There are only so many things that can be taught in the lab or classroom. To get a full experience, kids need to go outside a bit to learn, especially in this summer weather too. That’s why we’ve found these 3 awesome experiments you can do with your kids to get them outdoors and learning about everything from ecology to archaeology to chemical reactivity!
- Rainbow Ice Tower Excavation
This project is really cool – in more ways than one! Basically, you freeze water with coloured beads in it to create a rainbow ice tower, then have your kids use a salt and water mixture to melt the ice and excavate the goodies inside.
This is a great project because it teaches your kids a little about archaeology and how salt reacts with ice. It is also full on creativity and discovery. For bonus points, explain to them how we use trucks full of salt to keep ice from forming on the roadways.
If you’d like to learn how to do this, check out fun at home with kids’ blog!
- Makeshift Sundial
Teach your kids a little bit of history and physics using this makeshift, traditional sundial.
All you have to do is take some playdoh, make it into a base, and stick a sharpened pencil in it with the pointy side up. Then throughout the day, every hour have them place a rock where the shadow is. Do this for 8 hours and you’ll have a sundial!
Explain to kids how the angle of the sun effects the shadows, why this can be used to tell the time, and how these were used as clocks in ancient times! Keeping track of time is important for organization, agriculture, heating, cooling, experiments and more.
- Test How Different Liquids Effect Plant Growth
Use this method to test how different kinds of liquids, like rain water vs. lake water vs. even soda, effects the way plants grow. The different components of water affect growth.
All you need is a few seeds of the same type (established seeds will probably work better), some jars, labels so you always know which is which, a measuring cup and potting soil. Try even broccoli or radicchio sprouts, which yup can snack on later. You may also want to keep a ruler and journal handy to record how much they are all growing.
You’ll want to water them all with the same amount of liquid and measure over a 2 week period. It’s really interesting to see what happens, you’re sure to be surprised! It will also teach your kids about ecology, how plants grow and even how different inputs affect outputs.
I hope you’ve enjoyed these fun outdoor kids activities. If you’re really serious about teaching your kids science, you should consider signing them up for one of our summer or fall camps. Happy experimenting!
