Have you ever wanted to start a science experiment with your children but been stumped for ideas? Do you have a budding scientist who needs more hands-on learning and laboratory time outside the classroom? Keep reading for 45 of our favorite science experiments perfect for young ones! From building pneumatic machines to testing out invisible ink, your little one will be doing all sorts of fun projects. You might want to set aside an entire day or weekend to tackle this list together – they won’t want to stop!
Not all scientific studies necessitate pricey laboratory equipment or hazardous chemicals. There are a plethora of interesting projects that you may complete using everyday home objects. Even if you’re not a big fan of science, these experiments are sure to get the kid in your life excited about learning.
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1. Make Ice Cream In A Bag
Have you ever attempted to make ice cream? It’s a lot of fun and results in a delectable frozen dessert! There is actually quite a bit of fascinating chemistry involved in the process of manufacturing ice cream. Consider how you begin with chilled ingredients and then need to cool them down to make ice cream. How critical do you believe it is for them to be cooled to a specific temperature? In this scientific exercise, you’ll create your own ice cream in a bag and investigate the best method for chilling the components to transform them into a creamy, delectable treat!
2. Soda Explosion
In order to teach your children about science, create a fountain of foam using soda and mints. You’ve always been curious as to whether or not something actually works, so now is the time to find out! When Mentos are introduced to diet soda, the chemical reaction that causes the soda to soar high into the air will captivate children.
3. Turn Milk Into Plastic
“Milk-based plastic” — that sounds like a made-up phrase. If you agree, you might be astonished to learn that in the early twentieth century, milk was used to create a variety of plastic items, including jewelry for Queen Mary of England! In this chemical science project, you will determine the best recipe for making your own milk plastic (also known as casein plastic) and using it to manufacture beads, ornaments, and other products.
4. ‘Magic’ Drawing With Refraction Of Light
How to use light refraction to magically flip’ paintings. Light refraction produces some incredibly interesting effects, and there are a variety of simple science experiments you can conduct with it. A sketch is “flipped” in this trick, which makes use of refraction; you may also try out the well-known “disappearing penny” trick.
5. Does Color Affect Taste?
“The eyes eat before the mouth,” as the adage goes. Food’s appearance, particularly its color, has a strong influence on how we perceive its flavor. Can your eyes, however, alter your taste perception? You will find out in this scientific assignment by examining how people perceive the flavor of various colored apple juices. What impact do you believe color has on taste?
6. Makes The Best Umbrella STEM Challenge
In this umbrella STEM challenge, children are asked to construct an umbrella entirely out of ordinary items. Encourage kids to create the finest possible umbrella using a variety of household items. Encourage them to design, create plans, and conduct scientific tests on their products.
7. How Salted Must The Sea Be For An Egg To Float?
Some objects float on top of the ocean’s surface, while others sink to the ocean’s depths. Why? To find out, try this simple egg experiment!
8. Learn About Core Sampling
This is how you can learn about core sampling with play dough. Build models of the Earth’s layers out of Play-Doh and then use a straw to collect a core sample to learn about the different layers.
9. Bath Bomb Science
A bath bomb is made up of many components that are blended and molded into a shape that fizzes when it comes into contact with water. It can be a very calming experience, especially if your bath bomb has a pleasant aroma or contains bath salts. In this bath bomb science project, you will construct your own handmade bath bombs and investigate how varying the proportions of the various ingredients influence the fizziness of the bath bombs when tossed in the bath. You can use your refined formula to make some stunning bath bombs and possibly even give them as gifts!
10. How To Do Fold Mountains Form
With the help of this Folded Mountains Form excellent display, children can better grasp how some landforms are formed. Use layers of towels to depict rock layers and boxes to represent continents in this activity. Let us see what happens if we PUUUUUUUUSH!
11. How Far Will Paper Planes Fly?
All you need is the ability to fold, and you’ll have a simple plane in minutes! However, which design should you employ to construct the best plane? In this aerodynamics science project, you will alter the basic design of a paper plane and observe the resulting changes in its flight characteristics. Specifically, you will increase the amount of dragging the plane encounters and observe how far the paper plane flies as a result.
12. Invisible Ink
With these Invisible Ink Experiments, you can turn your children into covert agents! Write phrases on paper with a paintbrush dipped in lemon juice, then place it over a heat source and watch the invisible become apparent as oxidation takes effect.
13. Design Your Slime
There are numerous types of slime available. Some slime is thin and liquid-like, while others are thick and rubbery. Some slime glows in the dark, while others are fluffy and even magnetic! What combination of qualities results in the best slime? What kind of slime would you produce if you were going to sell slime as a toy in your own “slime shop”? In this assignment, you will experiment with many slime recipes in order to perfect one that would produce the best slime.
14. Sound Experiment
This is a fantastic collection of great sound science experiments. With the help of a basic rubber band “guitar,” investigate the ways in which sound waves are impacted by their surroundings.
