Plant Maze!

Observe how a plant grows towards the direction of light by making a shoe box plant maze! Click here for a pdf tutorial.

Marble Science

Friction
Have kids roll marbles on a smooth and rough surface. What surface makes the marble roll the fastest?

Sink or Float?

Collect marbles and various other objects and test buoyancy. What sinks and what floats? 

Viscosity

Now, experiment with how marbles react to fluids with a higher viscosity than water. Drop a marble in each of the following liquids: corn syrup, milk, honey, and oil. Explain that thicker liquids have a higher mass and make the marble move slower. 

"Hypothesize before you perform the experiment about which liquid will move the marble faster or slower."- via ehow and science buddies

Marble Moon Craters

Drop marbles from different heights and angles into a pan filled with flour. via the exploration station

Crackled Marbles

Bake marbles in the oven for a crackling effect.

 1. Preheat your oven to 450.

2. Bake marbles in a pan for 7 minutes

3. Then, transfer marbles to a bowl of ice water.

4. Finally, dry them off and enjoy!

Marble Graviton

Defy gravity with a marble and a glass! Will the marble fall out when the glass is flipped? 

explanation: 
"The inertia of the spinning marble is a "push" force.  The glass supplies another "push" force that keeps the marble moving in a "uniform circular motion."  The force of the glass is centripetal force, a force that makes a body follow a curved path. The combined forces of the spinning marble and the glass create a relative force greater than gravity." - Steve Spangler

Is a Shadow Always Black?

Reggio Kids taught kids the difference between transparent and opaque. They showed them how translucent objects can cast colorful shadows. While the shadow of an opaque object is always black. 

Magic Crystal Tree

Visit Steve Spangler for the explanation!

Oil Spill!

Can you undo water pollution? Along the Way conducted an experiment to see if kids can get the water back to its original state.

Can marine animals get cleaned up after an oil spill? Visit the The Kitchen Pantry Scientist for instructions to conduct this experiment with kids on Earth Day!

Shadow Sundial

photo credit: Scholastic

Stand in the same place and see how your shadow changes at different times in the day. Visit Scholastic for instructions!

Non-Newtonian Glop aka Oobleck

Non-Newtonian Glop, Oobleck, Cornstarch Quicksand, they're all the same strange substance that make us question: Is it a liquid or a solid?! You can smack it, walk on it, punch it, and try to roll it into a ball. Yet, it still drips off of your fingertips. 

Now, are you ready to make your own?! You can find instructions at Steve Spangler.

Steve Spangler tested oobleck on a speaker and it danced! Above is a photo from Housing a Forest's experiment. They added color to their oobleck! Visit Housing a Forest and Steve Spangler for instructions!

Rocket Launch

photo credit: Great Fall Elementary via Connection Newspaper

Soda straw rockets from NASA! After you construct your rockets, have a math lesson. See how far your students can launch them! Measure how far they land. What is the best angle to shoot your rocket? NASA Rocket template (download here) 

photos via family fun

Other Rocket Activities:
Spring a Red Solo Cup Rocket up into the air!
Blast a Bottle Rocket outside!

River Erosion Lab

How does the flow of water effect land? Does the slope of the land make an impact on erosion? Try this experiment from Science Matters. Click here for a photo tutorial.

3D Earth Puzzle

Visit Planet Pals to download this 3D earth globe puzzle!

Soap Erosion

via science matters

Science Matters placed a bar of soap on a sponge and let it sit in the sink to demonstrate erosion. Click the link for instructions and more creative experiments on weathering.

Crayon Rock Cycle

Featured Above:
Flying Fox Academy conducted a really cool experiment to show "how the same minerals can be changed into different types of rock depending on how they are formed." Click here to see how they made sedimentary and metamorphic crayons!

Momma Owl's Lab did an extension on the above experiment. Also, check out MJKSCI for more awesome rock cycle activities with crayons!

Density Towers

Explore solids and liquids with the classic density tower. After discovering the density of liquids, kids can test how dense certain solids are. Which solids sink? Which ones float? Click here for the explanation. If you want to make a smaller tower, you can experiment with the 7-layer density column here. You can adjust the colors of your 7-layer density column and make a rainbow tower! 

You can also integrate math with this activity and practice fractions!

For younger kids, you can concoct Science Bob's drinkable density juice tower! Yum! Visit his site for the full tutorial!

Plant a Rainbow

Read the book Planting a Rainbow, then plant your own! All you need are seeds of various colored plants and a garden plot.

Here is a list of  flowers that are all summer-blooming annuals that will bloom well in all climate zones via How Stuff Works:

Dianthus, petunia, verbena, and zinnia produce red or pink blooms

Calendula, marigold, and zinnia produce orange or yellow blooms

Nonflowering, leafy green plant, such as mint, for the color green

Dianthus, petunia, verbena, and zinnia produce blue or purple blooms

Rocks, Minerals, and Soils Lab

Density of pumice and obsidian. Pumice floats!

"Rocks, minerals and soils have different characteristics that set them apart from others. Find out about the properties of rocks such as slate, marble, chalk, granite and pumice. Which rocks split? Can you find a rock that floats? Test permeability. Can liquids pass through?" - Science Kids

Key:

splits- slate and chalk

floats- pumice

permeable- chalk, pumice

doesn't wear well- chalk

Do the test on all sorts of rocks and classify them into each category.