50 science activities for your kindergarten classroom

FROM THE EDITORS OF EARLY CHILDHOOD TODAY for Your Kindergarten Classroom ALSO INCLUDES: Learning Center Setup l« SCHOLASTIC Tips for Science Journals for Your Kindergarten Classroom Photographs: pp 4, 39: Ken Karp; p 9, 21: James Levin; Illustrations: Rita Lascaro; Cover, pp 6-7, p 8: p 55: Ross Whitaker Ellen Sasaki Book Design: Diane Cuddy No part of this in publication may be reproduced in whole or in part, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without written permission of the publisher For information regarding permission, write to Scholastic Inc., 555 Broadway, New York, NY 10012 Copyright © 1997 by Scholastic Inc by Scholastic Inc Printed in the U.S.A ISBN 0-590-06254-9 All rights reserved Published 10 02 01 00 99 98 97 Contents Introduction: Science Discoveries Using This Book Science Setup Science Journals S c Activity Plans for All About Autumn i e nee Act Me v i i t i e s Activity Plans for Spring 39 Rain and Evaporation "Me" Measuring 10 29 What's Inside of Me? 11 30 Let's Body Graphing 12 31 Rain Rulers 42 32 Evaporation Experiments 43 Our Outdoor Environment Color Experiments Make Trees Changing 13 Air Around 33 Air, Air, Exploring Leaves 14 Planting Bulbs 15 Set Up a Weather Station 16 Fall Favorites 40 41 Rain! Us Everywhere 44 34 Making Wind All About Animals 35 Worm Watching 46 Nets 47 Indicators 45 Appetizing Apples 17 36 Insect Pumpkin, Pumpkin 18 37 Magnifying Nature 48 Popcorn Predictions Candle Dipping 19 38 What Do 49 All About Plants 39 The Power 10 11 Activity Plans for Winter Predicting and Experimenting 12 Experimenting With Time 13 An 14 Magnet Mania Observation Game Up 15 Fill 'er How Much Is There? 17 Shake 18 Blocks and Boards Sound Bringing the Outside Indoors 19 A January Garden Learning 21 40 Let's Birds Eat? 23 24 26 27 28 29 Activity Plans for Temperature Time 30 21 Taking the Heat 31 22 Oodles of Noodles 32 43 What's in the Air? 54 The Sun's Power 44 Me and My Shadow 55 Make Shadow Clock Through 56 47 Sun-Powered Cooking 58 All About the Earth Wake Up, Earth! Be a Rock Hound 60 45 a 48 49 24 Lifting 34 How Have I Grown? 25 Water Wood on the Water Magnifier Magic Dip and Design 35 50 Make Bubbles 53 53 33 28 Let's Summer Investigating Pollution and Salt 27 52 42 Pollution Scientists 46 Shinin' 20 26 51 22 How Things Work 23 Ice, Water, 50 of Plants Be Gardeners 41 Planting Terrariums 25 16 a 20 As Big as Me 57 61 62 36 37 Kindergarten 38 Skills and Concepts .63 V # p, Introduction ScienceDiscoveries Kindergartners' innate Kindergartners give curiosity about investigating their world makes them them are born whose boundless scientists, and developing skills their world Making Sense of the World Do you remember learning about the four high? Like adults, kindergartners observe, natural scientists curiosity the motivation and capability to investigate and better understand stages of the scientific make method in junior predictions, experiment, and eval- uate data every day Just watch the process by which kindergarten children build a They add more and more block tower blocks randomly until the tower inevitably over (observation) Filled with wonder, they think about how they could make falls the tower stay upright (prediction) They try different methods (experimentation) until voila they discover that the blocks are more stable when they are flush with each other (evaluation) Learning To to How to Think learn about science comprehend, is to learn essential higher-order thinking form the foundation of all science we lives to how to think apply, analyze, synthesize, The abilities and evaluate are and problem-solving learning In kindergarten, skills when we that teach are teaching the skills children will need throughout their think about a problem and to explore its possible answers Building Bridges to Learning Use book the techniques presented in the science activities in this to generate future science investigations For example, you might adapt an to activity about predicting which objects sunlight one about predicting which will shine through materials will absorb water Always be sure to involve your children so that your kindergartners will learn more formally apply the scientific method In kindergarten, you are never just teaching science! tify an activity as literacy, remember a "science project" and motor that it's skills because it how to to whatever they It is often difficult to iden- probably also incorporates math, As you help your children to "experience" science, an approach to learning and life USING THIS BOOK This book offers 50 developmental ly appropriate science activities for kindergartners The activities are grouped by theme and correlate also organized by season, making the activities for your children, to your children's them easy remember growth throughout the year supplement your curriculum As you adapt to use to that they are designed to be open-ended the ideas and materials, then allow children to follow their interests and explore them the activities with children's ongoing science explorations You can the following pages as a guide for great materials and equipment to enrich your science Adapt the science journal ideas on page activities results of their investigations Refer to the index dren to explore specific science format activity plan AIM: The purpose MATERIALS: The I WARM-UP: think ACTIVITY: of the