Children have a natural curiosity and love of play. North Tampa encourages our preschoolers to stretch themselves as they make sense of the world around them through curiosity and play. We believe in continuing to learn, explore, and create outside of the classroom. Take a look at a few simple, hands-on science experiments you and your preschooler can enjoy together!
DIY Lava Lamp
Lava lamps are exciting, but they’re even more exciting to create yourself. Even without understanding the concepts of density and polarity, your preschooler will love watching their lamp “erupt” into activity! This experiment uses only a few household items:
A large, clear bottle, such as an empty two-liter bottle, a cleaned peanut butter jar, or a tall mason jar
Canola or other clear oil
Water
Food coloring
Alka-Seltzer® tablets
Fill the bottle with 2 parts canola oil to one part water, taking care to leave an inch of room at the top. Help your child add a few drops of food coloring and let her drop Alka-Seltzer® tablets into the mouth of the container. Start with half a tablet, and continually add more to get the oil circulating.
Baking Soda Fizz
Your preschooler will be fascinated by watching the chemical reaction of baking soda and white vinegar! For this experiment, you need:
Baking soda
Cake pan
White vinegar
Food coloring
Turkey baster or eyedropper
Spread a thick layer of baking soda in a lipped baking tray or cake pan. Then, pour a small amount of white vinegar and a few drops of food coloring into at least two containers. Then, let your child fill either a turkey baster or eyedropper with the vinegar-food coloring mixture and drop it over the baking soda. This results in an exciting, multi-colored fizz! For a fun twist, move the baking soda outside and let your child get messy using vinegar-filled water squirters from the dollar store.
Fizzing Sidewalk Paint
Your little scientist will be mesmerized by the scientific transformation of their everyday sidewalk chalk, especially if they enjoyed the previous experiment! Make your own sidewalk paint with the following ingredients:
A full container of baking soda
½ cup of cornstarch
Warm water in several containers
Food coloring
Combine all ingredients until the mixture is thick, almost like acrylic paint. Once mixed, add food coloring to create vibrant paint colors. Your children can use standard paint brushes or basting brushes to paint the sidewalk and driveway. Once the paint dries, give them a spray bottle filled with white vinegar (or repurpose a water squirter from the previous experiment) to make their creations bubble and fizz!
At North Tampa Christian Explorers, a preschool in Wesley Chapel, we believe it’s never too early to start fostering your child’s sense of curiosity and wonder. From the design of our indoor and outdoor classrooms to the interactions and experiences that take place on our campus, everything we do is intentional. We partner with you to provide the very best early experiences for your little ones. Want to learn more about what makes us different? Contact us today.