salt over 2 or 3. When nothing happens, pour vinegar over a couple more. Next, mix the salt and vinegar in a pie pan, and add the pennies. Let them help stir. Voila! They will appear noticeably shinier. Talk about how the salt and vinegar worked together and ways we can work together to get things done. Depending on the age of your students (mine are kindergartners), you may wish to give each one a penny to take home, or give to parents with a note about the experiment. Also, you may want to try salt & vinegar potato chips for snack! Have a great year.:)
7-10-00Children in America have a very limited idea on just what can be considered "food" and what makes it look good to eat. Less jaded than adults, they may eat some things that are surprising. Try putting normal foods in sterile, but "unusual" containers. ie: kool-aid served in a pitcher, stirred with a brand new, just unwrapped flyswatter, gummy bears served in a brand new ashtray, cookies from a soap dish with a brand new, unwrapped toothbrush by it's side, pet dishes with chip and dips, etc.--and videotape the party. Then have the children comment on why or why not they ate the food, then extend the conversation about world starvation.
7-10-00To show how that mammal mommies know their babies by using their sense of smell, try this wonderful sensory lesson (pre-make). In a baggie (or camera film cups) place 1 cotton ball with a strong smell--cinnamon, vinegar, lemon, vanilla etc. Make a matching baggie. Provide enough for each of your students to have a match. Tell the students that they are going to be mammal mommies in search of their lost babies and that by using only their sense of smell, can they find them. Stress no talking, no noises, just smell. Distribute the baggies so that they are all mixed through the class. Allow the children to go find their babies, sniffing their way through the lesson. Follow-up: Was it hard to find your baby? What other ways to animals communicate? What ways do humans communicate?
6-9-00To illustrate how plants grow in vivid reality, use old fish tanks to grow vegetables. First, choose the vegetables you want to grow; we used carrots, radishes, beans, and potatoes. Consult seed packages for information on soil requirements and mix sand, soil, and potting mix to required soil texture. Next fill 2-3 inches of various size rocks in the bottom of the tank to provide drainage, then fill the tank with soil to the black edge on the top. (Filling the tank to the black edge prevents light from filtering to the roots.) Next allow the children to plant seeds against the side of the tank. (You can also plant the center of the tank) Wrap the bottom of the tank with thick, black paper (use a double fold of butcher paper) and place near a light source. Be sure to leave the front paper so that you can open it fairly easily to see the plant growth. The vegetables will develop against the glass so children can see how they really grow. Check the plants weekly and chart their growth, when mature, have a feast!
6-8-00We had a fabulous science / manipulative activity making it is made from corn flour and water. The children very slowly added water to the corn flour, with a little food coloring just for fun. When it is mixed correctly (you find the right amount of water through trial and error) the mixture is hard when hit but soft if gently pressed. It is quite fascinating. I recommend doing this activity outside as it gets very messy and took us a long time to tidy up. The expressions on the children's faces as it transformed made it very worthwhile.
5-28-00Take a clear 16 oz. plastic pop bottle. Remove the wrapper and cap Remember to keep the cap, let it dry out totally. It has to be completely dried out or it will not work! Rub colored chalk through a strainer into another container. pour salt into the cont. with the chalk in it and mix. Use enough chalk that all of the salt is covered. Find all sorts of objects that can attract to a magnet that will fit into your bottle. Ex. paperclips, tacks, staples, nails, pipe cleaners, pins etc. Pour the salt mix into the pop bottle then add the magnetic things to the bottle. Screw lid onto bottle and tape with masking tape shut. so they can't open it. Use a cow magnet or other very strong magnet to gather the magnetic things out of the salt mix. I found cow magnets at the hardware/farm store for very cheep 3 magnets for $4.50. they can cost up to $16.00 for other magnetic wands. the children like using the cow magnets better because they get to see the magnet as it is attaching. The 2's&3's had a blast with this one.
5-28-00Growing a crystal Get a jar full of warm water and some washing soda and put a tablespoon of the washing soda in the jar. Wait for the washing soda to dissolve. Tie a paperclip to a pencil and allow the paper clip to hang in the solution. Allow to cool and leave for a few days while the washing soda recrystallizes. Don't disturb the solution as crystallization will not occur.
5-25-00Cut about 5 inch long plastic piping (found at home depot). Then cover one end of the piping by securing cheese cloth over the opening w/a rubber band. Take bubble solution and dip only the cheese cloth covered side in. Gently have the children blow into the other end of the piping. Very different from typical bubbles will form. This makes it interesting to talk about, watch, and play with.
ideaMaking Slime. Ingredients; Elmer's glue and cornstarch. The cornstarch can be found in the detergent section of the grocery store. Directions: In a plastic bowl mix one and a half cups of glue with one cup of cornstarch. It will become very sticky. You have to use your hands to mix the two. If the slime becomes to sticky after the ingredients are mix add a little more cornstarch. Slime is a fun sensory activity and is also messy. Smocks or old Dad recycled shirts should be used while making slime to prevent damaged clothing. Slime should be used while it's cool. It becomes sticky after warm hands have played with it for a while. The slime should be store in the refrigerator for a while then returned to play area. Slime should also be stored in the refrigerator after each use to prolong the life of the Slime.
Date: 3-28-00We saved our pumpkin seeds from our Halloween pumpkin and planted them in milk cartons. The pumpkin plants sprouted quickly and the children transplanted them into clay pots they decorated with paints in the art area. The pumpkin vines are gorgeous and grow and change it seems daily. When they become too large to handle, we will send them home.
Date: 3-20-00Absorb & Repel: In the science area present two or three places set up like this: A tray with wax paper taped down on it...two jars of colored water with an eye dropper in each...i.e.: red and yellow...and a sponge in a separate small container beside the tray. The child can then experiment with the eyedroppers on the wax paper and watch the beads of water roll on the paper...Then he/she can make the drops disappear by placing the sponge on top of the drops....MAGIC!!!
Date: 3-15-00Rising and falling popcorn Fill small glass jar 3/4 full of water. Add 2 scoops of baking soda mixing well. Add a drop or two of food coloring. Next, add 10 to 15 popcorn kernels. Finally, pour vinegar into mixture. Within a minute or two the popcorn seeds will rise to the top then the bottom continuously.
2-20-00When experimenting with object that float or sink, I like to include two hotel size bars of soap--one regular brand and one 'Ivory'... the kids love it!
Date: 2-7-00Shattering Bubbles Keep a container of bubble blowing solution in the fridge. The next time it is very cold out side try blowing the cold bubble solution. You will see the bubbles shatter instead of just bursting.
ideaAn interesting variation or extension of Marilyn's (Cabana94@aol.com) carnations in water with food coloring is to split the stem of a white carnation into three sections so that one is in plain water, one in red and one in blue. Ask the children to predict what will happen and wait to see. You will get a multicolored carnation!
Date: 1-30-00Science Observation Boards Take small, light weight, cutting board that has a hole in the handle. Attach a inexpensive magnifying glass on a short string and tie through handle. Glue objects for observation pertaining to weeks theme. Use hot glue gun. Most objects will peel off, so that you can change objects weekly with themes. (ideas...Rocks, Shells, Oceanography, Plastic bugs/Animals, Leaves, Dried fruit, etc.)
Date: 12-21-00You will need a strong magnet plastic zipper bags rolling pin and different kids of cereal Use as many cereals as you want put each kind in a different baggie. Only a little is needed. Use the rolling pin to crush the cereal. If your cereal is high in iron then it should cling to the magnet. Make guesses on which you think will cling and which won't.
