Homeschooling Science Part Two

Last week I talked about some of the resources that I will be
using this year for homeschooling science.
I mentioned my trepidation about experiments, and that is what I will be
focusing on today.

Obviously, science experiments are a big part of science
curriculum. You need to be able to show
your kids what happens after you make a hypothesis. I think the main issue I have is the mess
that inevitably happens when you are working with science experiments. Which is a little entertaining considering my
stance on letting the kids have free reign with the art…Perhaps it is more that
I have to be fully integrated and put the experiments together in order for
them to do the experiment.

face paint not required

However, I do not think this is how science should be
taught. It doesn’t make a lot of sense
if I am taking a science experiment and executing it “correctly” so that my
kids can observe it.

They are still little, so there has to be some parental
involvement, but I am leaning more towards giving the kids a situation and
letting them set up a hypothesis of what they think will happen. Then letting them construct the experiment
the way they think they should.

Recently we have tried a couple of fun experiments; the
bigger the mess, the more fun for my kids.
We talk about what they think will happen, then we perform the
experiment, and finally they will draw what they have observed in their science
notebooks.

This is one of their favorites so far:

Mix 1 tsp active dry
yeast with 2 Tablespoons warm water

In a jar, or glass mug, put ½ cup peroxide, several drops of food coloring and a few squirts of
Dawn dish soap. Swirl carefully (parent
should do this part).

Pour yeast mixture
into jar and watch it grow!

The kids compared the above experiment with the always fun
baking soda and vinegar reaction. We put
some food coloring in some white vinegar and poured it in a jar with baking
soda in it.

Both of these experiments were fun and showed the different
reactions between ingredients. The kids
especially enjoyed all the foam from the first one. It continued to grow for quite some time!