A question many parents ask is, How do I get my child interested in science? or If my child chooses whatever he wants to do, how will he ever choose science? When following Montessori principles and philosophy, we do not force a child to do something they are not interested in as this will keep them from engaging in the work. However, scientific exploration is still important, which is why we do everything we can to get children excited so that they want to learn about it!

When it comes to engaging your child, with everything from science to math, language, and history, we always go back to the basics and think, What will they enjoy and focus on? A simple, hands-on, and visual experiment may be the trick to sparking an excitement for science in your child! With this activity, children will engage in a winter themed experiment, discovering chemical reactions!

Benefits:

Provides excitement and curiosity into the world of science and discovery, building intrinsic motivation to learn, and gains exposure to scientific reasoning

Materials:

Baking Soda, Water, Vinegar, Container, Baster/Pipette or Pitcher.

Instructions:

1. Pour baking soda into a bowl, slowly adding water, until it can be squished together like playdough. (The balls may be easier to form when the water and baking soda have sat out for some time, about an hour).
2. Roll Snowballs and set them in a leak proof container or tray.
3. Fill a pitcher with vinegar and allow your child to pour it over the snowballs to see the chemical reaction (or allow them to use a pipette to squeeze the vinegar on the snowmen for extra fine motor fun)!

Age/Difficulty Variations:

• For younger children (Infants-4 years), include fun add ins like food coloring on the bottom of the snowballs. When they squeeze the vinegar, the snowball will melt into that color! Make or set up ahead of time, before your child begins pouring vinegar.
• For older children (Ages 5-Elementary), allow them to help in the setup, creating the snowballs, and making predictions about what will happen. Freeze the snowballs for longer melting time (to build concentration). You can even have your child write down the measurements of baking soda to water that they used and save it as an experiment card that can be used another time!

We hope you and your child enjoyed your day 3 activity of the 15 Days of Winter Break Activities series! Let us know how the activity went by tagging us in pictures on Instagram and Facebook!
Instagram: @ lmeclife
Facebook: @ Living Montessori Education Community

Coming Next For Day 4: Cup Pyramid Competition!

You will need paper cups and a timer (optional).