She Blinded Me With Science: The First Science Project

Today AB turned in her science project, "What Shapes Do Bubbles Make?" This was her first major school project so it was kind of a big deal. Since she is in kindergarten, participation was optional. But I chose for her to opt-in as a challenge. Her project was quite simple. She wanted to find out what shapes bubbles can make. So, we made different shaped bubble wands out of pipe cleaners. Then she went outside and blew bubbles to her heart's content. It turns out bubbles are almost always going to be round thanks to surface tension. She had fun and there were lots of references to scenarios and songs from fellow mixed kid Sid the Science Kid.

The only snag was the writing. AB began to complain if there were more than four lines of writing. But, I felt that it was important for her to actually write everything, as opposed to using the computer. She needs to practice her printing and grammar. This was the perfect exercise for it. In addition, I wanted to make sure that it was evident that she did the project, not me. While it was not as neatly presented as the kids (or parents) who typed their reports, AB was extremely proud of the finished product.

Here are a few sites to for you and your budding scientist:

• TIME for Kids: The news magazine has an edition specifically for kids. Many of the articles are written by their kid reporters. (Bonus: There are 4 different print editions available based on grade level. Check out a sample of the K-1 edition.)
• SciGirls: This is a show on PBS that is targeted at girls (just as the name suggests) and designed to spark an interest in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).
• How Stuff Works: This site answers pretty much any question that you could think of, as well as many that had never even crossed your mind.
• Science News for Kids: A great resource from the Society for Science and the Public. 
• Literacy in the Sciences: Reading Rockets' comprehensive guide to connecting literacy skills to math and science.
• National Geographic Kids: NatGeo provides 15+ science experiments that can be done with things you have lying around the house, as well as recipes and science news.

Happy Experimenting!