Easy Science Experiments For Kids

Why is it so important to keep rivers and lakes clean? Make a water conservation poster showing how precious our freshwater supply really is.

What You'll Need:

This activity is even more fun with a group of friends.

Step 1: Get a big piece of poster board and draw 100 circles, all the same size. (You can trace around a quarter or a very small cup. Just make sure there's room on your poster board for 100 circles, with some room left over.)

Step 2: Color 97 of the circles all the same color. These circles will stand for all the saltwater on Earth.

Step 3: Color two circles another color. These two circles will stand for all the frozen water on Earth.

Step 4: How many circles are left? That's right, only one. That circle stands for all the freshwater on Earth. Color it a third color. That one circle has to provide all the water humans need for drinking, watering crops, and everything else.

Step 5: Think of a title for your poster. Also, somewhere on the poster, make a key to explain what the chart means. See if you can put up your chart at a library or school.

The next science experiment reveals just how big a difference a little salt can make.

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Why doesn't the ocean freeze in winter? Discover how salt can affect the properties of water with this salty ice experiment.

What You'll Need:

Step 1: Fill two cups halfway with water. Add some salt to one of the cups and stir it up.

Step 2: Place both cups in the freezer or outside if temperatures are below freezing.

Step 3: Observe the cups. Which one freezes first?

You'll find that the salt in the water makes it harder to freeze. Depending on the amount of salt in it, saltwater may need to be 25 degrees colder than fresh water to freeze!

This is one of the reasons why salt is used to melt ice on sidewalks and streets. It's also one of the reasons why the ocean doesn't completely freeze when the weather gets cold.

Keep reading to find out how to make a model of a crack in the crust of the earth.

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A fault is a place where there is a break in the Earth's crust. You can use clay to make your own model of a fault.

What You'll Need:

Earthquakes often begin at a fault in the Earth's crust. If rock near a fault suddenly begins to move, it creates pressure that causes an earthquake. Here's a simple way to show how it works:

Step 1: Get three pieces of clay, each in a different color, and pound each piece into a flat rectangle.

Step 2: Stack them on top of one another and press them together. The three pieces of clay represent layers of the Earth's crust.

Step 3: Use a dull knife to cut all the way through the layers, in the middle. Put the two sections of clay together, but don't match them up exactly as they were before you cut them apart. The cut is like a fault in the Earth's crust.

Step 4: Push in on the outside edges of both sections of clay. The clay along the "fault" will buckle and slide. Earthquake!

The next science activity is a wormy reward for curious taste buds.

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If worms live in dirt, where do gummy worms live? Make a model of a worm's home in the soil -- a model that's good enough to eat!

What You'll Need:

Step 1: Put two or three gummy worms on the bottom of a plastic cup. Cover "worms" with a scoop of your favorite flavor of ice cream.

Step 2: Top with crushed cookies and chocolate syrup to make the cup look like a pot of soil. Then feel free to decorate with additional gummy worms or plastic flowers.

Do plants breathe? The next science experiment will show you the answer.

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Do plants breathe? Even though plants don't breathe like you do, they still need air. This experiment shows how they get it.

What You'll Need:

Step 1: To see how plants take air in and out, get a small plant with lots of leaves.

Step 2: Cover the tops of five leaves with a heavy coat of petroleum jelly. Then cover the undersides of five other leaves with a heavy coat of petroleum jelly.

Step 3: Look at the plants each day for a week. What happens? What does this tell you about how plants take air in and out?

There are openings on the undersides of leaves. Air moves in and out of those openings, allowing a plant to exchange gases.

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