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Look I'm A Scientist (2017)
Look I'm A Scientist (2017)
I’m a
K
Scient ist
For the grown-ups
This book is full of hands-on activities that will tap straight into
your child’s natural scientific curiosity. Each activity is designed to
let your child play and learn with all their senses. Together, you can
grow their love of science and their understanding of the world.
Your child should be supervised at all times when conducting these experiments, but
try to give them time and space to lead the direction of play. The questions in this
book are suggestions. Let your child ask, and answer, their own questions.
•
Involve your child in the preparation of each activity. Let them measure, mix, and
follow the instructions. The measurements in this book are often proportional, so you
can use the same cup or mug to measure equal quantities of ingredients.
•
Adult Alert stars show where your child will need extra grown-up help. Ad u l t
E RT !
• AL
Protect the area where your child will be playing and encourage them to
wear old clothes. Be especially careful when using food colouring, which can
mark fabrics and temporarily stain skin. Being prepared lets your child enjoy
themselves to their fullest. Making a mess is part of fun and learning!
Curious questions
Science is about asking questions, as
much as answering them. Here are some
questions to ask yourself as you play.
senses
and tries to understand it.
Hearing
There are so many
noises to listen to!
Sight
Super scientists use
What can you hear? their eyes for looking
really, really carefully.
Smell Taste
Use your nose to
Your tongue is
find smelly clues!
great at tasting
different flavours.
1
it’s thick and sticky.
In a b
o
the c wl, mix
wash or nflour,
ing
and a -up liquid
of foo few drop ,
d col s
ourin
6 g.
2 Add a
the w
slime
little
ater t of
o yo
pour mi
x
and m ur
until s ix
mooth
.
until
and mix y
e is runn
your slim .
but thick
Time t
o get all slimy!
Experiment to see
how much water, washing-up
liquid, and cornflour makes
Ewwww!
y
7
Now turn
yo
ur s
!
li m
ei
nto ali e ns
Let it f low
Hold the
slime in
your han
ds to wa
it flow th tch
rough yo
fingers lik ur
e a liquid
.
d s queeze
an
h
as
sq u
Roll it
If you roll
u
the tiny b p the slime,
its of cor
inside sq nflour
uash tog
and the ether
slime bec
hard like omes
a solid.
8
How far can your
slime stretch?
SE N SE -i ble
science
What planet Can you feel the slime
are you from? change as you play?
How does the slime smell?
Do you like it?
Is the slime squelching
in the bowl?
9
water juice spoon brick
Ice b e r g animal
rescue
Water is a liquid, but what happens when it gets very cold?
It freezes into ice - a solid! Make an iceberg then melt the
ice to rescue the animals.
water
10
Icebergs are huge blocks
of ice that float in the sea.
1 Po
a fe
u
w
r w
d r
a
o ps of f
ing in
colour e tub.
d
ter an d
oo
zabl
a free animals.
our
Add y
I use my
flippers to
swim.
Yay! It’s my
turn next!
a n y o u
C
sp l a s h ?
11
We’re having It’s getting a
a pool party! bit crowded!
2 Put the t y
ub
r to
and you he
in t
animals .
e e z e r o ver night
f r
3 Is t
Tu
h
r
e
n
ic
t h
e
e
b
t
erg froze
ub upsid
down un s out.
iceberg
til your
pop
n?
e Adul t
A L E RT !
Check your freezer to see
what is happening to the
water. When it gets to 0°C, the
water will start to freeze.
Br r r! z e r.
t he f r ee
It ’s cold i n
12
To the rescue!
Your rescue tool kit:
Squeeze
water I’m free!
Pour warm or
on the ice
on
squeeze it
nge.
with a spo
13
lt i n g t he ice
Me salt on
ome
Scatter s g to see
er
the iceb es
a t h a p pens! Do
wh e ice ?
it melt th
Thanks for
rescuing us!
e s c u e
oon r
Sp f u lly us rk
e
Ca r e fo
o n or e
g
p o h
as gle t .
t i n
g
l
i
me
to w free
a l s
anim
14
From ice to water
If water gets cold enough, the molecules (the tiny
water bits) hook on to each other and stop moving.