15. Make a Fire Snake
In this amusing project, you can make a “fire snake” that appears to sprout out of nowhere with only a few simple components. Despite the fact that it appears to be magical, there is no magic involved—it is all the result of a chemical process. To find out how it works, give it a try!
16. How To Make a Rain Gauge
To create your own rain gauge, you’ll only need a plastic bottle, a ruler, and a permanent marker. Keep track of your measures and compare them to local weather reports.
17. Growing Rock Candy Crystals
I’ll give you a challenge: what kind of rock can grow? This question has a simple answer: rock candy. It is possible to “grow” this sweet treat from a sugar-water mix, and it is actually crystallized sugar. To find out if using seed crystals affects the growth rate of your sugar crystals, complete this science fair project.
18. Rock Science Experiments
Many simple science experiments can be performed with rocks, which kids love to collect. Take a rock and pour some vinegar on it, and check whether it bubbles. You’ve found limestone if that’s the case!
19. Can Plants Stop Soil Erosion?
It is estimated that soil erosion costs the world billions of dollars every year, primarily because it washes contaminants into our streams and rivers and results in the loss of farmland. What steps can you take to resolve this issue? Without anything more than a few plants, you can make a difference in saving the earth (and some money!)
20. Sticky Ice Science Experiment
A piece of string could be enough to lift an ice cube, but is that all you need? This simple Sticky Ice Science Experiment will explain to you how to do it. Applying salt to the ice and then refreezing it with the string attached will result in softer ice.
21. Make Spheres Yogurt
Forget about spooning up soups, yogurts, and puddings; imagine instead picking up and popping into your mouth one spherical, mess-free ball. In certain cases, it may feel like a snack rather than an actual dinner. You can do just that in this food science experiment.
22. Make a Parachute
Following a few simple procedures, you will be capable of creating a parachute. Collect a variety of materials (tissues, handkerchiefs, and plastic bags, for example) and determine which produce the best parachutes. Additionally, you may learn how they perform on windy days and which ones do well in the rain.
23. What Makes Ice Melt Fastest?
If you live somewhere that gets chilly in the winter, you’ve definitely seen trucks out after a snowfall spraying a mixture of sand and salt on the roadways to help de-ice the road. Has anyone else ever wondered how this works? This fundamental chemistry project can help you figure it out.
24. Lung Science Experiment
Here is a lung science experiment for middle school students, as well as tobacco prevention materials. When children construct model lungs out of a plastic water bottle and some balloons, they have a better grasp of the respiratory system. You can adapt the experiment to show the impacts of smoking as well.
25. Build a Balloon Car
In this entertaining exercise, you will create a balloon-powered automobile out of recycled materials. You may even team up with a friend and construct two cars to compete against one another!
26. Salt Water Experiment
Experimenting with salt water can teach you quite a bit. Compare and contrast how things float in various water combinations and learn about density, solutions, and even ocean science.
27. Build a Popsicle Stick Catapult
Catapults proved extremely useful to pirates during the golden age of piracy. Additionally, medieval knights utilized them years ago to demolish large fortress walls. Around 2,000 years ago, even the Greeks and Romans utilized catapults! These little machines are pretty useful if you know how to use them properly! You will experiment with catapult technology in this science exercise. Can you forecast the location of your cotton ball?
28. Stand on a paper cup without breaking it
Do you believe you can stand on a paper cup or do you believe it will break? We were concerned that our cup would break, so we double-checked to make sure. Challenge students to build a paper cup structure that can sustain their weight by combining physics and engineering. This is an interesting project for budding architects.
29. Paper Roller Coasters
In this high-octane lesson plan, everything that goes up must come down! How much energy does it take for a roller coaster car to complete a loop on a track? The purpose of this lesson is for your pupils to learn about kinetic and potential energy while they construct their own roller coasters out of common classroom supplies.
30. Water Cycle in a Bag
If you’re looking for an easy, entertaining kids’ science activity, you’ve come to the perfect place! There is no preparation needed for this water cycle in a bag, making it a simple exercise with a tremendous payoff.
31. At What Diameter Does an Aluminum Boat Sink?
This simple Aluminum Boat Sink science experiment, which appears to be a wild dancing motion, actually explains Archimedes’ concept of buoyancy in a straightforward manner. Aluminum foil and a jug of water are all that is required.
32. Crystal Names
This simple, low-cost kid crystal name science experiment utilizes borax to grow crystal names, and it is really simple to do. It will delight all of the children to see their names glisten and glimmer in the sunlight. We love crystal names and they are one of our favorite scientific projects of all time.
33. CO2 Extinguisher – Sick Science
This is a flaming take on the classic acid/base experimentation. Start with a candle and speak about the things that a fire needs to survive. Then, in order to extinguish the flame, initiate an acid-base reaction and “pour” carbon dioxide over the flame. The CO2 gas behaves as if it were a liquid, stifling the blaze.