10-17-00Sensory Bottles I'm always adding new items to make sensory bottles. Here are some of the ideas I have used for sensory bottles.( use clean clear or lightly tinted bottles also work, hot glue tops when finished) Aloe Vera- fill the bottle about 3/4 full then add liquid water colors or food coloring also can add glitter, marbles.. Add gold or silver liquid water colors (Discount school supplies) to bottle filled with water. Fill bottle about 3/4 with Corn syrup and fill the rest with water add dark colored marbles Glitter hair gel with marker caps I have filled bottles with items with out liquids, children love them too. popcorn - beans - rice - bells, aquarium rocks - marker caps - feathers salt - sand - potting soil ... Date: 1-8-00This is an Date: 1-8-00 for a science project called, "Watch It Rain". Supplies: 1 16 oz. plastic water/pop bottle with lid Nail/hammer (or other device for safely poking holes) Procedure: Step 1-Poke 6-8 holes in the bottom of the bottle Step 2-Fill with water while covering holes. Step 3-Put lid on. Water should stay in. Step 4-In front of children, hold bottle over a bowl or sink and open the lid slightly (do not remove completely). Water should sprinkle or "rain" out the bottom. Step 5-close lid again to make it stop raining. Date: 12-20-99Mix red/pink food coloring w/ vinegar. Make a volcano with a water bottle and paper mache. Mix vinegar w/ baking soda.... And Kaboom! ( Not a big explosion) ideathis is a fun experiment we do to accompany our air unit. blow up a balloon, tie it, then put a generous amount of Vaseline on a small bar-b-que stick very carefully poke the stick threw the balloon and out the other end. you can talk about how the air stayed inside the balloon because the Vaseline made a seal. Date: 11-15-99ideayou will need Flubber (GAK), strawberry basket (the kind you get at the store when you buy strawberries), and a string. Put the flubber into the strawberry basket. Tie a string to the basket so that it can be hung from the ceiling. Hang it from the ceiling and watch what happens. If the flubber is made to stiff this experiment will not work. Date: 9-15-99 Contact_FullName: ideaSINK OR FLOAT- Get a fairly large fish aquarium or other large, clear container. Gather items from around the classroom or better yet, have the children gather them. Have each child bring up an item. Before dropping it into the tank, have the children predict whether it will sink or float. Chart the number of children for each item and for each prediction then list what actually happened. It will be interesting to see if their guess was correct. It is fun to hear why they think it sunk or floated. This activity was done with four and five year olds. Have fun! Date: 8-27-99
Date: 8-12-99A really good idea to learn the density of liquids is this. You'll need equal parts of corn syrup, oil, and water. You need a cork, a small piece of lego, a grape and a large clear container so the children can see what happens. I've used a large mayonnaise jar. Careful, it's glass. To begin the activity you can ask them to predict what will happen when you pour the liquids together in the container. Pour the corn syrup in first, then the oil, and then the water. You should have three layers. The corn syrup on the bottom, the water on top of that and then the oil on the water. Next drop in one of the objects. The grape will rest on the corn syrup - the densist. The lego will rest on the water - less dense. The cork will rest of the oil - least dense. The children are always fascinated at how the three liqiuds don't mix and how the items rest ontop of the liquid. Leave it out to observe.
Date: 8-12-99DURING SPRING WHEN EVERYTHING IS FRESH, WE USUALLY GO ON A NATURE WALK TO SEE THE NEWNESS. WHILE WE ARE OUT EACH CHILD LOOKS FOR THE LARGEST LEAF THEY CAN FIND. BACK AT THE CENTER, THEY MAKE A CIRCLE ON THE FLOOR AND PLACE THEIR LEAF TOWARD THE MIDDLE. EACH CHILD IS GIVEN GREEN PLAYDOUGH. THEY MAKE THEIR OWN CATERPILLAR WITH IT. THEN THEY TAKE THEIR CATEPILLAR AND WRAP IT UP IN THEIR COCOON(LEAF). MASKING TAPE WITH THEIR NAMES ON IT IS THEN PLACED ON IT TO LET US KNOW WHOSE IS WHOSE AND TO HELP THEM STAY CLOSED. THEY ARE THEN HUNG ON A BRANCH IN OUR CLASSROOM TO AWAIT THE METAMORPHASIS. WE THEN READ THE HUNGRY CATEPILLAR, THEN ON TO OTHER ACTIVITIES. SOMETIME DURING THE NEXT WEEK WHILE THE CHILDREN ARE NOT AROUND, I MAKE BUTTERFLIES OUT OF MAGNET, TISSUE PAPER, AND PIPE CLEANERS. I CAREFULLY TAKE DOWN THEIR LEAVES ONE AT A TIME AND REPLACE THEIR CATERPILLAR WITH THE BUTTERFLY. IF YOU DON'T TAKE IT ONE AT A TIME THEY WILL CATCH YOU BECAUSE YOU WILL BE SURPRISED TO SEE HOW MANY OF THEM CHECK THE BRANCH AND KNOW EXACTLY WHERE THEIR CATERPILLAR IS HANGING. THE NEXT DAY DURING STORYTIME I READ THE HUNGRY LITTLE CATERPILLAR AGAIN. I THEN ASK THEM WHAT THEY THINK MIGHT HAVE HAPPENED TO THEIR CATERPILLARS. WE GET DOWN THE BRANCH AND EACH CHILD IS GIVEN THEIR COCOON TO CAREFULLY UNWRAP. THEY ARE REALLY AMAZED TO FIND THEIR BUTTERFLIES AND CAN'T WAIT TO SHOW THEIR PARENTS.
Date: 8-12-99Every spring I have a unit on farm animals. Then we hatch out baby chicks. I have an inexpensive incubator that I purchased at a farm supply store. I get the eggs from a local supplier of fresh eggs you can eat. They just save a dozen for me and don't refrigerate them. It takes about 3 weeks for the eggs to hatch. Everyday the class helper turns the eggs as I purposely bought an incubator that didn't have an automatic turner. The kids love mothering the eggs and are very excited when they hatch. You can get specific instructions from your local 4-H extension office. Have fun! Date: 7-25-99We created the ocean with a clear plastic peanut butter jar, water, mineral oil and blue food coloring. The children can move the jar to make waves. Also, peanut butter jar, small shells, small rocks and water when shaken vigorously will make sand. Date: 7-1-99Last week in my Summer K-3 Class, we talked about our senses (sight, smell, taste, touch, and hearing). Yesterday we had a "Touch Box". I took a good size box and cut a small hole in one end and cut most of the other end clean. Then, I took a sleeve (can be cut from an old shirt or home made) and put it into the small hole. I then covered the box with black material and on the side of the box in chalk I wrote: "Miss Debbie's Touch Box Can you see with your fingers?" The kids had great fun with it. Date: 6-28-99A great science for all about me, is to place large pictures of different expressions e.g. someone crying, laughing, surprised, mad.etc. Then place large unbreakable mirrors for them to try the expressions. It is a fun way to learn about expressions, and about what they look like expressing them! Date: 6-28-99Bring in a basket of gourds, Indian corn, acorns, pinecones, any other fall items, put them in the science area with magnifying glasses, and books about these items. The children will examine these things for ages! Lots of terrific language skills develop also!! Date: 6-28-99MAKING SAND Place different sizes of rocks out with magnifying glasses for the children to observe. Have the children help you to wash some of the rocks. Place them in a clean coffee can. Tape the lid on. Ask the children what would happen to the rocks if the can was shaken or kicked around a lot? Record their guesses. Take the can outside. Have the children take turns kicking the can outside. When you are back inside, place a white piece of paper on the floor or table, open the can and empty the contents. Record the children's observations. The rock will have broken down into small pieces of sand. This is a great discussion of why there is so much sand at the beach. We always record our guesses and observations of the outcome of our experiments for the children to see throughout the week. Also, on your daily communication sheets to parents or on a sign on your door, invite parents to discuss what they did with their children by writing something like "Ask me about our rock experiment" or "Guess what we did with rocks outside today". Most parents have a hard time getting their children to remember everything they did throughout the day. These types of prompts to parents help them to open up conversations about school in ways other than asking "So, what did you do in school today? Did you have fun?". Date: 5-31-99This idea was a fun way to teach children about the pull of magnets. I taped large cookie sheets to small blocks to make a little table for each child at this work space. On each little "table" I put a cut-to-fit piece of paper. I then placed nuts, bolts and other metal pieces into a pie pan with enough paint to cover the pieces. The children used a spoon to place some of these paint covered metal objects on their paper. They then used a magnet underneath their little "tables" to move the pieces around and make a painting! They were amazed! We had fun just watching them. You do need to have some good quality magnets to move the paint covered pieces. If you have magnetic marbles, they would be fun as one of the paint covered pieces ! Name: Date: 5-31-99Materials: 1 clear glass 1 clear taller glass 1 clear pitcher Water Decide ahead of time how much water you want to use. Pour the water in the tall glass and the glass- equal amounts. Talk to the children about perception and how things may look different, but still be the same. Ask the children which one they think has more water- the glass or the tall glass? Pour the water in the pitcher, mark a spot on the pitcher with masking tape (on the outside) and then pour it back, Now try the other glass. Is there more water? (they should be the same).
