Kitchen Science Fun

When your school laboratory is the same kitchen you prepare your family’s dinners in every evening, the word “experiment” can be a little unsettling. Visions of fires, explosions, and poisonous gases may dance in your head. Still, we know that science is at its best when it jumps off the pages of the textbook and allows students to experience it firsthand. 

Here are a few things to think of when planning at-home science experiments: 

1. You don’t have to break the bank. 
There are a lot of great companies out there that you can order
materials from for your science projects, but a lot of times (especially before the high school years) you simply don’t have to. There are plenty of fun and highly educational experiments out there that utilize materials that you can buy inexpensively. Better yet, many of them use materials that you probably already have around the house. 

2. It doesn’t have to be messy, but a lot of times it’s going to be. 
If you are a neat freak about your kitchen, some of these experiments will likely leave your countertops spotless. A lot of them won’t, but watching your kid’s reactions as they get excited about learning will make it worth it! These years are going to fly by, so let go a little and let your children be amazed. 

3. You won’t have to have the fire department on standby. 
Most experiments that are designed to be done at home are going to be easy to execute safely. Still, use precautions. If the directions call for safety goggles or gloves, wear them. If the recipe explicitly states, “Make sure not to mix Substance X with Substance Y,” keep those chemicals a safe distance from each other (even if you’re wearing safety goggles). 

4. Pinterest is amazing. 
I’m sure we can all agree on this. For those of us who can’t always think outside the box, we can be thankful for some amazing blogging mamas out there who do. Search “homeschool science experiments,” and your boards will soon have more pins then you could possibly hope to tackle in 12 years of schooling. 

Here are some fun science experiments that we found: 

Super easy:

Naked Egg

Surface tension of liquids

Why do I need sunscreen?

How plants absorb water

Rainbow in a glass

Slightly more involved:

Make crystal geodes

Biome in a bottle

Lemon Battery

Water Rocket

Homemade Lava Lamp

 Thanks to Tina Shreeve of HomeLife Academy for these fun ideas.

HomeLife Academy is a private school that has been serving homeschool families for over 11 years. We offer families freedom and flexibility while providing them with legal coverage and the support of a full records and counseling staff. Visit our website to find out more about HomeLife.