Science is part
of our everyday lives; it exists all around us.
Scientific skills that enable us to enquire and question, to predict, test fairly, to observe, classify and conclude can be developed by sharing activities such as cooking and gardening with your child. Your local library as well as the Internet and a variety of device Apps are excellent resources of fun scientific activities. Another way to develop your child's scientific skills is to create a science box filled with magnets, torches, mirrors, plastic containers, a range of materials and paper and construction bricks, etc. This will help your child to learn through direct experience and play.
Scientific skills that enable us to enquire and question, to predict, test fairly, to observe, classify and conclude can be developed by sharing activities such as cooking and gardening with your child. Your local library as well as the Internet and a variety of device Apps are excellent resources of fun scientific activities. Another way to develop your child's scientific skills is to create a science box filled with magnets, torches, mirrors, plastic containers, a range of materials and paper and construction bricks, etc. This will help your child to learn through direct experience and play.
The following are just a
few science activities that you can complete with your child. Encourage your child to ask questions, to
make hypothesis and predictions and observations. Results can be recorded using
words, graphs, pictures or photos.
Grow seeds in a
jar using either compost or kitchen towel.
This can be extended by planting the same type of seed in the same type
of container and material but placing the seeds in different location, e.g. a
jar in sunlight, a jar in the dark. By only changing one variable your child is
beginning to learn how to test their hypothesis/question fairly.
Place white
flowers or celery in jars of water with different food colouring and
observe.
Use torches to
test which materials are transparent, translucent or opaque. Place blue, red and green tissue paper over
the lens of three torches and shine them onto the same spot, experimenting with
light and colour.
Experiment with
air resistance by building parachutes with different size materials and paper,
using the same object i.e. a small toy.
Fill four identical
containers with the same amount of the following fluids: orange juice, vinegar,
water and coke. Place eggs shells in
each container and observe which dissolves the quickest.
Grow crystals
by dissolving salt into a beaker of water and suspend a thread in the solution.
Encourage your
child to ask questions by asking questions yourself.
"The important thing is to never stop
questioning."
Albert Einstein.
