Expanding the World with Science

Even more than school, it is the home that is the seedbed of curiosity and wonder. When you set aside a few moments a week to do in-home science experiments, uncertainty is welcome, not just a quiz with one answer. When the results are unexpected, it is an invitation to think in different ways, not a book of facts and outcomes to memorise.

Science explains the weather, rising hot air balloons, and the fizz in soda pop. The concepts within science burn, freeze, break things down and grow them. There is drama and illumination in a hands-on project, and all it takes is a few moments and some good questions. 

I invite you to begin by brainstorming questions with your child. It’s easy!  Questions happen to be something kids are good at: What if…? How high..? For how long…? Where will it go…? Can I make it different…? One girl I met as a judge for a science fair was curious if cats were left-pawed and right-pawed like people. She came up with her hypothesis (“…a cat will have a dominant favoured side…”). Backed it up with her reasoning (“…people have a dominant side, and they are mammals, so cats should too...”). Next, she set up an irresistible dangly cat-toy made from an old fishing pole and she counted the number of times 15 cats swatted it with their left paws and with their right. This girl was involved every step of the way without parental interference or pressure. She was engaged, accountable, and on fire with the discovery. She told me next she was going to see if dogs and fish had a dominant side. Clearly, the world can use more of this wide-open, unchecked speculation! 

Whether your child is interested in science, or participating in a science fair, here is a general guide that will lead her step by step down the road of discovery:

Find a question that is fascinating and set up an experiment to test it.

Gather information about the question; for example, when do cats normally like to play? After eating? After sleeping? With other cats?

Write down the hypothesis.

Do the experiment to test the question and hypothesis.

What happened? Write it down. Make graphs and charts.

The following is a list of questions to jump-start home science projects. Take your child’s interests and avocations into account. Do not edit conjectures and give your child enough time to test them. Check science project books out of the library for further ideas. Most of all, remember good thinking and reasoning processes are often filled with mistakes and detours!

• What kind of bubble gum blows the biggest bubble?
• Which batteries last longest?
• Do bigger seeds grow bigger plants?
• Are gerbils that run on exercise wheels affected by music?
• Do mint leaves ward off ants?
• Is a plant affected by what it is watered with?
• Which plants make good dyes?
• Is outdoor temperature affected by location?
• What material cleans up an oil spill best?
• What would happen if you grew seeds on a record player that was revolving?
• Does music affect plant growth?
• Does talking to plants every day affect growth?
• Will all the seeds in a sunflower packet germinate? Will the bigger seeds grow bigger sunflowers?
• Will frozen seeds sprout? Boiled seeds?
• Does the moon phase affect plant growth?
• How many pennies could a growing seed lift?
• How much air do your lungs hold?
• Can you tell the different taste between foods with your nose plugged?
• Do you run faster in the morning or at night?
• What happens when you soak a chicken bone in vinegar? In milk? In soda pop?