More Science Fun!

Books

Kitchen science experiments : how does your mold garden grow? by Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen

Kitchen science / Shar Levine & Leslie Johnstone

Chemistry science fair projects : using french fries, gumdrops, soap, and other organic stuff /

Caves : mysteries beneath our feet / by David L. Harrison

The creation of caves / J. Elizabeth Mills.

Websites

PBS Zoom webs http://pbskids.org/zoom/activities/sci/electricgelatin.html

Gelatin Volcano http://www.spacegrant.hawaii.edu/class_acts/GelVolTe.html

Carnagie Mellon Gelatin Gumdrops http://gelfand.web.cmu.edu/scimodules/2._Gelatin_gum_drops.html

Make your own stalactite from Science Kids http://www.sciencekids.co.nz/projects/stalactite.html

http://www.sciencekidsathome.com/science_experiments/growing_stalactites.html#more

More fun with gumdrops http://www.exploratorium.edu/science_explorer/geo_gumdrops.html

Kitchen Experiments http://www.accreditedonlinecolleges.com/blog/2010/kitchen-chemistry-100-cool-food-science-experiments-for-kids-and-cooks/

Videos

Mr. Wizard's World Volume 6 J DVD-ED 507.8 MRW

Caves of the national parks [videorecording] : the wonder beneath / Discovery Channel J DVD-ED 551.447 CAV66

Our Science Fair is coming up in April. Seattle will have its first Science Festival this summer. Check out their website to see what's coming up: http://seattlesciencefestival.org/2012-festival-highlights

Your Nose Knows!

Can YOUR nose help YOU survive?

Materials: 4 clean jars
Milk

Method: Pour a quarter cup of milk in the first jar and date it. The next day do the same thing in the second jar. Date that one too. Do this the next day and the next. Leave the jars covered, at room temperature and exposed to some light.

Using your nose: On the fourth day get a willing friend to help you. Have your friend close her eyes and give her each of the jars to smell. Have him/ her rank the jars in order of how badly they smell. The old milk will smell bad and he/she will be repelled by it. The older it is the worse it will smell

Conclusion: This experiment helps you see why smell is important for human survival. Smells help us determine if food is safe to eat so before you take a bite out of your next meal let you nose test it first!
Source: http://www.essortment.com/science-experiments-kids-57143.html

Making Sense of Scents......

Websites:

How Stuff Works: http://express.howstuffworks.com/smell-this.htm
NASA Space Place: http://spaceplace.nasa.gov/e-nose/redirected/

Neuroscience for Kids: http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/nosek.html

Discovery Kids: http://yucky.discovery.com/noflash/body/pg000150.html

Kids Health: http://kidshealth.org/kid/htbw/nose.html

Zoom: http://pbskids.org/zoom/activities/sci/tastevsmell.html

Science News for Kids: http://www.sciencenewsforkids.org/2010/12/making-snotty-scents/

Science Buddies: http://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project_ideas/HumBio_p010.shtml

Books:

Smelling by Rebecca Rissman

Smelling and tasting by Alvin Silverstein J 612.86 SILVERS

The sense of smell by Mari Schuh J 612.86 SCHUH

What the nose knows : the science of scent in everyday life by Avery Gilbert 612.86 GILBERT

What is smell? by Jennifer Boothroyd E 612.86 BOOTHRO

A qué huele? : un libro sobre el olfato por Dana Meachen Rau INTL-SPA E 612.86 RAU

Science fair success with scents, aromas, and smells by Thomas R. Rybolt TEEN 612.8607 RYBOLT

How to make a mystery smell balloon by Lori Shores E 507.8 SHORES

Shocking, slimy, stinky, shiny science experiments by Steve Parker J 507.8 PARKER

Media:

All about the senses DVD J DVD-ED 612.8 ALL189

Smell my world J DVD-ED 612.86 SME884

Green Science

Local:
See how we can impact our environment by going to Salmon Days in Issaquah this weekend, Oct. 1st and 2nd to visit the hatchery.

http://www.salmondays.org/

If you can't go yourself, check out the Salmon Cam! http://wdfw.wa.gov/wildwatch/salmoncam/video.html

Department of Fish and Wildlife site for kids on conservation: http://www.fws.gov/educators/students.html

City of Vancouver Salmon Page: http://www.cityofvancouver.us/watercenter.asp?waterid=24980&watersubid=27445

Best local places to watch salmon run: http://www.waterhavens.com/blog/attachments/king-county-salmon-runs-viewing-locations-seattle-area.pdf

Seattle Aquarium's Conservation page: http://www.seattleaquarium.org/page.aspx?pid=216

Global:

Audubon Society's Kids Web Page: http://web4.audubon.org/educate/kids/

Children of the Earth United: http://www.childrenoftheearth.org/

Energy Star Kids: http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=kids.kids_index

http://www.conservationfund.org/children_nature

http://www.kidsplanet.org/

http://www.smokeybear.com/kids/default.asp?js=1

http://www.worldwildlife.org/home-full.html

http://thinkgreen.com/classroom

Evironmental Science Page from How Stuff Works: http://science.howstuffworks.com/environmental/green-science

http://www.epa.gov/students/index.html

Books about being green:

My First Green book by Angela Wilkes

Team Green Science Series by Robert Gardner

Environmental science & protection : keeping our planet green / by Cordelia Strange

Save the Earth science experiments : science fair projects for eco-kids / Elizabeth Snoke Harris
Hoot / Carl Hiaasen - Teen Fiction

Last child in the woods : saving our children from nature-deficit disorder / Richard Louv

Reducing your carbon footprint in the kitchen / Linley Erin Hall

Not your typical book about the environment / Elin Kelsey ; illustrated by Clayton Hanmer.

