Science 101

It was my granddaughter’s first birthday yesterday and she loved her birthday present — giving it lots of kisses. So cute.

And I also took a present for big brother. He loves “Mythbusters” and their experiments and he also enjoys a computer game that has the child remember which order you add colours to a container and then mix them up for rocket fuel. .. .so…

I decided to make a beaker and three test tubes (to start with) — red, green, and a “clear” one that can be any colour.
I don’t always explain the purpose of a toy, (instead, letting them find their own use), but this time I did, showing him how it was the same as that computer game.

Well, he added different colours to the beaker, stirred it up, and then fired the (beaker) rocket across the room!! The formula worked.
Later, I tried it and found out that my formula was a dud. He then spent most of the afternoon mixing rocket fuel and sending the rocket into space. When he wanted a dud he brought it to me to try. I never saw his formulas ever be a dud — only mine.

He loved it.
I talked to him about recording his data so he could determine which formulas worked. (3 drops green, 10 drops, red, 4 drops white.) I will work on this for him, to enhance the play/learning.

Learning Opportunities

• My grandson is way past learning his colours but this would be great for that purpose for wee ones.
• It is also good for counting, counting the number of drops going into the beaker.
• You can also do prediction: will it be a rocket or a dud?
• And writing skills: documenting the formula (with squiggles or words/numbers)

Overall: a success

For the beaker: make a circle, one or two rows of crocheting, (no increases) and then decreasing for the sides of beaker, and then decreasing to make the flared top.
Test tubes: a very small circle, straight up for the sides, changing to white for “clear glass”, and then a flare at the top.