I had a terrible time deciding when to hit the start button on this summer’s theme: The Summer of Science.  Not when to start “science’ing” (we’ll be using very high-falutin’ terms this summer), because as it turns out, we are in Science-Mode almost all the time.  When we picked and jammed the strawberries (Agroscience), when we hiked to an abandoned coal mine (Geology), went hiking in the mountains of Western Maryland (Ecology & Botany), and while we watched Mommy drink wine by the campfire (Oenology, and Fire is a plasma…which is mind-blowing)…in all these endeavors, we were studying science.  Our summer didn’t need opportunity as much as it needed a Narrator.  HEY! I know someone perfect for that job!

We decided to start with some easy concepts, so today we explored “Solid, Liquid, Gas”. I hesitated to review topics most kids learned eons ago on Sesame Street. I learned letters from Big Bird, but life has changed.  I’m pretty sure my kids learned algebra, in Spanish. BUT, nothing beats a solid understanding of the building blocks of nature.  Plus, pouring stuff together is fun.

We first put raisins in a glass and added seltzer water.  The raisins start out at the bottom, but the bubbles surround them, and they rise.  As the bubbles evaporate, the raisins sink again.  And rise. And sink.  Dancing raisins…awesome. From this, they learned gas is lighter than liquid, and can lift a solid, but upon evaporation, is invisible. We also learned seltzer water and Sprite are not the same thing (Culinary Science will always be my favorite).

Everyone loves to play with baking soda and vinegar.  That reaction never gets old.  But what I like about the balloon on the bottle trick is that we are not observing the gas being created by the reaction moving into the balloon.  That gas is actually rather heavy and prefers to sink.  What we are seeing is the air inside the bottle being displaced into the balloon by the reaction gas. At this point I realized even experiments we’ve done time and time again have a new depth, because the girls’ understanding of the world has grown.  We started mixing baking soda and vinegar when they were tiny, just for fun, so I’m glad I didn’t pass over things we’ve done before.

OH GOOP.  How we love you forever and ever…sweet, messy Goop. I first blogged about Goop in 2008…holy crap, where has time gone? Goop (cornstarch mixed with water) is a solid when you pick it up, and a liquid when squeezed out.  For a 2 year old, it’s just messy fun.  For a 7 year old, it’s an interesting experiment in the very fine line which can separate liquids from solids, or to quote Sara’s astute observation, “You think it’s all solid-y, and suddenly, it’s all liquid-y!” It kept them quite occupied while we waited for our vinegar to separate the casein from our milk.  That experiment showed us that 2 liquids mixed together could pull out a solid.

And for our final “destroy the kitchen” experiment, we mixed glue with water and food coloring, and added a mixture of water and borax to make a slime which transitioned into bouncy balls. I don’t like working with food coloring and/or borax, so I made this one quick.  GIRLS! When it dries it will flatten because it’s actually a visco-elastic, and not really a solid!  DONE! Go wash your hands!

Perhaps the best part of children doing science experiments is not the understanding of the concept in and of itself, but the fact that it gives them countless threads which feed out into the world around them. Things they’ll read about in books will be easier to remember if they have a broader base from which to draw.  Art has more depth.  Music has more meaning. Life is richer when it ties together via an ever-growing network of ideas.  Maybe it will end at Kelly comparing pooping to echolocation, but it’s more probable that it will extend far beyond, into a space I cannot begin to imagine.

However, I can imagine, quite concretely, the mess made by Goop, so I’m going to wipe down the kitchen one more time before bed. Happy Summer of Science!

*Today’s experiment was done via a kit from The Young Scientist’s Magic School Bus Club, and a special thank you to Granddaddy for gifting this to us. You’all probably thought I created this entire afternoon and was just droppin’ knowledge easy as pie, but I couldn’t leave you with such a false impression.  Today’s expertise was provided to you by none other than Ms. Frizzle, and my ability to read the pamphlet. Godspeed to that magical red-headed woman. She’s loved in this house of nerds.*