8 science experiments kids can do at home, from egg drops to ball ramps

This week’s Science Fun at Home with @pstt_whyhow is very egg-citing! Find out how we made an egg float, set up an egg drop experiment or try an egg themed STEM challenge. I’ve popped the link in my profile if you want to download the instruction sheet #ScienceFromHome #Scienceforkids #eggexperiments #Easter

A post shared by Science Sparks (@sciencesparks) on Apr 8, 2020 at 12:45pm PDTApr 8, 2020 at 12:45pm PDT

This is another experiment that uses whatever materials kids have around their homes, this time to insulate an egg so that it doesn't crack when dropped. Kids can use everything from towels to paper to create their unique egg holders. 

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Thank you all for sharing your towers for our first challenge! It was overwhelming to see so many children taking part! Here is challenge #02: Build something that floats! Use anything you have at home as building materials: kitchen foil, paper, play-dough, wooden sticks or something else. After you finished, make sure you test it in the water to see if it really floats. Little ones would love to choose the right materials for the build. To test them put a bowl of water so that children could test which ones sink and which ones float. Older children could enjoy an extra challenge of making sure that the boat can keep additional weigh afloat. Something like marble or lemon would work great. Please share your results by tagging @TheDadLab and adding hashtag #TheDadLab I would love to see them Fill free to share this challenge with others too! #stayhome #homeschoollife #kidsactivities #TogetheratHome

A post shared by Sergei Urban | TheDadLab (@thedadlab) on Mar 25, 2020 at 5:29am PDTMar 25, 2020 at 5:29am PDT

In this easily adaptable experiment, children use whatever materials they have around their homes to create an object that floats, choosing and testing household items to create a unique vessel.

Celery Science Experiment ages 3+ For this simple experiment, all you need are some leafy celery stalks (the inner stalks work best), water and food coloring. Add food coloring to each glass of water. (We made red, orange, blue and black.) Then add the celery stalks. Cut about an inch off of each stalk before placing in water. After 24 hours the leaves will have changed color to match the water. This is because the tiny tubes (xylem) in the plant drink up the water just like a straw. This process is called transpiration. If you look at the capillaries you will see they now match the color of the water they were in. So cool! Follow us @raisingdragons4 for more fun kids activities and get our book (link in bio) for more simple STEAM ideas like this one! #preschool #kindergarten #scienceexperiments . . #imaginativeplay #letthemplay #stem #homeschooling #funwithkids #homeeducation #montessori #kidsactivities #stemeducation #kindergartenteacher #earlychildhoodeducation #homeschool #kindergartenactivities #scienceiscool #iteachfirst #scienceisfun #ece #playbasedlearning #toddleractivities #totschool #everydayplayhacks #sciencekids #playideas #sciencerocks #raisingdragons

A post shared by Raising Dragons (@raisingdragons4) on Mar 29, 2020 at 7:57am PDTMar 29, 2020 at 7:57am PDT

Many parents probably remember this celery and food color experiment from grade school, which teaches about transpiration — how water travels and moves through plants. The only materials kids need to do this classic experiment are some celery, clear cups, and some food dye.

Tree Sample Specimen Jars Take some time to walk around your home or neighborhood and gather tree specimens to display in jars in your home. Then she labeled (handwriting and spelling practice! ✅) each one. Go deeper: What do you notice? Distinguish the similarities/differences. Investigate what type of fruit they bear if any. Categorize by (leaves, branches, seeds). #momducator #thisisourhomeschool #handsonlearning #specimenjars #treelearning #naturelessons #naturelearning #inourbackyard

A post shared by jessica ✨ (@momducator) on Apr 22, 2020 at 6:00am PDTApr 22, 2020 at 6:00am PDT

For kids who are able to get out into nature safely, sampling different tree leaves and categorizing them by different physical and biological properties can be an easy way to learn about plant science. 

Iodine starch test Some food and even paper contains carbohydrate - starch. We can check it experimentally using Iodine. Using a dropper apply a small amount of Iodine to the product and see if its colour changes to dark purple, black. This change in colour will indicate starch presence. *Check paper and tissue paper, fresh and old potatoes, ripe and green banana for a contrast. Think why the results are different?! *Iodine test is used in beer brewing. If the result is negative - all the starches turned into sugars. HAPPY CREATIVE LEARNING! #curiositysprouts_experiments #scienceforkids #kidsscience #homeschool #kidslearning #kidsactivities #stemeducation #creativelearning

A post shared by Creative Learning Fun (@curiositysprouts) on Aug 16, 2019 at 9:43am PDTAug 16, 2019 at 9:43am PDT

In this simple nutrition experiment, kids can use iodine, available at many drugstores, to learn about the carbohydrate content of foods like potatoes, grapes, and cucumbers. 

BALL RAMP This was 100% a "Busy Dad" activity today He set this up for the kids and all I can take credit for is the photo. My humble contribution ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Chuck aka Busy Dad ‍♂️ has his method for making a ball ramp down PAT (he's been making these since 2017 with the kids) and today was The Day we needed a ball ramp OBVIOUSLY, this box is well cleaned / sanitized / was delivered to our house back in December so we good Chuck cut open the box flat and taped the flaps to the back. Then he rolled up a bit of the front to make it more "jump" like ⛷The last step is the most crucial: tape a broom handle to the back for stability Otherwise the cardboard is just too flimsy for this level of fun ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Anytime Chuck makes this for the kids all sorts of experimenting comes to play too ⚗️ They'll roll balls then cars. There are races. This will end up on the stairs eventually and I'm sure it'll be outside in the backyard in no time ☀️ It's just one of those super easy DIY toys that the kids love and they'll play with it for days. I just saw someone decorated it with stickers ‍♀️We always have a "target" at the bottom of the ramp but this time, I added a muffin tin to see if anyone could hit a smaller target This has opened up a whole new level of ball ramp play for the kids. Well worth the 5 minutes of set-up ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ DIY Ball Ramp ⚽️ There's nothing classy or fancy about it, but it works, it's fun, and it's engaging. Pretty perfect for days like this

A post shared by Susie Allison | Busy Toddler (@busytoddler) on Apr 14, 2020 at 1:10pm PDTApr 14, 2020 at 1:10pm PDT

This ball ramp, which requires a ball, cardboard, a muffin pan, and a broom, will keep kids busy learning basic physics concepts like aerodynamics and velocity.

Isn't it a magic when you can move a pencil without touching it?! We are exploring the magical world of static electricity #TheDadLab #familyfuntime #science #playandlearn #learningthroughplay

A post shared by Sergei Urban | TheDadLab (@thedadlab) on Feb 4, 2020 at 4:15am PSTFeb 4, 2020 at 4:15am PST

This static electricity experiment requires only three things: a pencil or pen, a bottle or a cup, and a balloon. Sergei Urban, the dad behind the thedadlab account, also created a follow-up video to this experiment, providing five additional at-home static electricity activities.