Entertaining science and exciting experiments. Entertaining experiences and experiments for kids

Home experiments for 4-year-old children require imagination and knowledge of the simple laws of chemistry and physics. “If these sciences were not taught very well at school, you will have to make up for lost time,” many parents will think. This is not so, experiments can be very simple, not requiring special knowledge, skills and reagents, but at the same time explaining the fundamental laws of nature.

Experiments for children at home will help explain the properties of substances and the laws of their interaction using a practical example, and awaken interest in independent exploration of the world around them. Interesting physical experiments They will teach children to be observant, help them think logically, establishing patterns between ongoing events and their consequences. Perhaps the kids will not become great chemists, physicists or mathematicians, but they will forever retain warm memories of parental attention in their souls.

From this article you will learn

Unfamiliar paper

Kids like to make appliqués out of paper and draw pictures. Some 4-year-old children learn the art of origami with their parents. Everyone knows that paper is soft or thick, white or colored. What can an ordinary person do? white sheet paper, if you experiment with it?

An animated paper flower

Cut out a star from a sheet of paper. Its rays bend inward in the form of a flower. Fill a cup with water and lower the star onto the surface of the water. After some time, the paper flower, as if alive, will begin to open. The water will wet the cellulose fibers that make up the paper and spread them out.

Strong bridge

This paper experiment will be interesting for children 3 years old. Ask the kids how to place an apple in the middle of a thin sheet of paper between two glasses so that it does not fall. How can you make a paper bridge strong enough to support the weight of an apple? We fold a sheet of paper into an accordion shape and place it on the supports. Now it can support the weight of the apple. This can be explained by the fact that the shape of the structure has changed, which made the paper quite strong. The properties of materials that become stronger depending on their shape are the basis for the designs of many architectural creations, for example, the Eiffel Tower.

An animated snake

Scientific evidence for the upward movement of warm air can be provided using simple experience. A snake is cut out of paper by cutting a circle in a spiral. You can revive a paper snake very simply. A small hole is made in her head and suspended by a thread over a heat source (battery, heater, burning candle). The snake will begin to rotate quickly. The reason for this phenomenon is the upward warm flow of air, which unwinds the paper snake. This is exactly how you can make paper birds or butterflies, beautiful and colorful, by hanging them under the ceiling in your apartment. They will rotate from the movement of air, as if flying.

Who is stronger

This interesting experiment will help determine which paper shape is more durable. For the experiment you will need three sheets of office paper, glue and several thin books. A cylindrical column is glued from one sheet of paper, a triangular column from another, and a rectangular column from the third. They place the “columns” vertically and test them for strength, carefully placing books on top. As a result of the experiment, it turns out that the triangular column is the weakest, and the cylindrical column is the strongest - it will withstand the greatest weight. It is not for nothing that columns in churches and buildings are made in a cylindrical shape; the load on them is distributed evenly over the entire area.

Amazing salt

Regular salt is found in every home today; no meal can be prepared without it. You can try making beautiful children's crafts from this affordable product. All you need is salt, water, wire and a little patience.

Salt has interesting properties. It can attract water to itself, dissolving in it, thereby increasing the density of the solution. But in a supersaturated solution, the salt again turns into crystals.

To conduct an experiment with salt, bend a beautiful symmetrical snowflake or other figure from a wire. In a jar with warm water dissolve the salt until it stops dissolving. Dip a bent wire into a jar and place it in the shade for several days. As a result, the wire will become overgrown with salt crystals, and will look like a beautiful ice snowflake that will not melt.

Water and ice

Water exists in three states of aggregation: steam, liquid and ice. The purpose of this experiment is to introduce children to the properties of water and ice and compare them.

Pour water into 4 ice trays and place them in the freezer. To make it more interesting, you can tint the water with different dyes before freezing. Pour cold water into a cup and throw two ice cubes into it. Simple ice boats or icebergs will float on the surface of the water. This experiment will prove that ice is lighter than water.

While the boats are floating, the remaining ice cubes are sprinkled with salt. They'll see what happens. After a short time, before the indoor float in the cup has time to sink (if the water is quite cold), the cubes sprinkled with salt will begin to crumble. This is explained by the fact that the freezing point of salt water is lower than normal water.

Fire that doesn't burn

IN ancient times When Egypt was a powerful country, Moses fled from the wrath of Pharaoh and tended his flocks in the desert. One day he saw a strange bush that was burning and did not burn. It was a special fire. Can objects that are engulfed in ordinary flame remain safe and sound? Yes, this is possible, this can be proven through experience.