The water goes stiff and turns to ice (it freezes from SE N SE -ible
a liquid to a solid). Melting is the opposite of freezing. scienc e
What is the
best way to
melt the ice
?
Does the ic
e make a
cracking so
und?
Can you se
e th
solid ice liquid water back to liqu e ice melting
id water?
Can you fee
l the differe
between th nc
e ice and w e
ater?
w
Ho r iceberg
does
u yo
feel?
The warmth from
your hands makes the ice
melt. The ice makes your
hands cold too.
Brrr! 15
B l o w i n g in the
w i n d
Air is all around you. When air moves
from one place to another, we call it
wind. You can't see air, but it's strong
enough to blow your hat off!
paint to
decorate
16
ribbons
E - i b le
SE NS scie nce
nd
o w d o e s the wi
H ?
our hair
feel in y
ell
e s t he wind sm
D o y?
ing? Wh
of anyth
ways
a n y o u think of
C ul?
d is usef
that win
embroidery
hoop or
coat hanger
ee t he wind
S w wind
is rainbo
Make th en watch the
th
catcher t h e ribbons.
v e
wind mo ns onto a hoop
ribbo The
Thread it u p outside. e
and hold t the ribbons lik
l li f h
wind wil n you see whic
a
a kite. C ind is blowing?
w
way the
17
B r il l i a nt
balloons
Balloons are great to play and
experiment with. Take a big breath
in and blow into your balloon to fill it
with air. Then try these tricks.
l e c t r ici ty
r a i sing e
Ha i r - on on
your
e ballo e balloon
Rub th h
a ir. T h en lift t d. What
h ea
b o v e your h ur hair ?
a o
ns to y
happe
Ite’s
lec
tric
18
Balloon
Thread the string
rocket
through a
drinking straw.
tape
h
a d s t r in g throug Tie up the
Thre nd tie it
a s t r a w a string tightly.
t ig h t ly . Blow up
up ing
r b a ll o o n, pinch
you sed. Tap
e balloon
e n d c lo
the straw.
it to the Let go!
t e a d y . . .
Ready, s When you let go, air rushes
out of the balloon and
pushes the balloon forward.
How fast will it go?
a k ea
M
e r c
v raft
Stick a
pop-u
o
bottle
cap on p
h
old CD to
or DVD an
a blow .
n-up b Pull
on top all
. Then oon
the ca op
p. Push en
h o v e rc your
raft to
glide a wa
long th tch it
e table
!
po thick foam.
ur
1 c a
Very the soa
ly,
reful p
Add the g
rated
ul t soap to wa
Ad rm water
E RT ! and mix it
AL around
until it diss
olves.
he
ese
c
20
grater
3 Whi z z u
re
p
w i t
l e
bubb nd mixe
a
s
h a h a thick
e
mixtu they mak ts shape.
ur
in yo r
soft and squishy
until at holds i
th
foam
Ad u l t
A L E RT !
han
mi
4
d
xe r
plastic tub
Add fo
o
to mak d colouring
e your
What
shape
m o re c bubb
olour fu les
l.
s ca
ny
ou
h
is
ape a bub m a k e?
ts b
a
le
Wh
21
B I G bubbles
Use a hula hoop to make these HUGE bubbles!
How tall can you make them?
How big r bu b bl e?
ou
is y
Glycerine makes
bubbles stronger.
22
This bubble is tal
w ! ler
Wo t ha
n
m
u r in g r edients
o
Mix all y ng pool. Dip
e!
dli
in a pad op into the
o
a hula h wly lift it out
slo
mix and long bubble.
a
to make
hula
hoop
SE N SE
-i ble
sc ience
What
bubble
you m shapes
ake? can
Can yo
u
your b see colours
ig bub in
bles?