Date: 5-31-99Each child finds a rock at least 4 inches or more. Get a bucket of water and a scrub brush and let children scrub their rock until they feel it is clean. Let dry. The next day let the children apply craft eyeballs and yarn for tails etc. They now have a pet rock! The children loved them. Some had lots of eyes and more than one tail. We displayed them in our room for a few weeks. Make sure while rocks are drying that you place them on a paper towel with child's name on it.
Date: 5-31-99Provide plastic test tubes, beakers, and eyedroppers, and water...In the beakers, fill with colored water ( use the primary colors) Watch as the children mix the colors in the test tubes to create new colors!!! I use this activity with 4 and 5 yr. olds, and they really love it!!! It keeps their attention for long periods of time!!
Date: 5-31-99Freeze trays of water and have the children drive cars on ice. How is it different from driving in sand, on the carpet or on the table? Name: Date: 5-31-99Springtime is the time we see new life. It is the perfect time to investigate eggs. Soak an egg in vinegar overnight. The hard shell will dissolve. The children can even bounce this egg like a ball. When the egg is broken, they will be able to look at the membrane that held the egg together. Soaking the egg also makes it transparent. If you use a flashlight near the egg, you can see the yolk inside. Date: 5-31-99Growing Things- As part of my spring unit, we plant beans, and watch them grow. Pace bean seeds in a clear plastic cup with a piece of wet paper towel. (Drop the bean in between the side of the cup and the paper towel. Keep the towel moist. Within 3 days a root will appear and in a week or so, the sprout will show. This is a great way for kids to seen that the roots go down, and the plant grows up. The bean plant also grows very rapidly, and so it's exciting to watch as the days go by. You can measure growth, make graphs of the different plants to compare, or draw pictures at different stages along the way to show the changes. After about two weeks or so, it's a good idea to plant the beans into soil. We've even ended up with flowers, and then beans!
Date: 5-31-99Take a bowl of water and gather light things heavy hollow and solid and compare sink and float and why does it sink and float.
Date: 5-31-99Last year we grew a garden in a wagon. First we put small rocks in the bottom, then covered them with soil. We then planted our seeds and watered the garden. One child was in charge each day to pull the wagon outside, one watered, and one reported to us if there was any sprouts. We also made a calendar to keep track of how long it took for a sprout. When there were no sprouts we put an empty planter made of construction paper. When our first sprout appeared we put a green leaf on the calendar. Gardening is a great unit to do and there are so many things you can do with it. Each child also kept a journal to draw and write all about their experience of gardening. When we went on a field trip to a green house the workers were very impressed with how much the children had learned. Happy gardening!
Date: 5-31-99My Head Start Kids love to make "Flubber" Mix: 1 Cup White Glue 1 Cup Water in a clean container, mix 1 Cup Water and 2 - 3 teaspoons of Borax Stir the Borax and water mixture into the glue and Water Mixture. If you want color, add it to the glue and water mixture. The mixture will congeal instantly, work with your hands until water is absorbed and Flubber is the consistency you want. This is great for a Science Experiment exploring Solids and Liquids.
Date: 5-31-99The spring is a great time for a seed unit. I have my preschoolers do many things with seeds. Here are a few of our favorite activities. At the math center we count and sort seeds. In the art area we make seed collages. I have the children make terrariums at the science center. We enjoy observing the growth in our plants. For snack we have sunflower seeds. There are many wonderful books on seeds, too. I also do a farm unit in the spring. Every year I hatch chicks in my classroom. Parents and children love this unit. I am now working on developing material for a bird unit. I'm looking for some great ideas.
Date: 5-31-99Grow grass seed in individual Styrofoam or plastic disposable cups. One for each child. While cup is still empty have each child make a face or his or her cup. As grass grows it looks like hair and then children can cut it and watch it grow long again. Great for the haircutting preschoolers!!
Date: 5-31-99This works if you have windows at the childrens level. We were able to get some old X-rays and taped them on our windows when we were talking about our bodies. The children were fascinated to see the inside of their bodies, the teeth, sometimes their jewelry.
Date: 5-31-99Take a paper towel and fold it so that there are 4 equal sections. Moisten the paper towel and place it into a small ziplock baggie. Have the children put in two lima beans per baggie (note:soak lima beans over night before doing the activity). Tape the baggies to the window so that they are exposed to sunlight. Spray water into the bag daily to keep the paper towel moist and watch your beans sprout.
Date: 5-31-99With the new season here,we have been talking about spring life and birds. I have the children gather items that a bird would use to build a birds nest, exp. mud, string,grass,feathers,small twigs, etc. Then I let them dig right in with their hands adding all the ingredients to make a nest. The children have a great time seeing how hard and fun it is to make the nest.
Date: 5-31-99I created a science center that changes each week. I first created a center teaching about the weather. I used the tornado tube with the two liter bottles and the device that connects them. We also created some clouds and talked about each one and what it could mean for weather. We then had a week about plants. I brought in different stages of a tree that they could feel. We had a book that they made showing the stages from seed to plant. We planted flowers for mothers day. The next week we taught about insects and how they are important to plants. We made lady bugs for a craft. I brought some in to see under a magnify glass. We had a bulletin board with national geographic pictures of homes of insects. We discussed the differences between bugs and insects. They then created a insect with the six legs, head thorax and body. This week is senses. I have some experiments planned to show vibration of the ear drum for a book I found. I made a color wheel and taught about primary colors and secondary colors using clear colored notebooks and having them overlap the primary colors to create seconardy colors. I will be making yeast bread to discuss not only smell but also chemical changes with the sugar and yeast. The old standard tasting test plus I am creating some smell cards using the pictures of food but placing the smell on the back of the cards. Another experiment showing shadows and how are pupil works. Plus adding a Braille book and sounds . We will all make a book of touch for each child plus a hands on box of things they can reach in and feel to see what they find. My hope to create a hands on place for science all through the year.
Date: 5-31-99I took bought 3 white carnations from the florist. They were not fully opened and had not been placed in water yet, Cut the stems at an angle and leave about 3 inches of stem. I then placed water in three see through bottles. At circletime the children put red food color in one, blue in another and green in another. We placed one carnation in each color. Within 2 hours the white of the flower began to change to the color of the water. This was an excellent example of capillary action and how plants drink up water.
Date: 5-31-99Give each child a pipette, small container of water or several can be shared with colored water (liquid water color), about an 8 X 10 sheet of wax paper--lay a paper towel or newspapers underneath to catch any spills. Stand back and watch them experiment and make discoveries---how to work the pipette, how to put drops on the paper, change colors, how to make the drops disappear (suck them back up in the dropper). Some children spend a long time at this. Then you can have them draw what they did (a la Reggio Emilio) and dictate words about their discoveries. For children who really want something to take home, you can take a print of their work by laying a paper on top of their work.
Date: 4-18-99Have the children put different color nylons on their arms. Talk about how the color of their skin doesn't change the type of person you are. We are all different! We are all shades of tan/brown. Show the children a piece of white paper and then a piece of black paper. No one in you class is white or black, but shades of tan/brown. Go to a Paint store and get samples of shades of skin, let the children sort them in colors and make them into a spectrum of light to dark. Date: 3-20-99Anatomy for 4's and 5's Part of idea came from an Early Childhood Chatboard, and part of it is original. 1. Briefly and as simply as possible, talk about the heart, lungs, stomach,intestines, and bones. 2. Have children trace human body outlines on multicultural skin tone paper and cut out. 3. Give them a lung shape, cut from gray paper to glue on their body shape. Then give them a Valentine candy conversation heart to glue on in the middle. 4. Underneath the lungs, glue a lima bean to represent the stomach. Next, glue on some curly macaroni or pasta for the intestines. 5. Last, glue spaghetti noodles to arms and legs to make bones. These turn out VERY cute!
