F U N W I T H P H Y S I C S

S NACKHomemade Gummy Bears

Is It A Liquid or A Solid? (Video)

Salad Spinner Art (Video)

Forces arefun!

THURSDAY

GAME

E X P E R IM EN T S

S T EM

TOY

AR T

Physics Finds (Word Search)

Balloon Rocket * Buoyancy

Balancing Act

DIY Air Ball Blaster

Catapults

THURSDAY

SUPPLIES

STRING

BALLOON

TAPE

STRAW

SCISSORS

CLOTHESPIN

LARGE BOWL OF WATER

GREEN FOOD COLORING (OPTIONAL)

30 PLUS PENNIES PER BOAT

ALUMINUM FOIL

10 JUMBO POPSICLE STICKS

RUBBER BANDS

FIRING POWER

(MARSHMALLOWS, POMPOMS,

PENCIL TOP ERASERS)

PLASTIC SPOON

BOTTLE CAP

STICKY DOTS

SALAD SPINNER

PAINT

PAPER PLATES

PLASTIC BOTTLE

BALLOON

PAINT OR STICKERS

PRINTABLE

2 CLOTHESPINS

PLAIN FLOUR

GRANULATED SUGAR

PACKET RAPID RISE YEAST

SALT

OLIVE OIL

ZIP LOCK BAG

PARCHMENT PAPER

BOWL

GLASSWARE WITH LID {MASON JAR}

HEAVY WHIPPING CREAM

Homemade Gummy Bears

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GROWING GUMMY BEARS

Using different liquids (water, salt water, juice, soda, etc.) observe how

gummy bears expand, or don’t, in a variety of solutions, and determine

why that is. Don't forget to measure and record the size of your

gummy bears before and after! Measure after 12 hours, 24 hours, and

even 48 hours!

WHAT'S HAPPENING?

Osmosis! Gummy bears will expand in size due to osmosis. Osmosis is

the ability of water (or another liquid) to be absorbed through a

semi-permeable substance which in this case is the gelatin. The gelatin

in the gummy bears also keeps them from dissolving except for when

they are placed in an acidic liquid such as vinegar.

STEP 1: First mix together ½ cup fruit

juice (couple colors), 1 tbs honey, 2

tbs gelatin on low heat until all the

gelatin is dissolved.

STEP 2: Then use a dropper (or whatever works

best for you) to add gelatin mixture to silicone

gummy bear molds.

YOU WILL NEED:

Fruit juiceHoneyGelatin

Silicone gummybear molds

Set up a science experiment with the gummy bears. You can compare

homemade gummy bears and store-bought gummy bears too!

Gummy bears are a fan favorite for most kids. Chewy and

colorful, and they are easier to make than you might think.

growing gummy bears lab

Will a gummy bear grow? Using different liquids (distilled water, tap water, salt water, juice, vinegar soda, cooking oil etc.) observe how gummy bears expand, or don’t, in a variety of solutions, and determine why that is. Don’t forget to measure and record the size of your gummy bears before and after!

Measure after 6 hours, 12 hours, 24 hours, and even 48 hours!

What’s Happening?

Osmosis! Gummy bears will expand in size due to osmosis. Osmosis is the ability of water (or another liquid) to be absorbed through a semi-permeable substance which in this case is the gelatin. The gelatin in the gummy bears also keeps them from dissolving except for when they are placed in an acidic liquid such as vinegar.

1 minute 6 hours 12 hours 24 hours 48 hours

salt

water

tap

water

distilled

water

at home

science science at home

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The kids are going to love this super easy to set upSTEM balloon rocket physics activity that is not only awesomely fun but also explores physics and the Laws of Motion!

Oh, the fun you can have with Sir Isaac Newton, a balloon, a straw, and some string. Explore Newton’s Third Law of Motion when you design a balloon rocket. Have races, conduct experiments, and explore physics while you play.

Balloon Rocket

STEP 1: Cut a length of straw and feed the string through the straw.

STEP 2: Then you will want to tape or tie either end of the string to go across

a room. You can set up two chairs and tie the string to the chairs. Use

a door knob or whatever works in your area.

