I Spy: Rot!

Nature walks are a great way to nurture your children's love of inquiry science.  Along the way you can notice interesting things, and express interest in his discoveries.  On this particular day, we were interested in this log.

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What we saw

We were taking a Nature Walk at a nearby preserve when the Pony Artist noticed that this log sported green mushrooms.  Green mushrooms are somewhat new to us, so it was worth stopping to take a look.  We had recently checked out (affiliate link)  The Magic School Bus Meets The Rot Squad: A Book About Decomposition by Cole, Joanna published by Scholastic Paperbacks Paperback ,from the library and read it, about fifteen times, so we were really excited to find our own rotting log.

What we wondered

We are curious whether this log sports any Betty Beatles like the ones Ms. Frizzle found.  We also are curious how long it will take the log to turn all the way back into dirt.  We wondered if the green mushrooms were a different variety than the brown ones, or if they just turned green for some reason.

What have you found recently?

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I Spy: A little stream of light!

I Spy: An echo chamber!

Toy Car Physics!  A Playful Integrated Unit for Kindergarten to Second Grade.

I Spy: Electric Hair!

Winter time hat hair can be annoying or amusing.  In the case of my littlest one, it is downright cute.  I really tried to get you a picture that at least included her happy eyes, but she is a moving target when it comes to photography, and she really wanted Mommy's phone!

What we saw:

Little Diddle's hair is standing on end and the pieces are separating from each other.  This usually happens when she's been wearing her hat for a while, outside.

What we wonder:

Why do certain hats seem to bring about this result more than others?  Is there more going on than just simple electrostatics?

What Science do you Spy?

Other Posts you may enjoy:

I Spy: An Echo Chamber

I Spy: A Little Stream of Light

I Spy: A Little Stream of Light

Through this I Spy Science Series, I remind myself and my readers to find the wonder in the physical world around us.  Lately, my kids do the finding, and I just enjoy joining them on a journey of inquiry.

I love watching my children discover the world in those in-between, unstructured moments.  My daughter noticed light diffracting the other day.

What We Saw

The Pony Artist discovered the special way a stream of light that comes through her fingers when she holds them very close together.

What We Asked

We wondered if you could get the same effect by holding your fingers wider or by using two peoples' hands.

What have you and yours noticed recently?  We would love to read it in the comments or on the Thriving STEM Facebook page!




I had this post ready to publish when I came across Mary Anne's post at Mama Smiles, where she talks about doing something similar with Christmas lights.  Take a minute to read it, then spend a little time enjoying the wonder of light this Holiday Season.  Merry Christmas!


Other posts you may enjoy:

I Spy: Rainbows in the Bedroom

I Spy: An Echo Chamber

This fall we have been attempting to make the most of what little day light remains after the school day is finished.  One day as we were exploring, we found this echo chamber.

What we saw

When we yelled into the opening of this tunnel, the sound came back again and again and again.  My children found that yelling into the mouth of the tunnel resulted in a louder echo, but yelling into the small hole on top made a quieter sound.

Our Questions

My son, who first discovered this curiosity wondered where the tunnel led to.  He also wondered, "What was inside?"  

He has tried yelling in a few other spaces, looking for other echo chambers.  Our current theory is that the the narrowness of the tunnel was part of why the sound echoed there.  

What have you found lately?

Other Posts You Might Enjoy:

I Spy:Rainbows in the Bedroom

I Spy: Heavy Things Floating

I Spy: A Rainbow in the Bedroom

I have to admit I almost missed this one.  It was one of those mornings where I busy, but my daughter found the wonder.  And wonderful it was!

What we saw

Little rainbows spread across the ceiling and along the wall.  We noticed that they had the same order every time, and seemed to be made of light.  The photos do not begin to do them justice.

Our Question

"Where did they come from?"  

Here's a hint;)

Other posts you might enjoy:

I Spy: Heavy Things Floating!

Does your child know how to get the fastest ride from the Merri-go-round?

I Spy: Heavy Things Floating!

"Mom!  I am doing an experiment."  Don't those words strike a mixture of fear and pride in your heart?  In this case, the Pony Artist had begun an experiment about floating and sinking objects in the bathroom sink.

What We Saw

"My experiment shows that heavy things float and light things sink," said my daughter.  Indeed, the paper clip,  which was lighter, had sunk to the bottom.  The pretend cupcake icing, which was heavier, was floating.

Our Questions

I asked,  "Which thing takes up more space?" and "Do things that take up more space float or things that take up less space float?"







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This morning my child intentionally made a mess. I was feeding the baby while the Pony Artist fixed her breakfast.  The milk over flowed as she tried to fill her glass.  She said, "Oh, man!" and immediately began cleaning up. So far, so good. We like our children to be independent when preparing their own food.

