There are no flowers blooming here in the Midwest in January, unless you're at the florist. A thick blanket of crusty snow covers everything and temperatures are so frigid, only the very brave can be outside for more than 10 minutes.
To bring a little spring into our winter, I thought we'd try this fun experiment. It combines art and science in a truly awe-inspiring experiment.
Prep
I created a template of paper flowers for us to use. (Download it free from Google Drive here.)
Create
Once printed on heavyweight card stock and cut out, we used permanent markers to decorate our flowers.
When our buds were beautiful and bright, we put down the markers and folded each of the petals in to the center of the flower, making a nice neat little square.
Experiment
With a shallow bowl of water nearby, we carefully dropped our squares into the water (folded petals face up). Now, behold!
Within about 30 seconds, each of the paper flowers will open to display the beautiful colors added inside!
How Does It Work
As the paper begins to absorb the water, its fibers expand, forcing the paper petals to unfold.
This great activity came from 175 Science Experiments to Amuse and Amaze Your Friends by Brenda Walpole. It's loaded with fun and fascinating hands-on learning ideas!
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