Glass Half Full ... of Air!: Science Experiment

This experiment really challenges kids to think about things they can't see - namely air. Both my boys were impressed. 

Even I was impressed.

What You Need
A drinking glass
Paper or paper towel
Tub or bowl of water

What to Do
Crumple the paper and push it tightly into the glass. Turn the glass upside down and plunge the glass into the tub of water. Keep it there for a little while. 

Pull it out.

Inspect the paper. Why isn't it wet?

Water couldn't get into the glass because it was already full ... with the paper and air. Because the air is lighter than water, it can't escape.

This experiment comes from the book Science Play! by Jill Frankel Hauser.

Hungry Caterpillar Art Project

My youngest son's literacy skills are growing leaps and bounds. When I was volunteering in his kindergarten class last week, I noticed one of his classmate's reading Eric Carle's The Very Hungry Caterpillar. 

We have the board book at home, but I'd foolishly thought of it as a baby book. Not so! Most of the words are ones my son could read on his own.

To go with the book, we got out our art supplies.

Watercolor paper
Watercolor paints and brushes
scissors
paper punch
permanent black markers
pom-poms
googly eyes
pencil
low-temp glue gun (school glue could also be used)

First we drew a big leaf on a large piece of art paper and used green watercolor paints to fill it in. When dried, we traced our lines and added veins to the leaf with a black permanent marker.

Once we cut the leaf out, we were able to use the paper punch to add the caterpillar's nibbles from the leaf.

I put a thick line of glue on the leaves with the low-temp glue gun and we added the pom-poms in a row to make a hungry caterpillar.

A dab of glue on the googly eyes made it possible to give our caterpillar sight.

This was a simple project that only took a few supplies and the results are positively charming. 

If you have never read the book to (or with) your child, do it!

Can't get to the library, watch this video of Eric Carle reading his book.

This great project was inspired by the Hudsonville Art Program.

After School Linky (4-11)

Welcome to the party!

I can't believe how fast this school year is going. It seems like I just blinked and already we're nearly to the last day of school. Are you gearing up for summer fun?

This linky always provides loads of great ideas. Here are just a few of my favorites from last week's party.

Best Apps for Kids to Build Literacy Skills at Growing Book by Book

 Erosion Experiment from Inspiration Laboratories

 Motorized Coloring Machine Kids Can Make from Crystal & Co.

 Sight Word Game from Dabbling Momma

 Skip Counting Hopscotch at Math Geek Mama

Grow a Taco or Pizza Garden with Kids at Share It! Science News

The After School Linky is cohosted by

Creative Family Fun

Planet Smarty Pants

Relentlessly Fun, Deceptively Educational

The Educators' Spin on It

This Reading Mama

We would love to have you link up your School-Age Post (Ages 5 and up) about your learning week after school including Crafts, Activities, Playtime and Adventures that you are doing to enrich your children's lives after their day at school, home school, or on the weekend!

When linking up, please take a moment to comment on at least one post linked up before yours and grab our after school button to include a link on your post or site! By linking up, you're giving permission for us to share on our After School Pinterest Board and feature an image on our After School Party in the upcoming weeks.

Pick the Punctuation (Period, Exclamation Point, & Question Mark)

The kids in my youngest son's kindergarten class are working hard on their writing skills. The teacher has been talking a lot about end punctuation and reading with fluency (i.e. NOT like a robot). 

I thought it would be fun to test my son with a quick game to see if he could pick the right punctuation for sentences I read to him.

I made some fun cards with visual cues for him to use.

Want to play this? Here's what you need:
the 4-page PDF (download it free from Google Drive here)
heavyweight card stock to print the PDF on
scissors/paper cutter
time

To play, simply put the three punctuation cards in front of the child. Now mix the assorted sentence cards. Read them to your child with inflection and intonation. When the statement should have an exclamation, proclaim it excitedly. When your asking something, make sure the pitch of your voice goes up at the end. Sentences ending in a period should be read with a flat tone.

If the child holds up the correct punctuation card for the sentence you read, they get to keep the sentence card. They can add up their score at the end and play with different sentences the next day to try and beat their personal best.

The sentence cards are just to get you started. Make up your own. Change them to reflect your child's interests and family. Get creative! Get silly! Make it personal.

For as simple as this was, my son really enjoyed it. I hope your kiddos will too!

Gravity-Defying Coin Trick

Okay, maybe that title is a little misleading. It SEEMS like a gravity-defying, but it isn't. That's the awesome part of this science experiment.

What you need are two quarters and a nickel.

1. Make a nickel sandwich. 

2. Hold the nickel sandwich with the fingertips of one hand.

3. Place the other hand 10 inches below.

4. Now let go of the lower quarter, still holding onto the top one.

What happened? Which coin ended up on top in your other hand? It wasn't the nickel, was it? Do it again. Same result, huh? 

Why is that? The quarter is bigger. It's heavier. Shouldn't it just drop straight down, gravity pulling the heaviest object faster?

The reason the coins flip positions has more to do with your fingers dexterity, than gravity. Unbeknownst to you, when you release the bottom quarter, your fingers release one side before the other, causing the quarter to tip and the two coins to rotate.

This amazingly simply and truly astonishing trick comes from Vicki Cobb and Kathy Darling's book You Gotta Try This!