It is no secret that Science is one of our favorite subjects around here. As a kid myself, I was always interested in science and discovery. As a teacher, it was one of my favorite subjects, and well… now that I have kids, it is one of their favorite subjects as well. The thing about science, is that it can be intimidating, seem overwhelming with terms, and sometimes downright messy. But want to know the secret? Science is everywhere and science can be and is extremely fun! Once you get the basics down, you will start seeing science experiments for kids in your sleep!
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I’ve gathered together all of our science adventures from the last year to bring you a month to month guide to planning science experiments with your kids. Ready to get started?
Science is Everywhere
To get started, it is important to understand the basics of what science is, and how you can find science anywhere.
Once you realize that science and discovery can happen at any age, it can be helpful to have a knowledge of the foundations of science and engineering practices that all children should start with. These 8 practices will shape the way you see the world around you and how you find science experiences around every turn.
Setting up your space for discovery and investigation is the next step in growing scientific thinkers and encouraging science experiments to happen naturally and frequently.
Finally, being set with the right planning tools will give you the confidence to try new experiments. Start by following a few science boards on Pinterest and reading a few books on inquiry based science. You will be surprised how quickly you begin to think like a scientist and see opportunities for discovery everywhere.
A Year of Science Experiments for Kids
Whether you have a Science background or not, science experiments can be really fun to explore with your children. They can fill a boring Saturday, entertain a crowd for a playdate, or be the basis of any curriculum choices. In our home, we only do science that the directly correlates with what they are interested in at the moment. This can be hard to plan for future months, since I can’t always predict what they will be interested in. That is why I pin and collect as many ideas as I can find when I have time.
Below you will find every experiment we did (well, wrote about) over the last year. I have separated them by month to make it easier for you to plan, but honestly, any of these could be done whenever your heart desires or your children are interested!
Also, here’s a tiny secret. Because I am part of STEM Saturday, every science post linked in this post has at least 10 more ideas attached to them. The collection is a fun rabbit hole of ideas. Have fun with all of these experiments!
January
Lego Science: An Ice Excavation Experiment
February
Sensory Bottles | Experimenting with Viscosity
Sensory Bottles | Experimenting with Absorption
March
Experiments for Kids | Effecting Plant Growth
Scented Science Experiment for Kids
Click here for even more Winter Science Experiments for Kids
April
Peep Science Experiments for Kids
Engineering the Perfect Egg Drop Project
May
Simple Science Experiments That Fizz
Inspire Little Inventors | Upcycled Tinker Box
June
Rocks and Minerals: Scratch Test
July
Wiggly Worms: A Garden Science Activity Guide
15 Science Experiments that POP, FIZZ and CRACKLE
August
Magic Milk for Toddlers and Preschoolers
September
Simple Science Experiments That Fizz
Sensory Dough Science Experiments
Click here for more Summer Science Experiments for Kids
October
Building Structures with Candy Pumpkins
November
Pine Cone Science Experiment for Kids | Why Do Pinecones Open?
10 Awesome Candy Experiments for Kids
December
Building Structures with Candy Gumdrops
Click here for more Fall Science Experiments for Kids
Wow! Writing all those out, sure was fun to see. I had no clue we did so many fun science experiments this year. Looking at this for the first time could be overwhelming and might seem like you could never get to all these. It overwhelms me and we did them :). Here’s a tip… start with just one activity. That’s all it takes. Take a picture on your phone, write it down somewhere. You will be surprised how quickly they add up.
Do you have a favorite Science Experiment? I would love to know! Connect with me on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Pinterest, Instagram or subscribe by email. I can’t wait to hear your ideas.
TIME FOR STEM SCIENCE BLOG HOP!
Every Saturday we will get so many wonderful ideas linked up from around the web that we have decided we want to feature some of these great ideas. That’s why every Saturday, I will pick from the posts linked up and feature my absolute favorites. This might be a hard choice to make, luckily you can always head over to last week’s post and check out more great science resources!
VISIT THESE GREAT BLOGGERS FOR MORE OF THE BEST SCIENCE EXPERIMENTS TOO!
The Best of Saturday Science 2014 from The Science Kiddo
Best Kids Science Activities and Sensory Play from Little Bins for Little Hands
Top 10 Science Activities of 2014 from Stir the Wonder
Building Bridges from Suzy Homeschooler
Thank you for this, my son is in scientist phase and I cant keep up with him. This should keep him busy for a while