Do the
b
same a ig bubbles f
s the t e
iny bu el the
What bbles?
ot
you us her objects
e as a c
bubble ould
wand?
23
Hea r t h a t
sound?
N S E - i ble When objects touch each other,
SE scie nce they vibrate (move backwards and
Do all noises sound forwards). This makes the air vibrate
the same?
Can you see the wat
er too. Your ears pick up the vibrations
p
rippling when you ta and your brain turns them into sounds.
the bottles?
ds
What different soun
can you make?
Musical bo
Fill glass
tt les
bo
When yo ttles with water.
u
the wate tap the bottles,
r
them vib and the air insid
rate. De e
pending
tap
how mu on
ch
they con water and air
wooden
tain, the
make dif bo
ferent so ttles
unds.
spoon
ta p
24
Spin the drum so that
the beads hit the paper plates
and make a banging sound.
beads
paper plate
Spinning drum
To make a dru stri
wooden spoon
m, tape a ng
between
2 paper plates.
Stick the
plates togethe
r. Then attach
2 beads to the
sides of the
plates with stri
wooden
ng.
spoon
glass
bottles
food
vinegar washing-up liquid colouring
M ak e
your potion
26
magical! baking soda
1 -up liquid will
h ing he
lp
as
w
m
e wa
ak
ar
glass j shing-up
Th
f i l l a
ei
Half gar an
d
v i n e
t ...
with tle
in a lit .
e e z e id
squ
i n g - up liqu liqu
was h
id
2 . .. r
Add a
ea ll
fe
y, really bub
of food w drops
co
bl y!
Wow !
Pretty
glitter
s tars ! 27
3 Add
of ba
a
k
in
b
in
.
ig
g
Q u
s
spoonfu
o da and
l
ickly tak
e
stir it o on and
h e s p
out t happen
s.
w h a t
watch
ot ion ...
our
p
a t c h y
W
Fizzy chemistry
When vinegar and bakin
g soda
meet, they react with ea
ch
other. Together, they m
ake
a gas called carbon di
oxide.
This gas floats away so
it makes
lots of bubbles as it esca
28 pes.
SENSE-ible
science
Does your p
otion make
a noise?
z !
Can you de
scri
potion smell be how your
if z
s?
What do th
e bubbles
feel like?
...
29
T h e M i l ky Wa y
Make these awesome milky planets and
watch the colours swirl round and round as the
milk tries to escape from the washing-up liquid.
1 Pour milk
d is h o r ja
add a fe uring.
of food c
into a
r lid and
w drops
olo
2 Dip a cotto
bud in was
n
hing-up
l the
liquid. Swir
around
cotton bud
and watch
in the milk ens.
what happ
30
Our galaxy
our
At night,
E - i b le galaxy lo
oks like
S
SEN science
arry
a white st
e call it
the
path, so w ay.
W
a p p e ns when the Milky
What h ix?
m
colours of
w t he names
kno
Do you ts?
ne
any pla k
l ky p l a nets loo
r mi
Do you lanets?
lp
like rea
Real planets have sw
irls
too. These are usua
lly
huge storm clouds.
l i n g m ilk
Swir liquid
a s h i ng-up side
The w the fat in
s d in
make ove aroun ng
ilk m ddi
the m tions. By a the
ec e
all dir you can se rl.
r, i
colou swirl and tw
milk
31
Homempade
laydough
Playdough is even better when you make
it yourself! Mix your ingredients together
to make a really squishable dough.
cream of
water
1
tartar
Po
i n g re u r a l l t h e
di
the fo ents (exce
od pt
salt into a colouring
sauce )
pan.
o il
32 four
mixmix
mix
2 Place the pan on
a medium heat. Mix
everything together
until the ingredients
form a dough.
ul t
Ad T !
ER
AL
ur dough co
y o l ou
ke
rfu
Ma
l.
careful,
3
Be it ’s hot!
