Easter Science Fun

So, we had oozing pumpkins in October, a floating feast for Thanksgiving, windy blizzards in December, "Luva-Lava Lamps" on Valentine's Day, and a magic rainbow ring for St. Patrick's Day... so much holiday science fun!  

And now it's time for Easter.  (Which means Spring Break is close, my friends, and that is definitely worth celebrating!!)

This Easter Science set includes 6 investigations covering primary concepts like:

• our fives senses

• physical properties

• states of matter

• forces and motion

• sinking and floating

• mixing colors

• and scientific inquiry

You don't need very many supplies to pull off a whole week's worth of Easter science fun.  Remember, many parents LOVE to donate items to their child's classroom as a way of contributing, so don't hesitate to send home a wish list for things like Peeps™, chocolate bunnies, jellybeans, and straws.  You may have many of the other items at home... plastic Easter eggs (Does anyone else have 500, like me?), shredded grass, socks, and a slow-cooker.  And some things will even come from your own classroom (or a friend's classroom), like magnifying glasses.

Sneak peek?

Set the stage to observe and record what happens to a solid piece of chocolate when heated.  Some children may already know (or think they know), but because I want them to consider several possibilities, we talk about how heat can make some things harder, like when a raw egg becomes a hard boiled egg.  Heat can make some things larger, like when a marshmallow or piece of bar soap is heated in the microwave.  And heat can make some things disappear, such as water.  So what will happen to the bunny over time?    

The kids can also learn about wind energy as a force that sets objects in motion. Challenge the children to brainstorm ways they can move plastic eggs without touching them with anything.  Children will be given several objects to consider, such as a sock, a magnifying glass, a straw, and a shovel.  Through discussion and exploration, they'll discover that blowing air through the straw will move the plastic egg without any object actually touching the egg.

Other investigations in this set?

• Explore Peeps™ with all five senses, inside and out... yummy and sticky.  

• Observe what happens to Peeps™ when they are placed in various liquids.  

• Discover what it will take to make a plastic egg sink in water.  

• And mix colors to find out how the bright colors of a rainbow are made.

The investigations encourage collaborative discussion, inferential thinking, and writing to share and explain.  Recording sheets are included for each activity as well as a "Notebook Cover" to staple over the students' completed sheets.  If you'd like, you can see more here:

Happy Easter!  (And have a great Spring Break!)