For the experiment you will need a sheet of paper or banknote. A tablespoon of alcohol and two tablespoons of water. The paper is moistened with water so that the water is absorbed into it, alcohol is poured on top and set on fire. Fire appears. This is burning alcohol. When the fire goes out, the paper will remain intact. The experimental result is explained very simply - the combustion temperature of alcohol, as a rule, is not enough to evaporate the moisture with which the paper is impregnated.

Natural indicators

If your child wants to feel like a real chemist, you can make for him special paper, which will change color depending on the acidity of the environment.

Natural indicator prepared from juice red cabbage containing anthocyanin. This substance changes color depending on what liquid it comes into contact with. In an acidic solution, paper soaked in anthocyanin will turn red. yellow, in a neutral solution it will turn green, and in an alkaline solution it will turn blue.

To prepare a natural indicator, take filter paper, a head of red cabbage, cheesecloth and scissors. Chop the cabbage thinly and squeeze the juice through cheesecloth, squeezing it with your hands. Soak a sheet of paper in juice and dry. Then cut the made indicator into strips. The child can dip a piece of paper into four different liquids: milk, juice, tea or soap solution, and watch how the color of the indicator changes.

Electrification by friction

In ancient times, people noticed the special ability of amber to attract light objects if rubbed with a woolen cloth. They did not yet have knowledge about electricity, so they explained this property by the spirit living in the stone. It is from the Greek name for amber - electron - that the word electricity comes.

Such amazing properties not only amber has. You can conduct a simple experiment to see how a glass rod or plastic comb attracts small pieces of paper. To do this, rub the glass with silk and the plastic with wool. They will begin to attract small pieces of paper that will stick to them. Over time, this ability of items will disappear.

You can discuss with children that this phenomenon occurs due to electrification by friction. If fabric rubs quickly against an object, sparks may appear. Lightning in the sky and thunder are also a consequence of friction of air currents and the occurrence of electrical discharges in the atmosphere.

Solutions of different densities - interesting details

Get colorful rainbow in a glass of liquids different colors You can prepare the jelly and pour it layer by layer. But there is a simpler way, although not as tasty.

To carry out the experiment you will need sugar, vegetable oil plain water and dyes. Concentrated sweet syrup is prepared from sugar, and clean water painted with dye. Sugar syrup is poured into a glass, then clean water is poured carefully along the wall of the glass so that the liquids do not mix, and vegetable oil is added at the end. The sugar syrup should be cold and the colored water should be warm. All liquids will remain in the glass like a small rainbow, without mixing with each other. The thickest sugar syrup will be at the bottom, the water will be at the top, and the lightest oil will be on top of the water.

Color explosion

Another interesting experiment can be done using different densities vegetable oil and water, causing a color explosion in the jar. For the experiment you will need a jar of water, a few tablespoons of vegetable oil, and food coloring. In a small container, mix several dry food colors with two tablespoons of vegetable oil. Dry grains of dyes do not dissolve in oil. Now the oil is poured into a jar of water. Heavy grains of dye will settle to the bottom, gradually freeing themselves from the oil, which will remain on the surface of the water, forming colored swirls, as if from an explosion.

Home volcano

Useful geographic knowledge may not be so boring for a four-year-old if you provide a visual demonstration of a volcano erupting on an island. To carry out the experiment you will need baking soda, vinegar, 50 ml of water and the same amount of detergent.

Small plastic cup or the bottle is placed in the mouth of a volcano, sculpted from colored plasticine. But first, baking soda is poured into a glass, water tinted red is poured and detergent. When the improvised volcano is ready, a little vinegar is poured into its mouth. A rapid foaming process begins due to the fact that soda and vinegar react. “Lava” formed by red foam begins to pour out of the volcano’s mouth.

Experiments for 4-year-old children, as you have seen, do not require complex reagents. But they are no less fascinating, especially with interesting story about the reason for what is happening.

The experiments at home that we will talk about now are very simple, but extremely entertaining. If your child is just getting acquainted with the nature of various phenomena and processes, such experiences will look like real magic for him. But it’s no secret that it is best to present complex information to children in game form- this will help consolidate the material and leave vivid memories that will be useful in further learning.

Explosion in calm water

Discussing possible experiments at home, first of all we will talk about how to make such a mini-explosion. You will need a large vessel filled with regular tap water (for example, it could be a three-liter bottle). It is advisable for the liquid to settle in a quiet place for 1-3 days. After this, you should carefully, without touching the vessel itself, drop a few drops of ink into the very middle of the water from a height. They will spread beautifully in the water, as if in slow motion.