Let y
o
coo ur dou
ze
l, the g
food n ad h
Now colour d
ee
sq ing
dou ueeze .
smo gh until the
qu
oth
s and it’s
soft.
33
P l a y w ith your playdough
Your printing tool kit:
gh any co
r dou l ou
o u r.
y
M
a ke
ROAR!
34
Look at all the colours!
s hape s
ints a n d
Pr r p l a
h
ydoug .
u n
Roll yo a rolling pi ke
ith a
flat w bjects to m r
se o nts o
Then u bumpy pri s.
really
t f u n shape
cut ou
S E - i ble ience
SEN sc u an yo
h a t o bjects c ydough?
W a
your pl
print in gh
y o u r playdou
Does g?
e l l o f anythin
sm
ou
a t p r i nts can y
Wh ly?
st clear
see mo ow
o u d e s cribe h
Can y dough feels?
ay
your pl
35
It’s like a rainbow!
L et i t
snow!
Snow is made when tiny ice crystals
inside clouds stick together and become
a snowflake. You can make pretend snow,
then build your very own snowpeople!
We used to
You will need: be snowflakes!
s baking soda
2 cup Most rain starts off as
snow. But it melts before it
gets to the ground and
turns into raindrops.
ups
2 c ng foam
vi
sha
36
1 e ing r e d i e
Mix th nds. Your sn t
a
your h e crumbly b
b
nts wit
ow
u
u
h
should gether if yo
stick to together
pat it owball.
sn
into a
a ke a snowball
?
um
yo
M i x it!
n
Ca
2 If the mix
ture is
too crum
bly,
add more
sha
foam. If it ving
’s too
wet, add
Now you ca more
make me an n baking so
da.
d
friends to c some
hill with!
37
le your soft sno
ir nk w.
Sp
It ’s owing!
sn
e a snowy
ak pe
m r
3
w
so
No
n .
Roll 2 sno
wba
to make y lls
snowpers our
on’s body
and head
adding g . Try
oogly eye
to decora s
te.
Hi! Nice to
meet you.
38
How does
sno w
SENSE-ible
your
fee l?
science
Does your snow feel
like real snow?
Can you hear your
snow squelching?
Have you ever seen
real snow?
39
Be a t a b l e t o p
scientist
There’s lots of easy-peasy science you can do
while you’re waiting for your dinner. These 3 tabletop
experiments play with light to trick your eyes.
Which way
is the
ladybird
faci
ng?
y b i r d t r i ck
The lad on a piece
picture it behin
d
Draw a d h o ld
r an ove
of pape a t e r . S lowly m
of w ok
a glass w a r d s you. Lo For this trick to work, your
ss to ss to se
e
the gla t h e g la
drawing has to be facing
.
t h r o u g h d t u r n a ro u n d either left or right, but not
yb ir straight on.
the lad
40
see
u ?
yo spoon
he
an
at c
t
i de
Wh
ins
Choose your
shiniest spoon for
this experiment.
Does the w
ater
real
break th ly
e st
ra w
?
Take it out
of th
e
water to
f i nd
ou
t.
Mirror spoon
Look at your refle
a shiny spoon. Th
ction in Silly straw
the spoon over.
en turn
s tr a w in to a glass
Put a
of the spoon ch
The curve
t e r a n d look at it
of w a s
anges
your reflection! W u g h th e side. Doe
thro ?
side makes your
hich
s t ra w lo ok broken
face the
turn upside-dow 41
n?
W hen tiny
g e t
i ngs
t h
Magnifying glasse
s help
scientists look at
things
g
very, very closely
. Try it!
i
You might see thin
gs you’d
b
never noticed be
fore.
?
How does it work
loser to
When you get c
see them
things, you can
ut if you
in more detail. B
g too
look at somethin
k blurry.
closely, it will loo
es have a
Magnifying glass
makes
curved lens that
r, without
things look close
rry.
making them blu
42
Try it you
r
magnifyin self ! Grab a
g glass an
at things d look
around yo on this page and
u. It ’s yo
a scientific ur turn to be
observer.