Date: 3-20-99This idea was a fun way to teach children about the pull of magnets. I taped large cookie sheets to small blocks to make a little table for each child at this work space. On each little "table" I put a cut-to-fit piece of paper. I then placed nuts, bolts and other metal pieces into a pie pan with enough paint to cover the pieces. The children used a spoon to place some of these paint covered metal objects on their paper. They then used a magnet underneath their little "tables" to move the pieces around and make a painting! They were amazed! We had fun just watching them. You do need to have some good quality magnets to move the paint covered pieces. If you have magnetic marbles, they would be fun as one of the paint covered pieces ! Date: 3-20-99Each child finds a rock at least 4 inches or more. Get a bucket of water and a scrub brush and let children scrub their rock until they feel it is clean. Let dry. The next day let the children apply craft eyeballs and yarn for tails etc. They now have a pet rock! The children loved them. Some had lots of eyes and more than one tail. We displayed them in our room for a few weeks. Make sure while rocks are drying that you place them on a paper towel with child's name on it. Date: 3-20-99Empty film canisters make great sensory "matchups" for the discovery table! Poke small holes in the top, add "smelly stuff" the kids will recognize (e.g. peanut butter, cinnamon, coffee, etc.) to two of the containers, and have them match smells! This also works well for sound discrimination... fill two canisters with items the kids will be able to match by shaking them (e.g. popcorn, cotton balls, bells, etc.). Color coding the bottoms helps here too, as sometimes things begin to smell or sound the same! Date: 1-19-99If you have an old fish tank, and gravel. Use it! Put the gravel in, add water about 2/3 full. Now add plastic plants, sunken ship, large rocks and sea creatures. Put smocks on your kids and let their imagination begin!!!!!! Date: 1-8-99Ice Magic Suspend an ice cube in a glass of water. Have the children take a piece of string, lay it across the ice and try to pick up the ice with the string. They won't be able to do this. Tell them to lay the piece of string on the ice again and have them sprinkle a pinch of salt over the string. Count to 10 and lift the string. Magic...it sticks ! Have fun watching their expressions. Be prepared to do it over and over again. Date: 1-8-99For this activity, you will need magnifying lenses and black construction paper that has been chilled in the freezer. When it snows, bundle the children up and go outside to catch snowflakes on the paper. Then examine the flakes with the magnifying lenses. Date: 1-8-99Ice Magic Suspend an ice cube in a glass of water. Have the children take a piece of string, lay it across the ice and try to pick up the ice with the string. They won't be able to do this. Tell them to lay the piece of string on the ice again and have them sprinkle a pinch of salt over the string. Count to 10 and lift the string. Magic...it sticks ! Have fun watching their expressions. Be prepared to do it over and over again. Date: 1-8-99It's winter,and this month we are enjoying a lot of ice and snow activities. This is quite fun for all of my three-year-olds because we are in sunny So.Ca. This is a great idea to make snow in class. Take a snow cone maker (ice shaver) and let the children drop in some ice cubes and "make snow". This activity lends itself to a lot of sensory exploration and discussion. We had a lot of fun...just go where the children lead. Date: 12-30-98Using ice-cubes and let the children watch the ice melt, then put liquid back in the freezer. After a few hours take out and discuss the form that the ice became and what happen to the liquid. Date: 12-28-98My group is always sad when it's time to take down the Christmas tree. So to prolong it we now set it up outside and decorate it by stringing stale bread, cranberries,etc for the birds to enjoy. Date: 12-27-98Looking at Dirt! 1. Send a zipping sandwich baggie home with each child to fill with dirt. Have the children's parents label the baggie with the child's name and the place the dirt was found. 2. Put children in pairs or groups of three. Each child should have a pie pan with part of their dirt specimen poured into it. 3. Have the children use magnifying lenses to look at the dirt in their pie pans, and those of their group members. 4. Have the children draw what they see in each dirt sample and encourage them to make guesses about what makes up their dirt. Also encourage them to think about how their dirt was different than their partner's dirt, and try to think of reasons why. 5. After cleaning up, encourage children to wash their hands carefully! This sounds very messy, but four year olds will love it! Date: 11-21-98Working with a small mixed-age group (young 3-older 4), I read "Click!" by Gibbons, then the children and I explored cameras (several disposable Kodak's, and a Canon SureShot). Then the children went around the school taking pictures. Later, they drew what they photographed inside small construction paper "windows" (which I precut and they chose and glued on larger paper). The next day, I gave the children their negatives and asked them to identify the pictures. We then put the negatives on a light table, and talked about the difference with the light on and off. They matched the negatives to the actual photos. We are looking for other ways to use our school's new light table. Any ideas? Date: 11-2-98Frozen Treasures.....in plastic milk jugs freeze colored water of your choice, when half frozen drop in several various small toys (animals, legos, etc). After this is frozen add another color of water to fill the jug let freeze half way then add more toys. Children love to chip and melt to find the hidden treasure and the colors blend creating new colors. Date: 10-28-98Put an ear of indian corn in a dish of water and it will sprout many little sprouts on the ear. 9-25-98 Name: Robin 9-24-98 Name: Angel E. You need 2 cups of Elmers school glue, and 1 cup of liquid starch. All you do is add starch gradually to glue, mixing with your hands as you do this! (Editor's Note: If the mixture is kind of goopy, add 1 tsp. of Borax detergent.) 9-23-98 Name: Amber 8-18-98 Name: Jen E-Mail: adman@mnsi.net CHASE THE PEPPER - (Taken from: Surviving Your Preschooler by Patricia Kuffner) Pie plate Pepper Bar of soap Sugar Fill pie plate with water. Shake pepper on the water and then dip a piece of wet soap into it. The pepper will run away from the soap. Now shake some sugar into the clear area and the pepper will run back. I usually have the children take turns shaking the pepper, dipping the soap and putting the sugar in. We talk about why the pepper might be running away from soap. It's a good opportunity for asking open ended questions, you get some really interesting answers. 8-9-98 Daylene Flying Monster Plant Materials: A natural sponge (not man made); bird seed; water; 2 cardboard eyes; 2 toothpicks; string Tie the string around the sponge leaving 6 inches of string loose at the top so you can hang the sponge. Soak the sponge in water. Sprinkle bird seed on the sponge. Stick toothpicks into your carboard eyes and then stick them into the sponge. Hang in a sunny window. Spray the sponge everyday with water. Watch what happens!!! 7-30-98 Name: Bobbi E-Mail: bcapwell@phoenix.net To show how layers are formed in the ground. Get a baby food jar, 1 tablespoon of alcohol, 3 spoonfuls water, syrup and 1 spoonful of cooking oil. Pour water in the jar. Then add the alcohol and oil and then syrup. Put the lid on and shake. As it settles, you can see the layers form. My kids loved this. They called it making a liquid sandwich. They also tried it with dirt and sand. It was a great teaching tool especially when we started our garden. They wanted to make sure that they were in the right layer. 7-22-98 Name: sue E-Mail: Eric_Obee@bc.sympatico.ca This is a very simple idea that my children have really enjoyed. Take a styrofoam cup and cover the top with a square of towelling. Attatch it with an elastic band. Punch a small hole in the side of the cup and insert a straw. Lightly dip the towelling in a tray of a good bubble mix (I use detergent with corn syrup or glycerine). The children blow into the straw and a long stream of bubbles come out the towelling top. It can get very long and the bubbles last for ages. 7-20-98 Name: Jean E-Mail: mjg74@dfsi.net Sink and Float Bottle: Make an interesting sink and float bottle for children to explore. Fill a plastic 2 litre drink bottle about two-thirds full of water. Put a colorfulassortment of things that sink and things that float in the bottle. Glue the top on the bottle. Children love to help make the bottle and can even make one of their own during a small group time using a variety of bottle sizes andmaterials that sink and float. Have enough bottles and materials available to provide children with choices. This is a fun activity and the children really get involved. 