A balloon that inflates itself

This is another one interesting experience, which can be done at home. You need to pour a teaspoon of ordinary baking soda into the ball itself. Next you need to take an empty plastic bottle and pour 4 tablespoons of vinegar into it. The ball must be pulled over its neck. As a result, the soda will pour into the vinegar, a reaction will occur with the release of carbon dioxide, and the balloon will inflate.

Volcano

Using the same baking soda and vinegar, you can create a real volcano in your home! You can even use a plastic cup as a base. Pour 2 tablespoons of soda into the “mouth”, fill it with a quarter glass of heated water and add a little food coloring. dark color. Then all that remains is to add a quarter glass of vinegar and watch the “eruption”.

"Color" magic

Experiments at home that you can demonstrate to your child also include unusual changes in their color with different substances. A striking example of this is the reaction that occurs when iodine and starch combine. By mixing brown iodine and snow-white starch, you will get a liquid... of a bright blue hue!

Fireworks

What other experiments can you do at home? Chemistry provides a huge field for activity in this regard. For example, you can make bright fireworks right in your room (but preferably in the yard). A little potassium permanganate must be crushed into a fine powder, and then take a similar amount charcoal and grind it too. After thoroughly mixing the coal with manganese, add iron powder. This mixture is poured into a metal cap (an ordinary thimble will do) and kept in the flame of the burner. As soon as the composition heats up, a whole rain of beautiful sparks will begin to scatter around.

Soda rocket

And finally, let's say again about chemical experiments at home, where the simplest and most accessible reagents are involved - vinegar and sodium bicarbonate. In this case, you will need to take a plastic film cassette and fill it baking soda, and then quickly pour in 2 teaspoons of vinegar. The next step is to put a lid on your homemade rocket, place it upside down on the ground, stand back and watch it take off.

Scientific discoveries have given humanity a lot original ideas. In rainy weather or when bored, some of them will become in a great way have some fun. We offer you 10 cool experiments. They can be carried out at home even by children, but preferably under adult supervision. These experiments use basic ingredients that are always available in the kitchen. Simple but interesting tricks are based on the principles of chemistry, physics and biology. Well, let's get started!

Learning to separate egg yolk using an empty bottle

What you will need: raw egg, two bowls (or plates), an empty water bottle.

Progress of the experiment. Squeeze the bottle to release some of the air. Then bring its neck close to the egg on the plate, almost close. Having unclenched plastic container, you will see how the yolk is sucked inside the bottle - together with the air, it rushes to occupy the empty volume.

Why is this happening? After compression, some of the air was “squeezed out,” which means that the pressure outside became greater. Thus, the air literally “pushes” the yolk into the bottle.

Experiment: Create Non-Newtonian Matter

What will you need? Water, cornstarch, deep mixing bowl, food coloring. Put it on old clothes so as not to get dirty, cover the table with oilcloth.

Progress of the experiment. Pour a glass of water into a deep bowl, then add a glass of cornstarch into the same bowl and mix everything well. You can add food coloring if desired. Now slowly dip your hand into the mixture. As you can see, this is very easy to do. Do the same thing, but with force - as a result, the substance will “repel” your hand.

Why is this happening? Oobleck is a non-Newtonian substance. Sometimes (for example, when it is poured), it appears as a liquid. But! When you put pressure on the mixture, it behaves like solid, and upon impact it can even have a repulsive effect.

Soda and vinegar - instead of a pump!

What we need: regular vinegar, bottles with a narrow neck, balloons, baking soda.

Progress of the experiment. A mini-geyser is made using a similar principle, but we slightly modify the well-known experiment. Pour 50–100 grams of vinegar into bottles. Having made a roll of paper, we put one end of it in balloon IR, which needs to be inflated. Inside the other end of a kind of tube we pour 2-3 tablespoons of soda. Now you need to carefully place the balls on the necks of the bottles. Be careful not to let the baking soda spill out of these rubber containers prematurely. The preparations are completed, you can start the fun part. Pour the contents of the balls into the bottle and enjoy watching.

Why is this happening? The molecules of soda and vinegar instantly combine and a powerful reaction occurs. As a result, carbon dioxide (CO 2) is produced, which inflates the balloon so much that it can even explode.

Coloring flowers using the capillary method

What we need: fresh white flowers (daisies and carnations are great, if you don’t have flowers you can even use celery), glass jar, food coloring, scissors. We also advise you to be patient, since you will see the full result of the experiment only after 24 hours. But after some time you can watch how an amazing transformation takes place.

Progress of the experiment. Pour water inside the jar and add dye of any color there. We dip flowers into this liquid and watch how the delicate white petals gradually turn a different color.

