What are some simple but fun science projects to do with small?

Question

children? I mean between the ages of 4-8 years old. Thank you!

Answer 1

My class LOVED this experiment:  Use an empty film canister, and place half a denture cleaning tablet inside.  Fill about 3/4 full with warm water, place cap on shake and stand back.

Have the children count to see how long it takes to "blast off".

You can get as scientific as is age appropriate.  The younger children just like the surprise and noise.  Be sure to try this yourself first so you know what to expect.

Answer 2

just put baking soda and vinegar together! they will love it!

Answer 3

One I found was interesting and amusing was: Blow up a balloon and put a sharpened pencil in one side and out the other, straight through. The rubber in the balloon seals around the pencil and the air doesn't come out. See how many pencils you can make the balloon hold. Lots of fun

Answer 4

soap and pepper is fun

Answer 5

My kids loved to sprout beans at that age.   Put some food coloring in water and stand celery in the water and see what happens.  Do you live close to an area where you could search for fossils?  Kids love that.  

Here are a few sites that may help you.  Best of luck with it.

Answer 6

I teach first grade and we won first place last year with this one...

I integrated it with our healthy foods unit.

We took 6 - 8 different foods (sour cream, potato chips, mayo, butter, honey and grapes) and made a graph (our hypothesis) on which one we thought would have the most fat.

I drew 6 different circles on a peice of white paper and labeled each circle.  Then we took a little of each food and rubbed it in the center of the circle.  About 30 minutes later we went back to see which one had the most fat.  The ones with the high fat content made the paper almost transparent when held up to the light.  The kids thought the honey would have the most because it was sweet, but it turned out to be the butter.  Also, it was cool because as time went on the butter continued to spread more and more!

Answer 7

My kids have always liked the activities from the PBS shows - Zoom and Fetch. =)

http://pbskids.org/zoom/activities/index...

http://pbskids.org/fetch/games/activitie...

Answer 8

Watching things float or sink in a small glass bowl full of water. Good because they can see through the bowl. Make a guessing game out of it. eg. wood would float. coin will drop etc. See if they know.

Answer 9

i did this in first grade i think um

you put everyone in small groups and give each group a balloon. then give everyone a piece of paper and tell them to tear it into tiny pieces.

next they have to rub the balloon on their hair, then

touch the balloon to the pieces of paper.

it'll stick to the balloon! i know its pretty easy but thats all i can think of. :]

Answer 10

Have them throw objects of various weights. This teaches them that heavier objects are harder to throw and lighter objects are easier. Also teaches force and gravity; an early physics lesson. In this same lesson have them push, pull or lift objects of various weights.

Have children move three heavy books across the room. First, by their own power (individually). Second, by stacking them onto a toy truck then, roll the truck to the other side. Third, one book at a time. Fourth, have more than one carry the books (team effort). Fifth, place the books into a backpack that rolls. Then, have them try to come up with other methods to transport the books easier. There are many concepts involved with this activity: problem solving, teamwork, use of wheels and other methods to make movement easier, and so on.

Place an object about 6 to 8 feet off the ground. Have the kids problem-solve several ways to get the object down.

Submerse an object into water and have them retrieve it without getting wet or dumping the water. Place an object into a tight, narrow space and have the kids plan ways to get it out. Obtain a beachball that is fully inflated and have the kids figure out the way to put it into a box that is half the width of the ball (deflate the ball).

Finally, teach some concepts of sound. Demonstrate how the volume level, distance of the sound-source, barriers such as walls or trees, other sounds, etc. determine how well sound is heard. There are also different kinds of sounds. You can talk about pitch, echoing, volume (loud and soft noises), identifying different sounds, etc.. This activity is probably done best outside or in the gym.

Answer 11

1. You can do the volcano with baking soda, vinegar, and red food coloring... Watch it erupt when you add the vinegar to the red baking soda.

Or (I did this one when I was like five, so I'm trying to see if I remember it correctly, but it's really simple if I have it right.)

2. Get a small bottle that an empty balloon can fit over snugly.

Put baking soda in the bottom... then add vinegar. Quickly put the balloon over the bottle top and ..if I get the ingredients right it should expand.

Or

3. Egg in a bottle

You need:

a hardboiled egg (peeled)

a bottle that the egg will sit on comfortably

A piece of paper

A match

Throw the paper (VERY small piece) in the bottom of the bottle

Light the match and toss it in

Put the egg over the top of the bottle

The egg should be sucked into the bottle when the fire goes out