STEP 3: Next you want to blow up the balloon and fill it with potential energy!

Use the clothespin to hold the balloon closed, so you have time to get

it set up perfectly.

STEP 4: Then you will want to tape the balloon below the straw. Make sure the

straw moves freely. This is a good opportunity for problem solving with

the kids.

STEP 5: Lastly, make sure the balloon is all the way on one side of the string.

Now for the big moment! It’s time to release the clothespin!

THE SCIENCE

So how exactly does the balloon get it’s go? Let’s start with thrust. You blow up the

balloon, so now it’s filled with gas. When you release the balloon the air/gas

escapes creating a forward pushing motion called thrust! Thrust is created by the

energy released from the balloon. Then, you can bring in Sir Isaac Newton. For

every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. This is the third law of motion.

When the gas is forced out of the balloon it pushed back against the air outside

the balloon which then pushes the balloon forward!

https://littlebinsforlittlehands.com/fizzy-lemonade-science-project/

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Design a simple tin foil boat, and see how many pennies it can hold before it sinks. How many pennies will it take to make your boat sink? Learn about simple physics while you test out your engineering skills.

PENNY FOIL BOATS

SUPPLIES:

Large bowl of waterGreen food coloring

(optional)30 plus pennies

per boatAluminum Foil

STEP 1: Add a drop of green or blue food coloring (optional)

to your bowl and fill 3/4 with water.

STEP 2: Cut two 8” squares of aluminum foil for each boat.

Then form a small boat from the aluminium foil.

Time for kids to use their engineering skills!

STEP 3: Place 15 pennies on the other square of tin foil (not

the boat) and have the kids ball it up and place it in the water.

What happens? It sinks!

STEP 4: Place your boat in the water and see if it floats. Reshape if it doesn’t!

Then slowly add the pennies one at a time. How many pennies can

you count before it sinks?

STEP 5: Extend the challenge by rebuilding your boat to see if it can hold even

more pennies.

THE SCIENCE Our penny boat STEM challenge is all about buoyancy, and buoyancy is how well some-

thing floats in water or another liquid. Have you seen our saltwater science experiment?

You may have noticed that you saw two different results when you used the same

amount of pennies and the same size piece of foil. Both items weighed the same. There’s

one big difference, size.

The ball of foil and pennies take up less room so there is not enough upward force

pushing up on the ball to keep it afloat. However, the tinfoil boat you made takes up a

greater surface area so it has more force pushing up on it!

science science

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Who knew STEM and physics could be so much fun? We

did! This Popsicle stick catapult design is an AWESOME

STEM activity for kids of all ages! Exploring physics has

never been so exciting for kids because everyone loves to

launch stuff into the air. A catapult made out of popsicle

sticks is the perfect kids’ activity for simple physics.

Catapult PhysicsSUPPLIES:

10 Jumbo Popsicle SticksRubber Bands Firing Power

(marshmallows, pompoms,

pencil top erasers)

Plastic Spoon Bottle CapSticky Dots

STEP 1: You will want to use a pair of scissors to make

two v notches on either side of two jumbo craft or Popsicle sticks and set them aside.

STEP 2: Take the remaining 8 craft sticks and stack them one on top of the other.

Wind a rubber band tightly around each end of the stack.

STEP 3: Go ahead and push on of the notched sticks through the stack under the

top stick of the stack. Make sure to watch the video again to see this done.

STEP 4: At this point flip your partially made popsicle stick catapult over so that the

stick you just pushed in is on the bottom of the stack.

STEP 5: Lay the second notched stick on top of the stack and secure the two popsi-

cle sticks together with a rubber band as shown below. The V notches that you cut

help to keep the rubber band in place.

THE SCIENCE This is a great simple physics activity for kids of multiple ages. What is there to explore

that has to do with physics? Let’s start with energy including elastic potential energy. You

can also learn about projectile motion.

