Most kids enjoy doing science experiments and it does not even feel like real school. Below are two fun experiments with explanations for each.
Balancing Potato
Materials Needed:
A Drinking Glass
Two matching forks
A Small Potato
Place the glass on a table or counter top.
Press the tines of one fork into the potato using an upward motion.
Press the other fork into the potato on the opposite side.
The forks should both be sticking out of the potato in the same downward angle.
Place the potato on the rim of the glass adjusting the position until the potato balances.
Why does it balance? All things will balance on their center of gravity. When the forks are placed in a downward angle the potatoes center of gravity is made lower. This makes balancing the potato easier.
Tight rope walkers use the same method to lower their center of gravity. They carry a large pole to help balance themselves. The long pole lowers their center of gravity.
Musical Bottles
Materials Needed:
Six empty 16 oz soda bottles
Water
A musical kid
Fill each bottle with a different amount of water. Begin with a bottle that has very little water in it and graduate to a bottle which is nearly full.
When the bottles are filled line them up in order from the least full to the most full.
Gently blow across each of the bottles, one by one. Notice the difference in each bottle's pitch.
Try blowing a simple tune like "Happy Birthday".
Why do the bottles play different notes?
Sound is actually just waves (vibrations) traveling through the air. The high pitched sounds are made by short fast waves. Low pitch sounds are made from slow, long waves. Sound waves will vibrate in the space that is available.
When you blow across the bottle, you are causing sound waves to vibrate inside the bottle. The bottles that are more full have less space to vibrate in so the waves are shorter and travel faster. Those waves cause a high pitched sound.
The bottles that are less full allow the sound waves to travel longer and slower (because there is more empty space inside the bottle) so the sound is a lower pitch.
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