Suddenly, she stopped cleaning and very deliberately placed her hand right on top of the over filled glass!  Milk was everywhere again!  That was not necessary.  Why would she waste perfectly good milk?  Why would she recreate a mess she herself was in the middle of cleaning up?  Why do kids delight in making messes?  

How you can give your child the fastest merri-go-round ride

"Faster, faster!" That's what my kids always yell. Did you ever think that they might be able to go faster without you pushing faster? 

The Other Way to Make Balloons Float

"Hey Mom, Look!"  Have I mentioned that is my favorite phrase?  Well, at least when it means "Look what I noticed," not "Watch me break my leg."

These balloons were filled with plain old air, not helium.  However, they were floating up, and then falling down again in a kind of circular pattern.  It was really quite mesmerizing.  When I asked my children why this was happening, they quickly identified that the air particles from the vent were hitting the balloon and making it move.  This is great, because understanding that air is made of molecules that can have this impact is one way to prove that gas can have mass, and therefore really is matter.  Most people today readily believe this, but it is not actually all that intuitive, and has been highly debated in other times.

T-Rex was able to give me a clear explanation of the major forces.  Gravity pulls the balloons down, the air molecules push them up.  When the force of the air molecules is greater than gravity, the balloon moves up.  When the force of the air molecules is smaller than the force of gravity, the balloons move down.

In terms of energy, there is a transfer of kinetic (moving) energy from the air molecules to the balloon. As the balloon moves up it trades its kinetic energy for potential energy due to gravity.  When it falls toward earth again it trades the potential energy for kinetic energy once again.  

Next time you notice a moving object, stop and ask.  Why is it moving? It can be a pretty interesting question.

The purpose of this Science Along the Way series is to help me, my children, and my readers stop and notice the amazing physical world in which we live every day.  Thanks for reading!

Pivot Points and Spinning Spoons

Children are hard wired to do science.  T-Rex (5) and Pony Artist (4) demonstrated this the other day at breakfast.   I do not know who started it, but they took turns spinning this spoon.

Pivot Points and Spinning Spoons

Children are hard wired to do science.  T-Rex (5) and Pony Artist (4) demonstrated this the other day at breakfast.   I do not know who started it, but they took turns spinning this spoon.

They discovered that the spoon spins best when just one point touches the table.

  They tried placing the spoon with both ends touching the table. It did not spin well, and tended to flip over.  

It was a perfect experiment with just one variable: which way the spoon was facing. I pointed out to them what they had done, but they were more excited about the spinning spoon itself.

You see, they had just figured out an important physical principle.  Solid objects naturaly spin around a single point.  They might not put it into words just yet, but they definitely learned it. 

What have you and yours learned from play this week?

Do your eggs whistle?

Deviled eggs are great for potlucks, sliced eggs add protein to summer salads, and all that egg boiling provides an opportunity for some interesting  science observation.  You might be surprised at what physics is lurking in your kitchen!

Coquinas: Beautiful Diggers

Sunset over the Gulf of Mexico last week was beautiful.  The beach was re-nourished this year, so it is not quite as pretty, but it is still alive!

Swinging Baby Catch and Inertia

We have a new favorite game.  Baby catch!  Baby sister sits in her swing and T -Rex and the Pony Artist push her back and forth to each other.  It is so sweet!

I asked T -Rex to tell me what force pulls the swing back down.  He knew it is gravity.  Then I asked, "Why does the swing keep going at the bottom of its path, and start moving up?" He was puzzled.

I told him that it is because the swing is already moving. If something is moving, it will keep moving until something stops it. He smiled. 

I asked him again just now if he knew why the swing keeps going.  He answered , "Because it was already moving." Yay!

  Newton's First Force Law says that a thing will keep moving at the same speed and in the same direction, unless something stops it.  This tendency to keep doing the same is called inertia.

Centrifugal (center fleeing) motion is sometimes credited to a force with the same name.  You are not likely to see such a force, and if you did, it would have another name.  The movement away from center is due to inertia.

 The vast majority of circular systems  depend on a centripetal (center seeking) force, in this case the rope, and inertia. 

Here is a challenge for you.  Find some circular motion examples and figure out what the centripetal (center seeking ) force is.

I would Love to hear what you find!

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We were just ready to leave the library on Thursday when the wind picked up and the lights went out.  We spent an hour getting to know some new friends in the dark while we waited for things to calm down.  

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"Don't worry," said the Pony Artist, "I have a solution."  

Phase change fun with hot chocolate and marshmallows

My kids and I are together all day, and my husband is spending his evenings getting our new house ready. By the end of the day we're all cranky and tired of each of other. We needed something something special to break things up, so we started a new tradition of enjoying hot chocolate between baths and dinner.  This week we have taken some time to notice what happens to the marshmallow after it goes into the hot chocolate.

Pressure, force, and fluid: soda in the straw

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When my sister and I were little girls, my mother would sometimes let us play with the hose in the back yard.  One of our favorite games, well, one of my favorite games was to walk down the rainbow.