Why is this happening? Water evaporates from the flower's petals, so the stem absorbs the colored liquid from the jar. Gradually the colored liquid reaches its petals.

Determining the amount of sugar in soda

What will you need? Unopened cans of diet and sugary drinks, a large container of water (a bath will also work for this experiment).

Progress of the experiment. Immerse soda cans in water. Not all of them will sink to the bottom. Those that remain floating below the surface contain a lot of sugar. Fans of diets can safely drink “heavy” drinks.

What is the reason for this discrepancy? The density of regular and diet carbonated drinks is different, and its value is affected by the sugar content. As a result, some jars flounder in the water, while diet drinks safely go to the bottom.

Magic bag

What you will need: A bag with a special plastic zipper, a couple of sharpened pencils, a mug of water. We recommend doing the experiment over a sink or bathtub, as the temptation to pull out the pencils after the experiment will be great!

Progress of the experiment. Fill the bag with water and zip it up. Then we quickly pierce it through with several pencils, one at a time. As you can see, the holes did not even create a gap - the bag remained completely sealed.

Why is this happening? The tightly sealed bag is made from flexible polymers. When punctured, the plastic surface seals tightly around the pencil, so it does not leak.

Cleaning copper coins at home

What do we need? Tarnished coins, 1/4 cup white vinegar, one teaspoon salt, cup water, two bowls (non-metal), paper towels. We recommend wearing glasses to protect your eyes.

Progress of the experiment. Pour water, vinegar into a bowl and add salt. Place coins in the prepared solution. After some time, we evaluate the degree of their purification.

How does this work? The acetic acid reacts with the salt to help clear the copper oxide from the copper pennies. Rinse the coins with water after the experiment, otherwise they will turn greenish. After clearing ten copper coins, do another interesting experiment. Put in old mortar metal coin. You will see the steel color change to yellowish. This happened because the metal attracted copper oxide molecules.

Flying ghosts

What do we need? An inflated balloon, ghosts cut out of tissue paper, and something to generate static electricity (your clothes or hair will work for this purpose!).

Progress of the experiment. We glue the paper figures at one end to the table using tape. Then we rub the balloon hard on clothes or hair, and bring it closer to the lying silhouettes. Oh no! The ghosts have woken up and are trying to take off!

How does this work? Rubbing a rubber ball against fabric or hair creates a negative charge on the surface, which attracts paper ghosts to itself.

Dancing Raisin Experience

What we need: raisins, a bottle of mineral water, a transparent drinking glass

Progress of the experiment. This experience is extremely simple. Pour into a glass mineral water. Add a handful of raisins there and watch them “dance” in the glass container.

Why is this happening? Tiny bubbles of carbon dioxide (CO 2) cling to uneven surface highlights. As a result, they become lighter and rise to the surface, where the bubbles burst. Then the raisins become heavy and fall back down, where they are again overtaken by CO 2 bubbles.

Colored milk painting

What do we need? Two plastic dishes, milk, food coloring, cotton swabs, liquid soap. Since we will be dealing with dyes, it is advisable to cover your clothes with an apron.

Progress of the experiment. Pour a little milk into the bowl - just enough to cover the bottom. Then we drop colored dye onto its surface. Having dipped a cotton swab in liquid soap, we touch the epicenter of the color inclusions on the milky surface. Now we begin to draw surreal stains.

Why is this happening? Food coloring is not as dense as milk, so the drops will stick to the surface at first. But adding soap to the tip of a cotton swab breaks the surface tension of the milk by dissolving the fat molecules. The paint molecules move smoothly along the milky surface, pushing off the soap layer.

Try these interesting experiments at home, with your children or in a friendly company. You yourself won’t notice how quickly the time flies by with this useful entertainment, and the inquisitive minds of young know-it-alls will board new scientific peaks.

When choosing a gift for my eleven-year-old nephew, I couldn’t do without a book))). It was decided to search among books aimed at distracting the guy as much as possible from modern gadgets. Since he is very smart and inquisitive, I hope that summer holidays he will not be bored without a tablet, but with the help of this book and another gift, but that’s another topic. I settled on "Veselye" scientific experiments for children. 30 exciting experiments at home", Egor Belko, Petersburg publishing house.

ISBN 978-5-496-01343-7

Home experiments. There is probably no child who would not be interested and would not want to build an erupting volcano at home or “settle” a cloud in a jar, a rainbow in a glass, push an egg into a bottle or grow purple daisy. And even more so when everything that is needed for these experiments is at home: on the desktop or in mom’s kitchen, and no special reagents or chemicals are needed. The most “dangerous” means for conducting experiments in this book is perhaps vinegar.