7-17-98 Name: Wendy E-Mail: Wen21Not@aol.com Materials Hair Gel Sparkley items zip lock sandwich bags Directions:Help child open zip lock bags and squirt gel inside. Have them select some sparkly items like glitter, sequiens, etc and place inside. Close bag securely and let them squish the contents around. 6-17-98 Name: Merisa E-Mail: angel2073@yahoo.com Root Experiment: Help the children to understand how plants "drink water throught their root. Fill a jar half full of water and add a few drops of red food coloring. Cut the bottom off a stalk of celery with leaves. Put the celery into the water, and have the children watch throughout the day and the next as the celery turns red. 6-10-98 Name: Linda E-Mail: LinMWhite@AOL.com Natural Science or a specific habitat study: The Habitat Box Use a small flat box, about the size of a shirt box is ideal. Visit on your own the habitat that you will be studying and pick of samples of things the children might expect to see. Example: Beach habitat - sand, small shells, smooth stones, kelp, barnicles, periwinkles, feathers, etc. Put them in the box together and let the children handle, sniff and explore them. Talk about the different animals that would have lived in the shells, how the stones got smooth, what kind of birds hang around the beach, what they eat for food...the possibilites are endless! This can be done for forest, lakes, rivers, cities, anyplace. It is also a great way to prepare children for a field trip. Use items that they might expect to see - explore and discuss them in the classroom before you go. The children will be very excited when they arrive at their destination and see things that they already are familier with, and will have great fun looking for more!. 6-9-98 Name: Teri E-Mail: Teri123@yahoo.com Silly Slime you need: 1 qt water, 1/4 c Borax Soap, 2 large jars with lids, 1 cup Elmers Glue, 1 cup water, food coloring, paper cups. Place 1 qt water and Borax in one large jar. Stir to dissolve. Then pour the glue, 1 cup water and food coloring in the other jar. Shake hard. To make the slime pour 2 tbs of Borax solution into a paper cup. Stir in 6 tbs of glue solution. Watch!!! The mixture instantly becomes thick and slimy. Stir hard, then pour off any extra water. Knead the Silly Slime with your hands until smooth. Store in airtight ziplock bag. 6-7-98 Name: Dianne E-Mail: dianne@vonl.com Preferably in a corner of your classroom, put on the wall, blue paper. Make an over hang so that it looks like the sky. Get the stars and planets that glow in the dark and place them inside on the top. Put up space posters and I used a space tape with earphones. Use a mat so that the child can lie down and listen to the music and look at the stars and planets. I would pick someone each day to sleep in the space center at nap time. It worked out great and was a wonderful incentive for good behavior. 6-7-98 Daylene Suspended Animation Bottles Needed: Light corn syrup A clear, see through baby food jar, baby juice jar, or a 20 oz plastic soda bottle Glue gun Bobbles such as metallic confetti, beads, glitter Fill your container 3/4's of the way full with corn syrup. Add your beads, confetti, glitter, etc. Fill the bottle up the rest of the way with corn syrup. With your glue gun, secure the cap to the bottle. Let dry. When you are finished you will have a really cool "lava-lamp" type item. 6-6-98 Name: Pat E-Mail: Pattypre@aol.com BotanySeed concentration - Plastic individual portion cups (available at restaurant food supply places or places like Sam's) are painted inside with acrylic paint (so the child cannot see thru the container). Matching pairs of seeds (two cups have a matching seed inside) are hot-glued inside and then all are turned over and placed on a large tray. The activity is to turn over two cups. If the seeds match, the child stacks the cups and adds them to their side of the rug. If the seeds do not match, the other child gets a turn. The game continues until all matches are found. 6-6-98 Name: Pat E-Mail: Pattypre@aol.com BotanySeed matching to plant - I took some old seed packets, took the seeds out and put these into little baggies and stapled them onto cards. Then took the photo on the front of the packet, trimmed it and glued this onto another card. The child can then lay out the photo cards, leaving a space under each to try to match the appropriate seed to it's photo. Color coding on the back of the matching sets can be a control of error. 6-6-98 Name: Pat E-Mail: Pattypre@aol.com Botany Inside-outside - I took photos of fruit. First I took a photo of the outside of the fruit, then sliced it open and took a photo of the two halves. The child can lay out the photos of the fruit and then match the "inside photo" underneath. Color coding on back of the cards can be a control of error. I would like to do a set of sequence cards that someone else suggested of a piece of fruit rotting or a banana turning brown. Number coding on back could be the control of error. 6-6-98 Name: Pat E-Mail: Pattypre@aol.com Botany Seed planting - A large tray contains an egg carton of real egg shell halves, a bowl of potting soil with a small spoon, a tiny pitcher for water, a fine black tipped marker, a egg cup to hold an egg shell half, a small container of grass or rye seeds, and a sponge and brush/scoop for clean up. The child selects an egg shell half, draws a face on the "front",then places this into the egg cup. Then they add one tiny spoonful of potting soil, a pinch of grass or rye seed and another fine layer of potting soil. The child then waters the soil and puts the finished egg back into the carton. The sponge and/or scoop-brush are used for clean up. Full egg cartons are placed near a window and watered periodically. The grass or rye grows and the result looks like an little head with green hair. The child can even give their "egg head" a hair cut. 6-6-98 Name: Pat E-Mail: Pattypre@aol.com Botany Seed dissecting - I previously soak lima beans to the point where they sprout and place these in a dish lined with a thin water-soaked sponge. Tweezers and "half - straightened paper clip probes" are on the tray. The child selects a seed, carefully splits it open and investigates the parts - seed coat (outside skin), embryo (total inside of seed), cotyledons (leaf like structures). I have also made a supply of sheets with a diagram of the inside of the seed with the labels added in Avaunt guard outline font. The child traces the labels then colors the sheet. (again for more advanced children, have separate labels to trace or copy then glue onto the diagram). The child can also tape or glue the actual dissected bean seed to the corner of their paper. 6-6-98 Name: Teri E-Mail: Teri123@yahoo.com This is a neat activity to do in the spring. During our unit on birds we did a small science experiment. Outside our classroom windows we laid several items that birds might like to use for a nest. We put dryer lint, mud, yarn pieces, etc. I also included some things like rocks that I knew the birds would not take. We watched our supplies and each day noted which the birds liked the best. It was a fun activity. 5-27-98 Name: Katherine E-Mail: TeachGA@aol.com Make a bug jar !!! The Spring is a wonderfull time for finding and observing bugs. It's also a great time for the children to learn respect and compassion for Nature's Creatures. Find some kind of plastic bottle with a wide neck. Inside, place some things from nature like grass, twigs, leaves, etc. and a wet cotton ball. Purchase some inexpensive netting from your local fabric department. Attach the netting to the top with a rubber band and you have a neat house for your "bug for a day". Encourage the children to release the insect outside after they have done their observations. 5-26-98 Name: Cherilyn E-Mail: CherilynR@aol.com "How to make a floating duck" Step 1: Hold a lemon lengthwise and cut off the top quarter of the lemon. Make sure that you cut above the "tail" of your duck. Step 2 Help child to clean out the pulp from inside the lemon using fingers or a grapefruit spoon. Step 3 To make the wings, cut two small triangles from the top piece of the lemon. Attach the wings to the ducks body using toothpicks. If your lemon is narrow you might have to break the toothpicks in half. Step 4 Help child cut out a head for the duck. Have them color the beak and eyes (or you can glue on wiggly eyes. Tape the head to a toothpick and stick it in the front end of the lemon. Step 5 Set your duck in water and watch it float!Hint: to recycle duck, add a few teaspoons of salt to the cavity. This will keep the lemon from rotting and you'll have a pleasent lemon air freshener for days! 5-26-98 Name: Cherilyn E-Mail: CherilynR@aol.com Here is how to make homemade bubbles. Take a baby food jar and fill it two-thirds full with water and add two teaspoons of liquid detergent. Provide several different colors of food coloring and let each child pick what color they want (a great way to teach color recognition). Stir the solution until mixed. You can make the bubble wand by bending a pipe cleaner to form a loop and handle. 