43
Pla y with clouds
Clouds can be fluffy, puffy, or wispy, but they all have
one thing in common. They are made of water.
Are you
painting me?
d p a i nt ing
Clou he nt
c e a mirror o an
Pla .C
o u n d outside s in
gr ud
u s e e the clo a
yo ror ? Use
the mir nd shaving
rush a em in.
paintb lo u r t h
o co
foam t r us h
nt b
pa i
i r ro r
m ng
shavi
foam
44
Clouds are made up of tiny
What ar
rainbow e
droplets of water. When the
droplets fall, they become rain.
What do you think clouds would Wh en su
s?
feel like to touch?
throug nlight shines
h
raindro raindrops, th
p e
into lot s split the lig
s of ht
makes colours. This
a rainb
ow.
Cloud
spottin
When g
That cloud looks and a you’re ou
bo t
at the ut, look up
like a rabbit!
shape sky.
s can What
amon y
gst th ou spot
e clo
uds?
45
L o o k , y o u ’r e a s c ie nti s t!
Lots of scientists follow the same rules when they
discover something new. You can follow them
too. Think about the experiments you have done.
Can you follow the scientific method?
1. W hat
is this?
When 2. W ha
somet
scientis
ts obse t will ha
come
hing in
terestin
g ,
rve
Before
ppen?
up wit they trying
about h a qu hypot out th
it, to fin estion hesis, eir
Scient d out m guess scient
ists ca ore. what t ists try
ll this q Scient he an to
a “hyp u e stion ists ca swer w
othesis ll this a il l be.
”. “predic
tion”.
o pl ay
3. Time t ry
lay to t
t s lo ve to p
Scien t is ha ev
ir id e a s. They
out the it goes
o m etimes
a go . S o fix it.
n d t h ey try t
a
wrong this
sts call
Scienti nt”.
perime
an “ex
A scientist’s work is
4. What do
never done. There’s always es it all me
more to ask, more to discover, Scientists
an?
and more fun to be had! think abo
happene ut what
d in their
and wha e x periment
t they ca
Did you p n le a rn from it
redict wh .
happen? a t would
Was it a s
urprise?
46
Well done!
....................................................
(Write your name here.)
is a scientist!
Index
A, B, C, D I, J, K, L Ribbons 17
Rocket 19
Air 16, 18-19, 20, 24 Ice 10-11, 13, 14-15, 36 Salt 13, 14, 32
Alien 8-9 Iceberg 10-11,12, 14-15 Scientific method 46
Baking soda 26, 28, 36-37 Ladybird trick 40 Senses 4-5, 9, 15, 17, 23,
Balloon 18-19 Light 40, 45 24, 29, 31, 35, 39
Bottles 24-25 Liquid 6, 8-9, 10, 15 Shaving foam 36-37, 44
Bubble 20-21, 22-23, 27, Slime 6-7, 8-9
28-29 Snow 36-37, 38-39
Carbon dioxide 28 M, N, O, P Solid 6, 8-9, 10, 15
Chemical reaction 26 Sound 15, 24-25
Cloud 31, 36, 44-45 Magnifying glass 42-43 Static electricity 18
Cornflour 6-7, 8 Melting 10, 14-15, 36 Straw 41
Drum 25 Milk 30-31 Sunlight 45
Milky Way 30-31
Mirror 41, 44
E, F, G, H Planet 9, 30-31 U, V, W, X, Y, Z
Playdough 32-33, 34-35
Electricity 18 Potion 26-27, 28-29 Vinegar 26-27, 28
Freezing 10, 12, 15 Prints 34-35 Washing-up liquid 6-7, 22,
Galaxy 31 26-27, 30-31
Gas 28 Water 9, 10-11, 13, 15, 20,
Hovercraft 19 Q, R, S, T 22, 24, 40-41, 44-45
Wind 16-17
Rain 36, 45 Wind catcher 17
Rainbow 35, 45 Wind chimes 16
Reflection 41