I’m expecting to have my boy with me (finally) regularly as from April. He is 5 years old, and while in my care, I’d occasionally like to introduce him to all fun things science.

I’d like suggestions of any science experiments that I could do with things that can either already be found in the house normally (like the dishwasher liquid in water on a plate trick), or with things that are inexpensive and easily acquired.

But also, just for myself, because I think it would be fun to play with for a couple of minutes until I get bored of it…. can anyone identify this powder for me?

https://youtu.be/nadpcadav1I?t=5m54s

It starts off as a powder, then when added to water, it falls to the bottom and looks like a putty or playdough, but when removed out of the water, it’s immediately dry and in powder form again. Looks like blue sugar.

magic sand.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magic_sand

mentos and diet coke

rockets and eruptions

teabag rockets

Capillary Action

m&m experiment

Arts said:

mentos and diet coke

rockets and eruptions

teabag rockets

Capillary Action

m&m experiment

these are some of the experiments I have done with my kids and their friends… all very easy, quick and chockkas full of science

Science and a 5yo has to be all about fun.

Get a bubble blower and get him to blow as many bubbles as he can on one breath and then explain that all that air in the bubbles came from him.

Take some vinegar and bicarb and get him to mix them together.

Put a plastic bottle that has been well rinsed in hot water, with tightened cap, into the freezer and watch it shrink.

Place some iron fillings on a sheet of paper with a magnet underneath and let him play.

Some of the ones I’ve run past my kids include:

a) boiling up red cabbage to get the pH indicator, separating it out into samples, add vinegar to one and bicarb soda to another

b) putting a battery in sequence with an LED and an empty glass, and adding various liquids to find out which are electrolytes (vinegar, bicarb solution, orange juice, coke, milk, sugar solution)

c) the every popular lemon batter experiment
http://tokyo3.org/forums/holiday/topics/5132/

d) cleaning copper coins with vinegar/salt solution, then using the copper solution to copper coat iron nails http%3A//tokyo3.org/forums//holiday/topics/5293/

Well the Monte Carlo kid is out.

Pity he’s taking $400k back with him.

we did the lemon battery experiment but it seems far less complex than that.. just a couple of bits of copper, a couple of bits of zinc and some appropriate wires… we also used banana, apples and water… with similar results.

jjjust moi said:

Well the Monte Carlo kid is out.

Pity he’s taking $400k back with him.

fred wong of course…….sorry.

I used to have a fun with a collection of 1.5V batteries, a few bits of wire, and some light globes and an electric motor.

ANFO

wookiemeister said:

ANFO

Noisy shit but effective.

anfo is great if you can get dets and initiator.

That’s very interesting, just pissing around, I tried typing in the three basic components of nitroglcyrine and the pooter would not allow me to do this, it altered what I typed in.

ChrispenEvan said:

anfo is great if you can get dets and initiator.

Used it to plant trees on ancient heavy clays.

bob(from black rock) said:

That’s very interesting, just pissing around, I tried typing in the three basic components of nitroglcyrine and the pooter would not allow me to do this, it altered what I typed in.

It wan’t to speak American.

ChrispenEvan said:

anfo is great if you can get dets and initiator.

——-

Please remember that a 5yo can read.

ChrispenEvan said:

anfo is great if you can get dets and initiator.

you could probably make them, i’d bet there would be something out there on the internet

i would look but i can’t be arsed

if a 5 yo can get their hands on either of those two items then we have a lot more to worry about.

:-)

go to water tap

turn on water then back the water stream off until you get a very slender stream of water

get a plastic pen and rub it on a nylon / cotton cloth

bring the pen close to the water stream you’ll see it deflects the water stream

the electrostatic charge of the pen deflects the water stream because water molecules have positive and negative ends

ChrispenEvan said:

if a 5 yo can get their hands on either of those two items then we have a lot more to worry about.

:-)

bunnings and supermarkets

its easy if you wanted to do it, if you are going to do it make tiny amounts and keep the reaction cool

making stuff that produces a sufficient shockwave to set of the tertiary charge is fraught with problems. not the least is getting the right chemicals.

toluene you can still buy easily i believe if you are going to make more powerful stuff

ChrispenEvan said:

making stuff that produces a sufficient shockwave to set of the tertiary charge is fraught with problems. not the least is getting the right chemicals.

if you weren’t trained how to make it you are definitely going to make mistakes

you’d need the space to experiment, if you lived in some old house by an abandoned railway line you’d be ok but how many people are in that situation?

wookiemeister said:

toluene you can still buy easily i believe if you are going to make more powerful stuff

You can still buy a lot of stuff but you are being watched.

roughbarked said:

wookiemeister said:

toluene you can still buy easily i believe if you are going to make more powerful stuff

You can still buy a lot of stuff but you are being watched.

bullshit

wookiemeister said:

go to water tap

turn on water then back the water stream off until you get a very slender stream of water

get a plastic pen and rub it on a nylon / cotton cloth

bring the pen close to the water stream you’ll see it deflects the water stream

the electrostatic charge of the pen deflects the water stream because water molecules have positive and negative ends

—-

A tad too far most 5yo’s understanding.

tauto said:

wookiemeister said:

go to water tap

turn on water then back the water stream off until you get a very slender stream of water

get a plastic pen and rub it on a nylon / cotton cloth

bring the pen close to the water stream you’ll see it deflects the water stream

the electrostatic charge of the pen deflects the water stream because water molecules have positive and negative ends

—-

A tad too far most 5yo’s understanding.

you don’t need to understand anything

the doing is good enough

wookiemeister said:

ChrispenEvan said:

making stuff that produces a sufficient shockwave to set of the tertiary charge is fraught with problems. not the least is getting the right chemicals.

if you weren’t trained how to make it you are definitely going to make mistakes

you’d need the space to experiment, if you lived in some old house by an abandoned railway line you’d be ok but how many people are in that situation?