Making good choices about renewable resources / Jeanne Nagle.

Natural resources : using and protecting earth's supplies / by Darlene R. Stille.

Websites for Green Science Fair ideas:

http://ezinearticles.com/?Green-Science-Fair-Projects---Creative-Ideas-For-Environmentally-Oriented-Projects&id=1755148

http://chemistry.about.com/od/sciencefairprojectideas/a/pollution-green-chemistry-projects.htm

http://www.discoversolarenergy.com/DIY/sci-fair-proj.htm

http://discovermagazine.com/2008/may/a-science-fair-for-a-better-planet

What can I do?

Trick or Treat for Unicef : http://youth.unicefusa.org/trickortreat/

Tips for a green home: http://www.squidoo.com/go-green-in-your-home-today

PBS list of things kids can do to help the environment: http://pbskids.org/zoom/activities/action/way04.html

10 more things to do: http://www.seql.org/kids.cfm

Check out kidServe Seattle to see if there is a volunteer opportunity that's right for you: http://www.kidserveseattle.org/volunteer-kids.aspx

Help clean a trail or join a preservation society:

Washington Trails Association work party schedule (kids are welcome!) :

http://www.wta.org/kids/volunteer/trail-work-parties

http://www.trailvolunteers.org/

http://www.cedarriver.org/

Visit a Seattle Environmental Learning Center to see what else you can do: http://www.seattle.gov/parks/environment/elc.htm

Detergents: Science Brings Good and Bad

We use detergents to clean many things, clothes, dishes, even cars. Dishwashing liquid is the most common detergent in the home. You might be surprised to learn that in the wrong places this great cleaner has a downside.

Materials:
Water
Large bowl
Waxed paper
Self-sealing plastic sandwich bag
Dishwashing liquid

What to Do:
Fill the bowl with water.
Crumple a large piece of waxed paper and stuff it into the sandwich bag. Seal the bag.
Float the bag on top of the water. Add several big squirts of dishwashing liquid to the water and observe. Does the bag begin to sink?

Action, Reaction, Results:
One reason that the bag floats on the surface of the water is that it has an oily coating that makes it water repellent. Detergent in the dishwashing liquid breaks up the oily coating and the bag begins to sink. Do all detergents work the same? Does it take the same amount of time for the bag to sink with different detergents?

From our experiment we can see that detergents can cause problems. Detergents in a natural water supply can cause harm to wildlife, too. For example, detergents can make water birds’ feathers less repellent to water. When hiking or camping it is important not to use detergents in or near lakes, rivers, ponds or streams.

Have a love for exploring the world around you? Sign up to help with the science fair. Contact Amy Oliver (amyroliver@gmail.com) or Anca Stepan ( ) to join the fun.

Spinning Fountain

So the sun finally came out, but the sprinkler has lost its luster and you still want water fun. What’s a kid to do? Try this on for size and see what you think.

Materials:

Empty half-gallon paper milk carton

Nail

2-foot long string

Tree branch

Directions:

1. Get an empty half-gallon paper milk carton. Use a nail to punch a hole in each left-hand corner of the carton, close to the bottom. Punch another hole in the top flap of the carton. An adult may have to help you punch the holes.



2. Tie one end of a 2-foot-long string through the hole in the top of the carton.



3. Tie the free end of the string around a tree branch so that the carton is dangling in the air.



4. Ask two friends to cover the holes in the bottom of the carton with their fingers. Use a hose or pitcher to fill the carton with water.



5. Ask your friends to remove their fingers from the carton. What happens when water squirts out of the holes?

Action, Reaction, Results:

When water squirted out the carton spun around. This happened because of Newton’s third law of motion (every action has an equal and opposite reaction). As water spurted out of the holes, it pushed back on the carton. This made the carton twirl in the opposite direction. What happens if you change the placement of the holes? Does the size of the hole matter?

More Science Fun

Looking for more fun ways to learn and do science? Check these out!

Mama Joules Science Blog http://www.mamajoules.blogspot.com/

Any of the books by Dan Green and Simon Basher:

Astronomy: Out of this World

Biology: Life as We Know It

Chemistry: Getting a Big Reaction

Periodic Table: Elements with Style

Physics: Why Matter Matters

Rocks and Minerals: A Gem of a Read

Science News for Kids Website http://www.sciencenewsforkids.org/

Facts on File Science Website http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE40

Science Monster Website http://www.sciencemonster.com/

Sci Channels games website http://science.discovery.com/games/games.html or watch one of their many shows like "How It's Made" or "Morgan Freeman's Through the Wormhole".