Spring Science

As we get closer and closer to summer break (and camps!), enjoy this fun spring themed science projects you can do from home with materials you likely already have on hand!

Make a Miniature Water Cycle Model
Materials:
Re-sealable snack-size plastic bags (2)
Permanent marker
Water
Liquid measuring cup
Tablespoon
Strong tape, like duct tape
Blue food coloring
Area that gets lots of sun and another that gets very little sun during the day
Optional: Sand or dirt
Optional: Larger pieces of rock that will fit in the bag, at least 2

Process:
1. If you begin this activity in the morning,  you can observe the experiment over the course of the day.  (This activity works best on a sunny day.)
2. Flatten both plastic bags and decorate them with some elements of the water cycle (clouds, sun, etc.) with a permanent marker.
3. Add one drop of food coloring to about 1/3 cup of water.
4. Keeping the bags upright, add 2 Tbsp. of the colored water to each plastic bag.
**Optional: Add 2-3 Tbsp. of sand to one side of each of the plastic bags.  Part of the sand should be submerged, and part should be above the water level.  If you have a larger pieces of rock, add one each to the other side of the plastic bags, with part of the rock above the water level.
5. Still keeping the bags upright, carefully close both plastic bags and make sure they are fully sealed.
6. Find a sunny place, like a window, that is in the sun for a large part of the day.  Tape one of the bags upright in the sunny spot.  Use enough tape to keep the bag in place for at least one day.
7. Tape the second bag upright in a place that gets very little sun.
8. Observe both bags over the course of the day.  Check them every 1-2 hours.

For this activity, you basically made a very miniature water cycle inside a bag.  As the water in the bag heated up, it turned into water vapor.  As it cooled down, it turned into condensation along the side of the bag.  Eventually, those water droplets became large enough that gravity pulled them down the side of the bag--like rain!

How Many Colors in a Rainbow
Materials:
A shallow glass baking pan
Water
A white piece of paper
A red piece of paper
A blue piece of paper
Sunlight
An outdoor table, chair, or helper to hold the pan for you

Process:
1. Fill your pan about halfway full with water.
2. Take your pan outside and place it on the table so that one end is sticking out over the edge.  Be careful not to let the pan tip over!
3. Place your white paper on the ground where the sun is shining through your pan.  What do you notice?  Do you see any colors?
4. Slowly angle the paper until a small rainbow forms.  Experiment with the angle of the paper until you get the largest rainbow possible.  Notice the order of the colors that appear on your paper.
5. While holding your white paper so that you can see the rainbow, place your blue paper gently on top of the white paper.  What do you notice about the rainbow on the blue paper?
6. Switch back and forth between the white and blue papers to see how the rainbow changes.
7. Remove the blue paper and repeat the process with the red paper.  What do you observe?

Measure Photosynthesis with Floating Leaves
Materials:
Transparent cups, 4 or more
Permanent marker
Baking soda
Measuring cup
Water
1/8 or 1/4 teaspoon
Dish soap
Light source (a bright light works best)
Single-hole puncher
Plant leaves (spinach or ivy leaves work best)
Plastic syringe, 10-mL or bigger (without the needle)
Aluminum foil
Paper towels
Timer
Lab notebook
Pencil or pen
Optional: Adult helper

Process:
1. Using a workspace that can get a little wet, label two cups with "+ baking soda" and two cups with "- baking soda."
2. Prepare the baking soda solution by filling one of the "+ baking soda" cups with 300 mL room-temperature water.  Then add about 1/8 tsp. of baking soda to the water and mix until the baking soda has dissolved.
3. Add one drop of dish soap to the baking soda solution and stir until it has dissolved.  Stir gently to avoid creating foam.
4. To one of the "- baking soda" cups, add 300 mL water and one drop of dish soap.
5. Set up your light source so it shines straight down onto your workspace.
6. With the hole puncher, cut 20 leaf disks from the plant leaves.  Avoid punching through major leaf veins.
7. In your lab notebook, prepare a data table with three columns. Column 1 is the time in minutes. In columns 2 and 3 you will record the results of your leaf disk assay—the laboratory procedure you are using to investigate photosynthesis—both with baking soda and without baking soda.
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