34. Why Is The Sky Blue?
An experiment to demonstrate how sunlight traveling through the atmosphere might cause the sky to turn blue is presented below. To transform a glass of white colloid into blue, we shall utilize a flashlight.
35. Minding Your Mummies
Have you seen or heard of the film The Mummy? Mummies have always played a role in Western cultures’ nightmares, but in ancient Egypt, cremation was a serious religious process. They believed that keeping human remains was vital so that the former owner may reap the benefits of the afterlife. In this mummies science project, you will learn about the traditions and science of mummifying by mummifying a hot dog.
36. Magnet Worksheet For Kids
The pencil had a built-in magnet! The metallic ring near the eraser was attracted by the magnet. We were able to attract a small magnetic object to the magnet by holding it close to it. Both the nail and the paper clip did this. To help your children learn about magnetism, here is a free printable worksheet.
37. How To Make A Barometer
This straightforward yet excellent do-it-yourself science project educates children about atmospheric pressure and meteorology. They’ll enjoy observing and forecasting the weather using their own barometer.
38. Minty Reindeer Toothpaste
Making a batch of this glittery reindeer toothpaste is sure to pique the interest of any young scientist in chemistry. The renowned Elephant Toothpaste presentation has been given a pepperminty holiday twist. The results are incredible for such a small number of ingredients!
39. Examine How Sugary Drinks Influence Your Teeth.
Eggshells are an excellent substitute for teeth because of their high calcium content. Investigate the effects of sugary drinks and juice on tooth enamel by staining and wearing down your teeth with eggs. Try out a variety of toothpaste and toothbrush combos to see which one works best for your needs.
40. Hot Ice Science Experiment
You won’t believe how simple it is to put together this hot ice science experiment! As with all of our greatest science projects for kids, all you need are a few pantry staples: vinegar, baking soda, and water. The preparation is quick and easy, but the effects are magical! Your children will want to repeat this Hot Ice scientific experiment over and over.
41. Tornado In A Bottle
We know there are many variations on this Tornado in a Bottle Science Experiment, but we particularly like this one since it shines! Children learn what a vortex is and how to construct one in this lesson.
42. Orange Buoyancy Kids’ Science Experiment
If you’re searching for a simple and entertaining scientific experiment for kids, this Orange Buoyancy Kids’ Science Experiment is for you! Just a few basic household items are needed for this simple buoyancy activity. Using this simple experiment, kids may discover why certain objects sink while others float.
43. Homemade Lava Lamp
This Homemade Lava Lamp 70s trend is returning, and it’s a simple scientific experiment to boot! Using acid/base interactions along with density, this exercise produces an absolutely fantastic result.
44. Rainbow Jar
We adore engaging children’s science activities, and this simple rainbow jar activity is one of our all-time favorites. In fact, with the help of a few simple home items like dish detergent and honey, tiny scientists can create an entire rainbow in a jar. The use of magic is unnecessary; all that is required is 100 percent kid-friendly science.
45. Fill A Balloon Without Blowing It Up
Probability is that, like me, you performed fill a balloon science experiments like this when you were in elementary and middle school. With the help of this well-known experiment, you can see how acids and bases react. Make a vinegar bottle and a baking soda balloon. Inflate the balloon by squeezing the baking soda into the vinegar and then placing the balloon over the top of the mixture.
46. Fireworks In A Jar
If you have a young child who is attracted by colors and pyrotechnics, try these simple Fireworks In A Jar experiments (and your child). Action Pack was the inspiration for my attempt. You probably already have everything you need in your pantry for these fireworks in a jar: oil, water, and food coloring!
47. Cleaning Coins Experiment
In this Cleaning Coins Experiment, you’ll use everyday household products to make old corroded coins clean and bright again. Ask children to forecast (hypothesize) which will perform best, then broaden their knowledge by conducting research to explain the outcomes.
48. Acids And Bases Experiment
Without the use of pH test strips, you can teach your children about acids and bases. You may easily test different compounds by boiling some red cabbage and using the ensuing water to do so. Acids appear red, and bases appear green when tested this way.
49. Cloud In A Jar
Instructing your kids on how to make clouds and fog (which are simply low-lying clouds) are generated provided the ideal occasion to demonstrate their formation to him. This fascinating presentation will have you pretending to be Zeus, the god of the weather, for the entire afternoon with absolutely no preparation and no expense.
50. How To Make A Naked Egg
This Make A Naked Egg Experiment is just fantastic! By dissolving calcium carbonate in an eggshell with vinegar, you can uncover the membrane that binds the egg together behind the calcium carbonate. Then, using the “naked” egg, conduct another simple scientific experiment to demonstrate the phenomenon of osmosis.
