Want to hear a confession? I hated science until I started homeschooling. High school science was boring and confusing. I was one of those girls who would choose a boy lab partner, bat my eyes at him, and make him do all the work. Luckily in college I never had to take science. Then I married a man with a “scientific mind.” I wonder if my most often said phrase during the first year of our marriage was, “I don’t know what that means, don’t use those big words.” Look at me now, writing a science column for Heart of the Matter!

I should have known that I would give birth to a boy who wants to be a scientist when he grows up. Look at him in that picture, drooling over the Home Science Tools catalog! Because of that sweet little boy, I have forced myself to learn about and love science. Being able to participate in hands-on experiments has made science fun! What made it even more fun was that I finally began to understand what was going on. Some of their genes must have worn off on me! Suddenly I understood the difference between an atom and a molecule, how exactly objects could float on water, and why little water drops often formed on the side of my glass.

What helped the most was getting down to the nitty gritty and learning the TERMS. You know, the actual definitions behind all those coma-inducing words. So here are some of the most commonly used elementary science terms, their simple definitions, and some experiments to help you understand their meaning.

Density

You are my density . . . I mean my destiny.
~ George McFly, Back to the Future

Density: the measurement of how heavy something is compared to the amount of space it fills. In other words, density shows how tightly the matter within the object is packed together. Why is density important? Just ask the famous Archimedes…

Sometime around 250 b.c., the Greek mathematician Archimedes was given the task of determining whether a craftsman had defrauded the King of Syracuse by replacing some of the gold in the King’s crown with silver. Archimedes thought about the problem while relaxing in a bathing pool. As he entered the pool, he noticed that water spilled over the sides of the pool. Archimedes had a moment of epiphany. He realized that the amount of water that spilled was equal in volume to the space that his body occupied.

This fact suddenly provided him with a method for differentiating a mixed silver and gold crown from a pure gold crown. Because a measure of silver occupies more space than an equivalent measure of gold, Archimedes placed the craftsman’s crown and a pure gold crown of equivalent mass in two tubs of water. He found that more water spilled over the sides of the tub when the craftsman’s crown was submerged. It turned out that the craftsman had been defrauding the King! Legend has it that Archimedes was so excited about his discovery that he ran naked through the streets of Sicily shouting “Eureka! Eureka!” (the Greek word for I have found it!!) Archimedes had used the concept of density to expose the fraud.

~ by Martha Marie Day, Ed.D., Anthony Carpi, Ph.D.

Experiment with density
Fill a bowl with cotton balls and another identical bowl with rocks or marbles. Weigh them both. Even though there is the exact same volume of cotton balls and rocks, the bowl of rocks weighs much more. The heavier object is the item with the highest density since it has much more “stuff” packed together.

Buoyancy
We have the great Archimedes to thank for the discovery of this principle too. I am sure all kids (and most adults) have wondered at one time how in the world huge ships can float! Buoyancy is the force that a liquid exerts on an object when the object is lowered into the liquid. Ships are built to be less dense than water. It really has nothing to do with their enormous weight, but with their shape and delicate balance of their weight. The curved shape of a ship displaces the water around it, or moves it out of the way.

Experiment with buoyancy
Place one of the cotton balls and a rock or marble that you used above into a bowl of water. The more dense object will sink, while the less dense one will float. Place an aluminum pie pan into a sink full of water. Notice it won’t sink. Now try to force it straight down into the water. Notice it pushes back – it still won’t sink.

What you feel pushing back is called a “buoyant” force. And that is what makes ships float. What you are doing when you push the pie pan down is to try and displace the water – to move it out of the way. It doesn’t like to do that. When you try to move water with something lighter or less dense that itself, it doesn’t like that. If you blow through a straw into a glass of water, the water immediately pushes the bubbles up to the surface.

Condensation
Condensation is the process of changing from a vapor (gas) back into liquid form. Condensation is what forms clouds.

Experiment with condensation
Put room temperature water in a small cup. Place the cup in a ziplock bag, being careful not to spill any inside the bag. Place the bag in a sunny window. Watch for water droplets to form on the bag.

Solution/Solute/Solvent
A solution is simply a mixture of a solid and a liquid in which the solid completely dissolves into the liquid. A perfect example is sugar water. Sugar, a solid, is the solute. Water, a liquid, is the solvent. Solute + Solvent = Solution.

Experiment with solutions
Nothing could be easier than making sugar water. Do a 2-step experiment by first making a sugar water solution, and then adding Kool-aid powder to make another solution. Solute (Kool-aid powder) + Solvent (sugar water) = Solution (Kool-aid).

Viscosity
Some liquids, like water move very fast, while other liquids, like honey, move very slowly. Viscosity is simply the measurement of how fast or slow a liquid moves. A thin liquid is less resistant to flow, thus moves faster and is considered a low-viscosity fluid. A thick liquid is more resistant to flow, thus moves slower and is considered a high-viscosity fluid.

The word “viscosity” derives from the Latin word “viscum” for mistletoe. A viscous glue was made from mistletoe berries and used for lime-twigs to catch birds.

Experiment with viscosity
Create wands by filling clear plastic straws with various liquids and glitter. Tape one end of the straw closed and gently pour various liquids such as water, olive oil, vinegar, rubbing alcohol, etc, into separate straws. Sprinkle a bit of glitter into the straws and tape the open end closed. Compare how fast the different fluids flow.

Review of Hands On Science: Particles in Motion
written by Elizabeth Brough and published by Castle Heights Press

This curriculum is a complete 32 week science program that can be adapted for K-6th grade students. Four sections of broad topics (thermodynamics, weather, aerodynamics, and astronomy) are further broken down unto experiment sets. Section 1 (thermodynamics) covers eleven basic concepts such as density, states of matter, and air pressure. Section 2 covers thirteen aspects of weather and atmosphere, such as clouds, humidity, and tornados. Section 3 includes four weeks of experiments on aerodynamics. Section 4 spends four weeks on astronomy.

Most of the experiments can be completed in under an hour. Each section contains experiments for younger students and more challenging ones for older students, a list of correlating books, a few field trip ideas, diagrams, and conclusions.

One of the most helpful aspects of the curriculum is a complete materials list that tells exactly what you need for entire year of experiments.

The author explains her approach in How to Use This Curriculum:

The basic concepts in this volume are introduced, developed in several experiments, and applied to different areas of science. Each concept is repeated several times, yet in a different context, so that repetition does not become boring. For instance, air pressure is introduced and explored with experiments and games and then applied to weather and aerodynamics.

Each experiment set in this volume is interconnected to at least one of the others. The study of water leads to the study of the oceans, which leads to a study of the water cycle, which leads to a study of rivers.

One of the many reasons I really like this curriculum is because there are no tests and no pressure on the child to make sure they get the experiment perfect or completely understand the concepts. As the author says so brilliantly herself, “The purpose at this young age, as with all the other ages, is to explore the world around them, to hone their observation skills.” She understands the importance of allowing scientific discovery with the added pressure. This curriculum certainly reflects her beliefs.

Volume 2, covering chemistry, biology, and other life sciences, is in the works.

Would you would like to see a sample of Chapter 4: Density of Liquids?

Please visit my sponsor – Castle Heights Press!

Amy is a devoted wife, Classical homeschooling mom to a six-year-old Superhero and the co-owner/Director of Operations for Heart of the Matter. In her column “Through the Microscope,” she writes about the beauty of science and finding God’s handprint through the miracle of everyday elements and processes. Be sure to visit her blog at Milk and Cookies.