Newton’s 3 Laws of Motion: An object at rest stays at rest until a force is applied, and an

object will stay in motion until something creates an imbalance in the motion. Every

action causes a reaction.

at homeat home

Try your experiment

multiple times Distance Accuracy

Trial #1

Trial #2

Trial #3

Trial #4

Trial #5

Graphics credit

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Are you ready to play with science and make a homemade

science toy that blasts balls of air? YES! Now, we have made

some cool things in the past such as balloon rockets,

catapults, and poppers but this physics activity takes the

cake! No running after far-flung marshmallows from the

catapult with this DIY air cannon.

AIR BALL BLASTER

SUPPLIES:

Plastic Bottle

Balloon

Paint or Stickers

STEP 1: First, you want to cut off the ends of the bottle and balloon as shown in the picture below.

STEP 2: Decorate the bottle if desired! (Optional) This step can be done before or after the next step depending on what you want to do to it.

STEP 3: Then you will want to stretch the balloon over the end of the bottle as shown below.

STEP 4: By using the end of the bottle with the balloon, to essentially suck air back, you can then aim and shoot that air out the front of the bottle. You can even knock over dominoes with that force of air! Amazing! Simply stretch out the end of the balloon and let it go.

THE SCIENCE

As mentioned earlier, we can’t see air but we can see the effects of air moving through

trees, the beach ball being blown across the lawn and even the empty trash can as it

blows out of the driveway and down the street. You can also feel air when it’s windy! Air

is made up of molecules (oxygen, nitrogen, and carbon dioxide) even if you can’t see

them though on a windy day, you can sure feel them!

Why does the air move? Generally, it’s because of air pressure caused by temperature

changes and moves from high pressure to low pressure. This is when we see storms pop

up, but we can also see it on an ordinary day too with a soft breeze.

Although the temperature is a big part of the pressure change, you can also make that

pressure change yourself with this cool air cannon project! The air blaster creates a burst

of air that shoots out of the hole. Although you can’t see it, the air actually forms a

donut shape. The difference in air pressure from the fast-moving air through the open-

ing creates the spinning vortex that is stable enough to travel through the air and knock

over a domino!

Kick off your summer play with awesome STEAM

Activities! This cool salad spinner art is very easy

to make with just a few simple materials.

Combine art with science, and learn about

forces. Gather a few simple items for your paint

spinner craft and let’s get started!

STEAM

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SALAD SPINNER ART

SUPPLIES

Salad SpinnerPaint

Paper Plates

STEP 1: Place the salad spinner on a flat surface and put a paper plate in the

bottom of it. Or, you can cut a piece of paper to fit in the bottom.

STEP 2: Time for the paint! Add drips and drops of paint all around the surface of

the paper plate.

STEP 3: When you are satisfied with the amount of paint, close up the salad

spinner tightly. Get spinning!

THE SCIENCELet’s apply Newton’s Laws of Motion to this summer STEAM project with salad spinner

art. An object in motion stays in motion unless a force is acted upon it. Our paint

spinner is a great example of inertia.

You might be tempted to think that this spinner art is also an art project in centrifugal

force, but it’s not quite! A salad spinner does use centrifugal force to separate water

from the leaves of lettuce. But this STEAM project doesn’t use wet lettuce!

Centrifugal force describes the tendency of an object following a curved path to fly

away from the center point. Here the colors on the paper plate are pushed outward

when the salad spinner turns, causing the colors to mix together.

graphics credit

GUMMY BEARS

BALLOON ROCKET

BALANCING ACT

PENNY BOATS

CATAPULTS

SALAD SPINNER ART

smiley face balancing STEM Challenge

Challenge:

Balance a paper smiley face on your finger.

Supplies:

• Cardstock or Paper Plates

• Colored Pencils or Crayons

• Clothespins

• Scissors

Instructions:

1. Print the smiley face templates on the following pages onto

cardstock paper. Choose a color or black and white version.

2. Using clothespins, see if you can evenly distribute the weight

so that the smiley face will remain upright while balanced on

your finger.

3. Use the chart below to share your hypothesis as to what will

happen and your conclusions following the challenge.

What I think will happen What did happen

Print on cardstock. Color and cut out.

Print on cardstock and cut out.