5-26-98 Name: Sue E-Mail: preschool@pcpostal.com Instead of the old stardards pinta or lima beans for a growing unit. Why not recycle the seeds from foods that we eat, can be used for units in growing, nature, nutrition, recycling ... foods such as:* Orange - lemon - grapefruit seeds * Apples - pear seeds ...the above list can be grow in a plastic baggie or clear glass with a paper towel or planted in potting soil in a cup or pot.* Carrots - cut off about an inch of the top and plant half of it in potting soil (so that only half of the carrot is covered with soil)in cups or pots.* Avocado pits can be grown in babyfood jar with toothpicks struck around the sides (in the middle) of the avocado with the bottom (the bigger side of the avocado) half covered with water. Can than be planted in potting soil when it as sprouted and started roots.Can also be started in potting soil in a pot, plant the pit about half to three fourth covered with soil. Avocado's are slow growers.Try all different types of seeds or pits, the children really enjoy being able to grow something from what they ate. 5-19-98 Daylene Show the children in your class what air pollution really looks like! Take 3X5 cards and have the children help you smear Vaseline all over them. While you are doing that, talk to the children about air pollution. Tell the children that they are going to have a chance to see how much pollution is in the air around them. Take a walk with your children around your school and tape the 3X5 cards to different walls on the buildings. Leave the cards up for a week or so. Return to see what happened. 5-18-98 Name: Pat E-Mail: pattypre@aol.com Rocks and minerals - Science We have been through all the categories and phylum of living things this year and are now working on nonliving with rocks and minerals. Some of the activities I have out on the science shelf: 1. Rock matching - pairs of mostly unpolished rocks to match. 2. Rock sorting - sets of polished rocks to sort in into a tray with 5 compartments 3. Rock counting - the cards and counters have 55 polished rocks to count 4. Rock sorting by type - I went to the local rock shop and found 3 each of metamorphic, igneous and sedimentary rocks. Also looked a simple definition of what each type was and found simple picture for how each was formed. The back of the cards are color dot coded to the color dots on the bottom of each rock. 5. Rock sorting by appearance - Again went to the local rock shop and found samples of rock in their natural and then polished state. I mounted both sets on cards with color coding on the back. The child matched the unpolished rock to it's polished form and then checks the color coding on the back. 5-15-98 Name: Michelle E-Mail: dhille@whitworth.edu We are doing a pond life unit right now, and I was stuck for a microscope to look at all the critters in the water. I found a glass (or clear plastic) container and put 1/2 inch of pond water in it and put that on the glass of an overhead projector, turned it on, and voila! Instant largescreen projected "microscope!!" The kids loved it! I stapled up sheets of white butcher paper for the kids to circle the creatures they "discover" and write their names by what they circle. One little girl followed a bug swimmer with her marker wherever it went and had such fun! 5-12-98 Daylene Experiment with Hydroponics Items needed: Lima Beans Zip Lock Bags Rolled cotton or paper towels Ask the children if they think that they can grow plants without soil. Graph their responses. Give each child a lima bean, zip lock bag, and a piece of rolled cotton or a paper towel. Have the children wet the cotton or paper towel and wrap the lima bean in it. Place the covered lima bean in the zip lock bag and seal. Write each child's name on the outside of the bag and tape them to your windows. Periodically check the paper towels or cotton to make sure they are damp. If they need water, add some. In a couple of days, you should be able to see the lima beans begin to sprout. Once they have sprouted, talk about the results. You can then transplant them into the soil and watch them grow even more! 5-2-98 Name: Barbara E-Mail: BarbMc93@aol.com Ahead of time, locate a few earthworms. Punch holes in the lids of 2 plastic jars. Conduct an experiment to help the children understand that earthworms help keep the soil healthy. Let the children fill 2 clear jars with alternating layers of potting soil and sand. Scatter equal amounts of grated carrots on top of the soil in each jar; then sprinkle water in each jar. Use enough to just moisten. Place a few worms in one jar. Ask the children to predict what changes they might see in the jars tomorrow. Place the lids on the jars and cover them with a dark cloth until the children observe them tomorrow to see if their predictions are correct. Science: Uncover the jars you prepared yesterday and encourage the kids to note the changes that have taken place. If the soil has dried out, add a little water to moisten. Cover the jars again with a dark cloth. Continue to check the jars each day for the rest of the month. The children should discover that over time, the earthworms will mix the layers of soil in their jar. The layers will remian unchanged in the jar without worms. Explain to the kids that as tunnel through the soil, they mix in nutrients which help plants to grow. 5-2-98 Name: Barbara E-Mail: BarbMc93@aol.com This week we have been studying worms. I collected some off my drive way after a rain storm. (They escaped their flooded underground holes for a drier place to live.) They would have got eaten by the hungry robins or "cooked" by the sun. I collected them in a plastic jar, added some soil, sand and covered the jar with tin foil to keep them in darkness. They eat bacteria, so I prepared their food by shredding newspaper and adding water. The bacteria grows on this stuff in a week. We were scientists as watched the worms daily, uncovering the jar each time. Oh, I make a duplicate jar with no worms in it. The jar was filled with soil, newsprint mush and sand. I placed grated carrots on top of both jars. Over a month's time the jar with the worms had no carrots on top. The worms had stirred up the soil! 5-1-98 Name: Carrie E-Mail: rwhyte@io.com How do whales stay warm in the cold ocean? BLUBBER! You can demonstrate how blubber keeps whales warm by filling a ziploc bag half full of vegatable shortning, then place another ziploc bag inside the first to create a "glove"surrounded by shortning. Either zip or staple the gloves together to prevent messy leaks. have the children put their hands into a bucket of ice water. How does it feel? Then have them put their hand in the shortning glove, then into the ice water. Does it feel the same?My class had a great time trying to figure out what was in the bag as well! 4-15-98 Name: Alison E-Mail: cooter503@aol.com Do you have a lot of extra jellybeans these days? Well if so, turn them into a learning experience! Use a clean dry ice cube tray and pour Sprite or any clear carbonated soda in each cube holder. Let each child put one jellybean in one cube. Freeze until hardened. Then let the children see what happened to the ice cubes. It's really neat to see. You could also let each child guess which color they put in and serve it in a glass of water.(it turns the water color too!!!!!!) You could also add them to the water table for a neat hands-on experience. 3-30-98 Name: Leanne E-Mail: Lea2702@aol.com Here's a great color mixing activity that also fine tunes some fine motor skills. I fill four or five compartments of an ice cube tray with two different colors of water tinted with food coloring. The children use an eye dropper to move the water and experiment with the different colors. I usually do not tell them to mix the colors, I just let them discover it on their own and then act like they were the first person on earth to mix yellow and blue and make green. 