The kids that blew their hands off?

get two sheets of A4 paper

hang them downwards in each hand by the tips of your fingers

hang your head down and blow between the sheets of paper

the sheets move together

the low pressure zone caused by your breath causes the paper to be pushed by atmospheric pressure

wookiemeister said:

you don’t need to understand anything

the doing is good enough

Sometimes you make sense. ;)

roughbarked said:

wookiemeister said:

ChrispenEvan said:

making stuff that produces a sufficient shockwave to set of the tertiary charge is fraught with problems. not the least is getting the right chemicals.

if you weren’t trained how to make it you are definitely going to make mistakes

you’d need the space to experiment, if you lived in some old house by an abandoned railway line you’d be ok but how many people are in that situation?

The kids that blew their hands off?

no its a joke

it describes boris’ house

wookiemeister said:

roughbarked said:

wookiemeister said:

if you weren’t trained how to make it you are definitely going to make mistakes

you’d need the space to experiment, if you lived in some old house by an abandoned railway line you’d be ok but how many people are in that situation?

The kids that blew their hands off?

no its a joke

it describes boris’ house

I know that. However there was room for more with what you said. ;)

roughbarked said:

wookiemeister said:

roughbarked said:

no its a joke

it describes boris’ house

I know that. However there was room for more with what you said. ;)

yeah that was a bit of strange

most people thought it was the two kids playing with explosives when it was actually two local blokes playing with the mother of satan

So. what did you end up doing?

bob(from black rock) said:

That’s very interesting, just pissing around, I tried typing in the three basic components of nitroglcyrine and the pooter would not allow me to do this, it altered what I typed in.

keep an eye out for the black helicopters

tauto said:

So. what did you end up doing?

Gathering suggestions for experiments so when I see him I can introduce him to sciencey-type things.

Won’t be for another couple of months. Initial court date isn’t until 31st March, and that’s assuming she (1) shows up at court and (2) doesn’t action her threat to move a few hours away between now and then.

JTQ said:

tauto said:

So. what did you end up doing?

Gathering suggestions for experiments so when I see him I can introduce him to sciencey-type things.

Won’t be for another couple of months. Initial court date isn’t until 31st March, and that’s assuming she (1) shows up at court and (2) doesn’t action her threat to move a few hours away between now and then.

—-

So you have no access to your son?

tauto said:

JTQ said:

tauto said:

So. what did you end up doing?

Gathering suggestions for experiments so when I see him I can introduce him to sciencey-type things.

Won’t be for another couple of months. Initial court date isn’t until 31st March, and that’s assuming she (1) shows up at court and (2) doesn’t action her threat to move a few hours away between now and then.

—-

So you have no access to your son?

At running the risk of S_S getting shirty again …… no I don’t. My ex won’t let me see him because she said she doesn’t like me.

JTQ said:

tauto said:

JTQ said:

Gathering suggestions for experiments so when I see him I can introduce him to sciencey-type things.

Won’t be for another couple of months. Initial court date isn’t until 31st March, and that’s assuming she (1) shows up at court and (2) doesn’t action her threat to move a few hours away between now and then.

—-

So you have no access to your son?

At running the risk of S_S getting shirty again …… no I don’t. My ex won’t let me see him because she said she doesn’t like me.

I’m not getting shitty, it’s your loss, no skin off my nose.
But I do know what it takes to get an intervention order (RO) without attending court and I do have a fair idea on the legalities of your situation. So far you’ve come on asking for advice and dismissed the lot of it, good luck with it

JTQ said:

tauto said:

JTQ said:

Gathering suggestions for experiments so when I see him I can introduce him to sciencey-type things.

Won’t be for another couple of months. Initial court date isn’t until 31st March, and that’s assuming she (1) shows up at court and (2) doesn’t action her threat to move a few hours away between now and then.

—-

So you have no access to your son?

At running the risk of S_S getting shirty again …… no I don’t. My ex won’t let me see him because she said she doesn’t like me.

—-

Ah well, it is your live to live.

stumpy_seahorse said:

I’m not getting shitty, it’s your loss, no skin off my nose.
But I do know what it takes to get an intervention order (RO) without attending court and I do have a fair idea on the legalities of your situation. So far you’ve come on asking for advice and dismissed the lot of it, good luck with it

Dismissed the lot of it?

You didn’t see I posted here only about half an hour ago that I was in contact with legal aid both yesterday and today, and both times more useless than balls on the pope?