On each spread it is given detailed description experiment: necessary materials, description of the preparation and progress of the experiment and its scientific explanation, as well as clear and colorful illustrated tips. All experiments are very simple, and everything needed to carry them out can be easily found in every home. From the age of 6-7, I think, you can already give a book to a child for independent study, and before this age you can have a great time with mom, or even better with dad (dads are better able to explain the properties of objects and materials, they somehow it turns out simpler and clearer)))

My daughter is almost 3 years old, but we also love to experiment. For example, we have already done it, we built an entire installation of a mountain peak and a volcano erupting in it, and with ice and simply painted it with “soda” paints, and then “foamed” the drawing with vinegar or, perhaps, a solution of citric acid. The child’s delight is guaranteed, and even if he does not understand the reason for what is happening, he will certainly remember the impressions of what he saw. The purpose and purpose of such activities with a child is to simply and clearly show that any phenomenon in nature or human life has a simple explanation, and we can understand its components; awaken the child’s interest in everything that has a logical scientific explanation, but does not give impetus to curiosity at first sight; teach the child to seek the truth of what is happening; and just to make it clear that from any object or material found in the kitchen, yard or bathroom, you can make something interesting and exciting with your own hands. We have already sent the book to my nephew, but I photographed all the spreads so that I could repeat the experiments with my daughter. There is a lot of information about such things on the Internet now, and if you try, you can compile your own book of “home experiments,” but if you don’t want to spend a lot of time searching or just have a holiday coming up for your beloved children, then this book is worthy of attention.

How to interest a child in learning new substances and properties of various objects and liquids? You can set up an impromptu chemical laboratory at home and conduct simple chemical experiments for children at home.

The transformations will be original and appropriate in honor of any festive event or in the most ordinary conditions to familiarize the child with the properties different materials. Here are some simple tricks that are easy to repeat at home.

Chemical experiments using ink

Take a small container of water, preferably one with transparent walls.

Dissolve a drop of ink or ink in it - the water will turn blue.

Add one tablet to the solution activated carbon pre-shredded.

Then shake the container well and you will see that it will gradually become light, without a tint of paint. Coal powder has an absorbent property, and the water returns to its original color.

Trying to create clouds at home

Take a tall jar and pour some into it hot water(about 3 cm). Prepare ice cubes in the freezer and place them on a flat baking sheet, which you place on top of the jar.

The hot air in the jar will cool, forming water vapor. The condensate molecules will begin to gather together in the form of a cloud. This transformation demonstrates the origin of clouds in nature when it cools warm air. Why is it raining?

Drops of water on the ground heat up and rise upward. There they cool and meet each other to form clouds. Then the clouds also combine into heavy formations and fall to the ground as precipitation. Watch the video chemical experiments for children at home.

How your hands feel at different water temperatures

You will need three deep bowls of water - cold, hot and room temperature.

The child must touch with one hand cold water, and the other is hot.

After a couple of minutes, both hands are placed in a vessel with water at room temperature. How does water feel to him? Is there a difference in perception temperature?

Water can be absorbed and stain the plant.

For this beautiful transformation you will need living plant or flower stem.

Place it in a glass of water colored any bright color(red, blue, yellow).

Gradually you will notice that the plant takes on the same color.

This happens because the stem absorbs water and takes on its color. In the language of chemical phenomena, such a process is usually called osmosis or one-way diffusion.

You can make your own fire extinguisher at home

Required actions:

1. Let's take a candle.
2. It is necessary to light it and place it in the jar so that it stands straight and the flame does not reach its edges.
3. Carefully place a teaspoon of baking powder into the jar.
4. Then pour a little vinegar into it.

Next, we look at the transformation - the white baking powder will hiss, forming foam, and the candle will go out. This interaction of two substances produces carbon dioxide. It sinks to the bottom of the jar because it is heavy compared to other atmospheric gases.

The fire does not receive oxygen and goes out. This is the principle behind the fire extinguisher. They all contain carbon dioxide who extinguishes the flames of the fire.

What else you should definitely read:

Oranges have the ability to float on water

If you put an orange in a bowl of water, it will not sink. Clean it and dip it in water again - you will see it at the bottom. How did this happen?

The orange peel has air bubbles that keep it floating on the water, almost like an air mattress.

Testing eggs for their ability to float on water

We use jars of water again. Place a couple of tablespoons of salt in one of them and stir until dissolved. Dip an egg into each jar. In salt water it will be on the surface, and in normal water it will sink to the bottom.