3-26-98 Daylene Color Mixing Center Needed Primary colors of cellophane (the kind that easter baskets are wrapped in) 5X7 cardboard mat frames (you can get these at any art store) String Hole Puncher Plastic rack with at least 5 pegs on it (the kind you might put in your bathroom to hang robes on) Glue Gun Cut each color of cellophane into squares that are slightly bigger than the 5X7 mat frames. Take your glue gun and secure each piece of cellophane into the frame. With a hole punch, poke two holes into the top of the frame (You may have to squeeze VERY hard to do this.) Cut the string into 18 inch lengths. Place the string into the holes to make a hanger on the frames. Using strong, double backed securing tape that you can buy in any hardware section, hang the 5 pegged plastic rack into a window. Make sure that it is high enough for the frames to hang in the window and not on the wall. However, make sure that the rack is not so high that the children can not reach it. You might need to adjust the string on the frames to get a perfect fit. Let the children experiment by placing the different frames over each other to see what colors they can make. Have fun! 3-13-98 Name: Gina. E-Mail: burkhard@ecsu.campus.mci.net We are learning about growing and gardening this week and are suppose to grow beans in baby food jars. I'm taking it a bit further than I did last year, too) and we are growing beans in plastic baggies. Each child moistened (wet, then squeezed some water out, some even squeezed too much and I added a bit while they were sleeping) cotton balls (5) then put them in the bag, added beans (also 5), zipped them up and I taped them to the window. They will sprout and start to grow in each little mini, hanging greenhouse; then we will take them out and plant them in dirt (cups, baby food jars, whatever). This year, I am considering leaving one of the bags taped to the window but replacing the cotton ball with dirt, so that maybe they will still be able to watch it grow. 3-13-98 Daylene Here's another way to grow pinto beans. Have the children fill a clear, plastic cup with soil. Plant the beans and water as usual. The next step sounds a bit strange, but it is really great to watch. Mix up a batch of plaster of paris. Pour the plaster of paris over the top of the soil (about 1-2 inches). Place the childrens cups in a sunny area. Do not water. In a few days, the strength of the bean sprout will begin to push its way through the dried plaster of paris. The children are AMAZED. After you plant the beans, ask the children if they think that the beans will be able to grow through the plaster of paris. Graph their responses. You can then follow up with talking about how strong plants really are. 3-11-98 Name: Marge E-Mail: mtc61b@hotmail.com One favorite is a glow in the dark box. I painted a box, with out the lid, black on the inside. I then covered it with a dark piece of cloth to keep the light out. I had the cloth long enough so that when the box sits on the table, with the open side pointing towards the child, there is enough cloth for the child to put over their head and shoulders. (Kind of like the old photographer) I then purchased glow in the dark everything! I had enough stuff so that when the things lost their glow, they could be replaced with something that had been sitting in the light. They sit there for the longest time!!!! 3-9-98 Name: Alisa E-Mail: to0muchnfo@aol.com Add two parts liquid starch to one part glue for a fun stretchy goop. 3-8-98 Name: June E-Mail: JuneG7@aol.com Rainbow stew From the book Mudpies to Magnets 1/3 cup sugar 1 cup cornstarch 4 cup water Heat until it begins to thicken stirring constantly. Let the mixture cool. Divide the mixture equally into 3 containers, then add food coloring-one color per container until the mixtures reach the color intensity desired. Add equal amount of each of the different colors to a ziplock bag. Seal the bag kneaded until the colors turn into a rainbow stew. 3-6-98 Name: Allyson E-Mail: goldjay@dpnet.net Fill a soda bottle (16 oz.) half full of vinegar. Put several spoonfuls of baking soda into a balloon (not blown up). The easiest way to get the baking soda into the balloon is to use a popsicle stick or the wrong end of the spoon. Let the children feel the baking soda inside the balloon. Let them smell the vinegar (so that they know it is not water). Attach the mouth of the balloon to the neck of the bottle. Be sure not to spill any baking soda in yet. When ready, hold the balloon up and let the baking soda inside the bottle. The balloon will will bubble and the balloon will blow up. Be sure it is attached very securely or it will blow off the bottle. The kids were fascinated!! We kept our blown up balloons in the room for quite a while just to look at. 2-28-98 Name: Alysse E-Mail: rainwhenidie@hotmail.com Body Organs-Where are they in me?-- Trace the child's body on large paper, then have laminated a heart, a pair of lungs and a brain. They place these on their body tracing and trace them. I also did this for the digestive system using the large intestines, the small intestines, the stomach and the esophagus. 2-28-98 Name: Sharon E-Mail: sm-hoefling@osg.net Another classroom pet that teaches recycling are worms! Yes those wonderful Red wigglers are the easiest to tend pets you can imagine. We feed our worms from the snack scraps and discuss where the food goes. We divide the worms every three months and put the worm casings in the garden for fertilizer. The children handle the worms and learn respect for other living things. Not only can the children spot the tiniest of babies, but they can now spot the worms that are about to give birth. They are the best things I have added to my science program yet! Their cost was minimal because I was given worms when another centre divided their pets. These little guys give sooooo much back in return!!! 2-28-98 Name: Sue E-Mail: clew@texasonline.net When learning about bees in our insect unit, we make edible playdough of 1/2 cup honey, 1/2 cup peanut butter and enough powdered milk to make it the right consistency. The children have fun creating bees, flowers , or whatever and then eating their creations. 2-23-98 Name: Carol E-Mail: Cann16@aol Did you know that it is easier to float in the ocean than in the swimming pool. Do you know why? Salt. The Ocean is full of salt. Salt water can hold up more than plain water. That is why you can float in the ocean more easily. Lets try this experiment to see for ourselves...... (Then go on to the experiment) wide mouth plastic jar, warm water salt raw potato measuring cup spoon Pour 1 1/2 cups warm water in the jar. Add 1/3 cup salt. Stir until all the salt is gone. Add another 1 1/2 cups of water. Pour it over the back of a spoon into the jar. Pour SLOWLY so the two liquids do not mix tog. Slowly put the potato into the jar. Do NOT drop it. Potato sinks-but stops halfway. Salt water is heavier than plain water, so it stays on the bottom. Plain water floats on top of salt water. You cannot see the difference though. The potato is heavier than plain water. But potato is lighter than the salt water. That is why it sank only half way. It is floating on top of the salt water. **Did this last year for ocean week with the K's and they were very impressed. Can't wait to try it next week with my new class.** 2-17-98 Name: alysse E-Mail: rainwhenidie@hotmail.com Heart Model Partially fill a sandwich baggie with water and flour...put a straw in the bag and tape up the bag around the straw. When you squeeze the bag, the mixture goes up into the straw (an artery). The children can see how a heart pumps blood. 2-17-98 Name: Kim E-Mail: kardtrip@erols.com Small inexpensive airplanes and a palm size rubber ball. Each is thrown. Shows 3's how airplanes float on the air, demonstrates how plane wings work (lift) and have fun. 2-16-98 From: goudoun@hol.gr (Kalyva) Greece "Magic" duplication or "look what will happen if you draw on these papers" Materials: Sheets of paper A4, Carbon sheets (1 or 2) per Child, Colour pencils, a stapler Phase 1 : We give each child a "sandwich" of papers stapled together in the 4 corners. (Caution!! Do not staple the carbon sheet. Cut it little smaller than the sheets of paper) . We ask them to draw with the colour pencils whatever they want by pressing them on the paper little bit => Each child has a colourful draw and an identical black or blue one (it depends on the colour of the carbon paper) Phase 2 : Use 2 carbon sheets and 3 A4 sheets [=1 A4 sheet + a Carbon sheet +1 A4 sheet + a Carbon sheet +1 A4 sheet ] => 2 Duplications Phase 3: The "sandwich" is as follows: [=1 A4 sheet +1 A4 sheet + a Carbon sheet (placed with the carbon side to the back of the second A4 sheet )+ 1 A4 sheet (for support only) => Each child has a colourful draw and a rotated black or blue one. You can put the carbon paper in different ways to obtain mixed results. 2-8-98 Name: Robin E-Mail: jpmooar@fidnet.com EXPLOSION Draw a line around the bottom of a clear film canister about 1 cm from the bottom. Fill to line with warm water. Place 1/4 of an Alka Seltzer tablet in canister, immediately cover, turn the canister upside down and place on sidewalk/driveway. Stand back and wait for "explosion". As the gases build up the build up the film canister bottom goes flying in the air about 20 feet. I ended up using a whole box of Alka Seltzer tablets for this experiment, because the kids loved it so much they wanted to do it over and over again. Be very careful with the tablets. Make sure the children do not put them in their mouths, they contain asprin. 2-8-98 Name: Lynne E-Mail: Mrslynne@aol.com For more experience with color changes, I made 4x4" frames out of poster board. I glued in the center of each frame a piece of yellow, red or blue cellophane, then place another frame on the back and staple together. The children get into groups of three and we discussed the different colors we could make while each child adds his color card to another! The children have great fun with this while learning about how colors change. 