When I taught preschool and elementary grades, the light table and overhead center were the two most popular places in the room. Children are naturally drawn to the light table and all that it has to offer. The story has been no different in our home since we got a new light table. We have been doing a lot of light table explorations, but one of our favorite activities happened after the first snow the other day.
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Light tables can be used for literacy, math, music, writing, and science. By creating an inviting learning space, children are encouraged to engage in learning activities through play without even realizing it. The light from the table is excellent for enhancing the features and properties of an object, allowing children to see what they are exploring in a whole new way!
Just the other day, it was -15 degrees outside and snow was everywhere. It was too cold to go outside, so we brought the snow in and made snowy sensory bags. Little did I know, these would be the perfect tool for exploring scientifically on the light table. (We may or may not have made 4 batches).
Exploring Snow on the Light Table
Materials:
3 Snow Sensory Bags (each a different color)
{instructions coming soon… but I bet you can figure out how to make the bags of snow)
Optional:
Timer (to time the melting)
Tip: While we used snow in our sensory bags, you could use oil, water or any other liquid (you could even mix them).
Ideas for Exploring Snow on the Light Table
After we made our bags of snow, we placed them each on the table and let Super B (20 months) explore the bags. She touched them, she shook them, and she squeezed them. Finally, she pulled up a chair and sat for over 20 minutes exploring the bags and observing the changes that were happening.
We talked about the colors. We matched the colors between the melted bags and the fresh bags. We asked questions and made predictions. We even made our own colors.
The longer the bags were one the table, the cooler the explorations got. The older children were able to predict and describe the changes that were occurring while the toddler was fascinated by the changing snow. As we explored, we thought of several extensions, such as painting recreations of the color mixing, writing letters and numbers on the sensory bags, and testing different variable to see if we could effect the rate of change in the snow.
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