When I was younger, science wasn't something I was really interested in. I mean there were areas of science that I found interesting, but other than what I learned in school, it didn't go much further than that. These days, being a teacher now, I absolutely love the way Science is being incorporated into all subject areas. Reading about Science, writing about Science, doing hands on science learning experiments, STEM and STEAM are all ways to not only enhance the learning experience but to generate an actual interest in science that can go well beyond a classroom. We will always have a need for scientists in this world.......
Having Science Week was something I knew that I was going to include in our at home camp and I'm so glad I did because we had TONS of fun. Matthew has always had a love for science and I want to keep encouraging him to be interested in it because science can be so fun! So this week was all about volcanoes, nature, animals, rocks, weather, and experiments. Below I'll list the activities we did and some fun pictures for you to see. As always, if you'd like to try anything I've listed and have questions or you've tried something and want to share about your experiences, I'd love to hear from you!
Monday was our extremely anticipated Volcano Day and boy, did that day live up to every expectation. We kicked off our day with a book all about Volcanoes. Matthew took an interest more than Ryan, but I found a few cute videos on YouTube that Ryan sat with for longer than I thought he would. We then went onto making our own Volcanoes out of my favorite Model Magic. We played with the Model Magic first and eventually got to making the volcano, but Ryan kind of missed the memo and wanted to do some Do-A-Dot art instead. Hey, as long as he was sitting and doing something, it was a-ok in my book lol. So after we finished forming the volcano, it was time to let it harden. Once it was hardened, that's when the REAL fun would begin. Throughout the day we played fun games like The Floor Is Lava and Escape the Volcano. It took longer than we thought for the Model Magic volcano to harden, but once it did, we got to make it erupt! We mixed Baking Soda and Vinegar together, and of course we had to add red food coloring to the vinegar to make it look like real lava, and BOOM it worked!! Matthew was sooo excited.
Tuesday: Rock Day - Rock Tic Tac Toe, Painting Rocks, Hot and Cold with Rocks, and videos about how rocks are formed. Thanks to a kit that was gifted to Matthew, we even got to create our own stepping stone. We mixed plaster and let it harden, and then Matthew got to paint it. A little Science mixed with Art....we love it! Then at some point we transitioned to Sink or Float because we were in the pool and it was fun!
Wednesday: Animal Day - we built our own Zoo using blocks and toy animals, played Animal Track Jump, and pretended to be different animals during races. Ryan loved hopping like a froggy!
Thursday: Plants and Nature Day - complete with a Nature Scavenger Hunt, Leaf Rainbow Coloring, and a Nature Walk. We also read books about plants.
Friday was EXPERIMENT DAY.. another highly anticipated day in our house. We had a few kits that were gifted to Matthew and there was no better time to use them! We safely followed the directions and got to mix different chemicals together. Seeing Matthew's face while watching the reactions of the chemicals, priceless as always.
Keep scrolling for more fun pics!!
Science Week was amazing and my kids and I got so much out of it. Times have been so crazy and these activities only make us have more fun together. I know its hard for parents who are working, but if the materials are out and accessible, a lot of the activities we did together this week can be done very easily. If a parent is still working from home and can be in the next room or even at the same table, these hands on activities will take your kids away from the screens and the "Mommy, I'm bored" line that was on repeat at our house.
I plan each week ahead of time and I have all the materials all set and ready to go. It's always great too, when a book or online resource can be incorporated into the day to enhance the activities or the theme of the day. So that's it for Science Week. Next week is all about art projects and I know we are going to have more fun in store....stay tuned!! Don't forget to subscribe for updates on new blog posts and if you like what you are reading, leave me some love in a comment below!! Stay safe everyone!
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