2-8-98 Name: Sharon E-Mail: swillis326@aol.com Xeriscaping Children are given nasturtium seeds to plant. No additional amendments are made to the soil and no additional water is applied. These seeds are large enough for children to handle and do well under xeriscape conditions. The seeds should be lightly covered with soil and not buried deeply. The children then observe the seeds as they grow into plants. The children count and graph the number of leaves and measure the plants, weekly, as they grow. Magnifying glasses can be used by the children for closer investigation. The leaves and flowers are edible. The children can use the leaves and flowers in salads and soups that they create and consume. This is an excellent environmentally based science and math learning opportunity. 2-4-98 Name: Dana E-Mail: DanaCrow@bc.sympatico.ca Here's a fun idea when doing a theme on farm animals. Fill a thin latex glove (the kind from Dr.'s office) with warm water. Tie it off with an elastic band & hang it up at about knee level. Place a pail under it & gently pierce each finger tip with a needle. Teach the kids how to squeeze at the top & pull down to milk it. Make sure you have a towel near by to clean up. Follow this with making butter. Half fill a Mason type jar with whipping cream. Tighten lid and shake like crazy. After several minutes listen to the different sounds as the cream thickens & then liquefies again. When solid lump of butter, pour off whey, add salt to butter & serve on crackers. Ymmmmm What a great way to impress kids & parents alike!! Name: Lynne E-Mail: Mrslynne@aol.com This is a terrific visual experience of color changes. Make red, yellow and blue ice cubes using food coloring and water. Place one red and yellow in a ziplock baggie, one red and blue in a ziplock baggie, and yellow and blue, and just for fun one of each color in one bag. Place them in the science area, as the colored ice cubes melt they create new colors. This activity kept my preschoolers busy throughout the entire day! as they kept going back to check on the process! Name: Maureen E-Mail: j..myers@worldnet.att.com Rainbow Magic Things needed: milk (whole), food coloring-bowl or clear plastic dish preferably flat(grocery store clear salad bar containers or bakery dishes)work great-Dawn dishwashing liquid(blue) Pour the milk in the bottom of the dish enough to cover the bottom. Add a few drops of food coloring randomly. Put a drop of Dawn on each color or on the side of the dish near each color. WATCH! What's happening- Although you can not see it, milk contains fat that does not mix with the watery food coloring. When ever the dishwashing liquid touches the milk, it breaks up the fat which then spreads out. This allows the food color and milk to mix. It will continue on for quite a while. The children can leave and come back and it still will be in motion. Be sure that you use blue Dawn dish detergent. Name: Pat E-Mail: sorcerer@megsinet.com Wave Bottles You will need: a clear plastic empty bottle (ie. a 16 oz Pepsi or Coke bottle) Water Food Coloring Baby Oil Epoxy or Super Glue Add water to the bottle until it is about 1/3 full. Add desired food coloring. Fill the rest of the bottle with baby oil. CAREFULLY place the epoxy inside the bottle cap and screw the it back on. Watch the "waves" roll back and forth! Be creative with this one. Add glitter or confetti to water or baby oil and make seasonal or holiday wave bottles. For very young children (under 3), place colored rice or different shapes of pasta into a clean, empty DRY bottle. Glue the cap on and the kids have shakers or rattles that make the neatest sounds and are visually interesting! Name: Alicia E-Mail: AliciaDug@aol.com A follow up to the tornado tube. Use the same concept, but fill the bottle with salt instead of water. It makes an hourglass! Name: Alicia E-Mail: AliciaDug@aol.com I save plastic one liter bottles and fill them with different combinations of colored water, sequins, beads, etc. Some with colored water and oil, and some with hair gel with any number of little things suspended in it (looks like magic!). Anything that fits in the neck of the bottle. These can also be added to the dramatic play area to "cook" with. It's usually where they end up anyway. Name: Sue E-Mail: clew@texasonline.net We grow grain sorghum is our area. I put a couple of heads of sorghum on a tray in our science area and the children rolled the seeds off with their fingers and discarded the sticks. We then filled a bird feeder and hung it in the tree outside our window. The children enjoy seeing the birds eat the food that we "made". Name: Cindy E-Mail: arolla@geocities.com Rubber Eggs Take a raw egg, and soak it in a cup of vinegar for about 1-2 weeks. At the end of that time, the shell of the egg will have dissolved and all that is left is the rubbery skin...be careful not to be rough with it, it is a raw egg, and can break easily... Submitted by: Daylene E-Mail: aactchrday@aol.com The Amazing Color Changing Flower Materials: A clear jar Water Food coloring White carnation Large sheet of paper to record the childrens ideas on Before circle or large group time, fill the clear jar with water. During circle or large group, show the children the carnation, food coloring, and the jar filled with water. Tell the children that you are going drop food coloring into the jar (be sure to to put enough color in so that the water is VERY dark). Next, ask the children what do they think will happen to the white carnation if you put it in the colored water. Record the childrens responses. Place the carnation/jar in your science area. Observe what happens to the flower for 24 hours. Talk about the changes to the flower the next day. Submitted by: Pat E-Mail: Pattypre@aol.com Animal measuring work. Materials: plastic models of various animals heavy string (macrame cord is best) plastic holders that lace and trims come on, found at fabric stores. a. Tie one end of the of the cording to the plastic model (the largest mammal is the blue whale ), measure the cord the length of the mammal and tie the other end of the cord to the plastic holder. b. Outside or in a long hall, have one child slowly unwrap the string as another child walks out with the cord. Lay the model down, with one child at either end of the cord so all children can see the ends. c. Show the children how to rewrap the cord. Submitted by: Margaret E-Mail: mgasper@makani.k12.hi.us Submitted by: Margaret E-Mail: mgasper@makani.k12.hi.us Activity At the science table I put out some bottles of elmers glue that was old and some liquid starch. We just poured it into containers and let the children mix it together. The children really liked the feel of it. It is supposed to be like silly putty and it is supposed to copy magazine pictures but we were not able to do this. The children really liked just touching this. After about 2 weeks you have to dump this because it starts growing mold from the dirt on the children's hands. Submitted by: Daylene E-Mail: aactchrday@aol.com Submitted by: Daylene E-Mail: aactchrday@aol.com Activity A different kind of class pet I have a terrible time with class pets! I could write a book on my escapades with class pets :) One year, I decided to look for something that would be easy to take care of. Believe it or not, I found the perfect pet at our local toy store: Sea Monkeys! Oh, what a stroll down amnesia lane. Remember wishing that you could have cool Sea Monkeys that wore crowns and waived at you like they did at the end of comic books :) Well, I found out that they did not wear crowns and waived at you, but they were still REALLY cool! During circle time, the kids and I discussed the Sea Monkeys. We talked about what they might look like, what they would eat, etc. After our discussion, I mixed the secret monkey mixture into the special sea monkey tank. Every day, we watched patiently for some indication of sea monkey life. Finally, we noticed little things squiggling in the water. Every day, they grew and grew and grew until we had to take them out of their special sea monkey tank and move them to a bigger home. Our sea monkeys lived the whole year!!!! (Which was a tremendous feat for me :) Submitted by: Kathleen E-Mail: Derv97@aol.com Activity Volcano Take an empty baby food jar or a small container. Use playdough to surround the jar. You want it to look like a mountain. In the container put a drop of red food coloring , about a tablespoon of baking soda and then add some vinegar to it to make it erupt. The volcano will erupt and the lava will flow down the mountain. Make sure the volcano is sitting in a tray. Submitted by: Kim E-Mail: Kn300 Activity Tornado Bottle Make a "tornado" out of 2 plastic soda bottles, smaller ones work better. In one bottle, fill with water halfway and take a tornado top (found in most educational stores) and screw it on the first bottle and then screw the second bottle to that. If you don't have one, tightly duct tape the 2 bottles together so the water can flow through to the next one. Once that is done, shake the bottle from right to left in a twisting motion for a couple seconds, stop, and watch the tornado formation flow through the bottles. Add food coloring and/or glitter for effects. |
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