activity; what children will and can be easily donated by parents or Ways and of the science setup on for recording the find activities that encourage chil- learn about topics related to the that will find you have most of these on hand local businesses to introduce the activity or underlying talk in freely Integrate simple and easy to follow Each plan includes most of the following: Tips for materials to prepare or arrangements to : home base provide activity plans Basic materials and special items to gather You rest N A D VA N C E is make use First, and concepts most from the Getting the The skills use for children's on pages 63-64 to They are theme make before introducing the to the group activity Open-ended questions help children activity Steps and suggestions for introducing materials, helping children get started, and guiding the activity in nondirective ways REMEMBER: Social/emotional, cultural, and developmental considerations; tips about and concepts OBSERVATIONS: styles SPIN-OFFS: to the activity theme; ways to relate other skills and occasional safety reminders Ideas and strategies for observing children that and guide, extend, or evaluate the will help you understand their individual learning activity Ideas for extending the activity into different curriculum and skills areas Be creative: Add your own ideas and watch for those your children generate BOOKS: Children's books related to the activity or theme Colleagues, aides, student teachers, volunteers, and family suggestions for child-centered science for your program's use activities So members can feel free to duplicate all benefit from fun and share each plan ScienceSetup "Our Terrarium" chart shows children's observations of the earthfilled a terrarium on the windowsill over What we observed period of five days Related fiction and nonfiction books organized by topic help children day I wo+er droplets day A saw earthworms with their research A question invites children creative Our Terrarium and critical-thinking to use skills as they explore the nature of stones day day 4 A display of children's handmade science books encourages the class to read each other's work and How many ways children to create their own The large weather chart demonstrates a way to record both the weather and the passage of time Science-discovery trays provide a focused activity with a recording tool A magnifier suggests that children observe the classroom fish tank closely The book invites research more about the more children to fish A box or basket keeps journals accessible to children Bulletin boards and the sides of storage shelves provide a good-size space to display children's predictions and explorations 10 A small table provides space for children to draw and write in their science journals or lab books 11 Materials that are well organized and attractively displayed encourage children not only to use them but also to take care of them 12 Locating the sand/water table near or in the science area adds day inspires a dimension to sand and water new play icon you sort stones? Crear^3/2$\ \errar\vms A §t\ (gOK Our rock h un f 11-7=31 —7— ——-— -1 ' " " " ScienceJournals Kindergartners' Children's ability to simultaneously understand concepts and represent excitement about information grows every day At this stage, children's developing cognitive scientific discoveries is eracy skills enable them to simply experiencing a natural motivator for and own journals, their you them invite to reflect new knowledge and skills become a valuable of your assessment The upon You'll also build a portfolio of each child's that can will give children own new journals Prediction Charts Present some objects and ask a simple As you encourage children to keep investigations This ideas to try out in their record- ing their findings in science journals recording their activities lit- move beyond activities to ed below as whole-class or large group work component through?" or or float?" Invite children to state their predictions, and write a them on the pre- diction side of the recording chart each item efforts content of an activity will play "What will light shine "Which objects will sink question, such as is of the chart tested, Make fill As in the results side the charts available in part in determining the best to your science center for children to com- record information of plete way As you make use the activities in this book, encourage children to record their ideas in many Encourage them to add their comments or experiment with making own chart- in their science journals ways First try the journal tools illustrat- Measurement Graphs What will light Shir,* ihrau$M CD EJ , prediction? J& M Watch Our Bu/bs Grow/ H>^L , re.6vltsf S y/ Graphs enable children events, to chronicle from the growth of a bulb to the evaporation of a puddle Children can use a nonstandard tool, such as a piece of string, to take each measurement, v rock ' O then attach paper Pictorial Lists -7 Day • try your own/ v/ = yes Day Day e Day Day Day 15 jo X = no Build language children to is as B»o \^ as Me ? My Tree Observations skills by encouraging the items they measure They can then fill in their findings by using drawings, words, tally marks, or numerals Children often enjoy keep- s? book pencil list or compare in pictorial and written form What personal ing ^ their own word lists in journals bdruj: date My to the graph in sequential book