In the winter months up north, we can sometimes see a lot of ice and snow! When it keeps us from going outside to play, we bring it inside - to play and experiment!
There are so many ways to explore:
Bring in a big bin of snow to play with! Put on some mittens and make some mini snow people, using buttons and small sticks for decoration. Your kiddos will have great ideas for what to add for even more fun! Observe how the snow changes over time and talk about the volume of the snow - it fills a container but then, when it turns into water, does it take up as much space?
Try some ice dissolving - get some ice chunks and have small cups of salt and spray bottles of warm water available - and see what your little ones decide to do with them. Sprinkling or spraying may produce cracks and fissures - drop a tiny bit of food coloring in to see it spread out through the ice cracks!
Float an "ice cap" in some cold water! Take a container and freeze some water into an ice shape and set it to float. Notice how big it is and check the container for a good visual. Have some small polar animal figures available to float and balance, and observe over time ... as it shrinks! The kiddos will have some fun keeping their animals afloat and will make some great observations :)
See what other ideas your little ones come up with - exploring, asking questions, and trying out experiments will give them practice with the scientific process!
Give them pencils, paper, and crayons to record what they see - scientists aways keep notes!
Have fun!
There are so many ways to explore:Bring in a big bin of snow to play with! Put on some mittens and make some mini snow people, using buttons and small sticks for decoration. Your kiddos will have great ideas for what to add for even more fun! Observe how the snow changes over time and talk about the volume of the snow - it fills a container but then, when it turns into water, does it take up as much space?
Try some ice dissolving - get some ice chunks and have small cups of salt and spray bottles of warm water available - and see what your little ones decide to do with them. Sprinkling or spraying may produce cracks and fissures - drop a tiny bit of food coloring in to see it spread out through the ice cracks!
Float an "ice cap" in some cold water! Take a container and freeze some water into an ice shape and set it to float. Notice how big it is and check the container for a good visual. Have some small polar animal figures available to float and balance, and observe over time ... as it shrinks! The kiddos will have some fun keeping their animals afloat and will make some great observations :)
See what other ideas your little ones come up with - exploring, asking questions, and trying out experiments will give them practice with the scientific process!
Give them pencils, paper, and crayons to record what they see - scientists aways keep notes!
Have fun!