Shedding Skin Science

A to Zoo Animals with Mother Goose Time

R is for Rattlesnake

I normally don't write about these much, but the science cards are so fun from MGT. They are simple experiments to get the kids introduced to science and connected to the topic in a different way. Most of the time, I usually don't have all the components of the experiment, or I am involved and don't many, if any, pictures.

The cards are broken down into 6 steps with easy instructions and pictures. Usually Mr A can figure out what to do just by the photos.

We discussed a little bit about why a snake sheds its skin. Mr A said it was because the snake grows too big for its skin and needs a new one. We talked about what a snake would use to get the skin off since it doesn't have any hands. Mr A suggested the sunshine because the heat would get it off. I mentioned things like logs, rocks or bushes and Mr A wasn't convinced those would be good options because those would hurt.
For the experiment:
Glue was squirted onto the boys' hands and spread thinly over the palm.

 We used the box fan to help the glue dry faster.

Then they peeled off the dried glue, trying to get big pieces. The boys spent close to 30 minutes, quietly peeling glue off of their hands. I thought to myself that this would be a good calming activity when they're acting all crazy or need a time-out.

I tried to ask questions like "Do you think this is how it feels for a snake to shed his skin? ... Shedding skin takes a long doesn't it?" They were rather occupied and only shook their heads. They kept comparing the piles of dried glue they collected from their hands to see who had more.

Mr Z liked peeling glue off of his hands so much that he wanted to do it the next day too.
A simple experiment to see "shedding skin" in action was a hit. I remember doing it in school when I was bored. Sometimes, the things you did in elementary school as a kid are the best learning experiences for your little ones.
MGT science for the win.

Cold-Blooded Animals in the Desert

As I was putting up the daily topic poster from Mother Goose Time, Mr Z was watching and yelled out, "Yay! I want to learn about snakes and scorpions!" There were pictures of small animals that lived in the desert. He was excited about the topic since they were mostly reptiles.

So, after we got ready for the day, we headed outside for our science experiment. The first step on the instruction card was to put sand in a bucket and we headed to the nearby park to collect some.

I asked Mr A why he thought lizards and snakes liked living the desert while they were gathering sand. Because they are cold-blooded. And they need the sun to be warm. (It helped that we actually had this discussion on our evening walk around the neighborhood a few nights ago... and he remembered.)

While digging up some sand, we noticed that the sand was different colors. It was still rather early in the morning. After feeling around, it was decided that the thin top layer of sand was dryer and warmer since it was a lighter color. The darker sand was cold and a bit damp.

When we got back home, we followed the rest of the instructions on our MGT science card.

*dig a hole in the sand and place a thermometer inside. bury it.

* place another thermometer on the top of the sand

* leave in the sun for about 10 minutes

We added some reptile figurines to the bucket of sand. The boys played while we waited the few minutes for the temperatures to change.

We added a third thermometer just under the top of the sand to see the temperature difference there. After the time was up we pulled out the thermometers one at a time and compared their temperatures. The one sitting on top of the sand, in the sunlight read 100*F. Just under the top layer read 40*F and the one buried in the sand read 70*F. Now I'm not sure if they were working properly, but we decided that it was definitely cooler under the sand than on top. But, we discussed that was why reptiles like it... they need to keep their body just the right temperature using the sun and sand.

Don't Spin the Scorpion: a fun game using one of the manipulatives of the month. The colorful stacking cubes have been tons of fun. They have been made into all sorts of fun boy things like swords and guns and popsicles. But, with the curriculum, there is usually a game or two that includes the use of the manipulatives. 

This games object was to spin a color and make the tallest towers on the color strip before the scorpion is spun. 

Mr Z still has trouble taking turns. Especially with these spinners on the games. He just wants to spin and spin and not share and just keep going and going. It was a bit of struggle keeping everyone on the same page. When Mr Z doesn't play properly, Mr A gets upset and fusses like crazy. It drives me nuts. But, I guess the only thing to do is just mitigate and reinforce whose turn it is. It was difficult nonetheless. 

We played a few games and saved the set of towers from the first. Then when the next game was done we compared the two sets of towers.

I'll admit that I tend to cater the lessons towards Mr A since he's older and more interested in learning and listening. When I do ask Mr Z a question, Mr A likes to interject, not giving him a chance to think for himself. That's not fair for any of us, especially Mr Z. He hasn't gotten the learning time focus that Mr A has and I need to improve upon that. Its hard though when Mr Z just wants to do whatever he wants. But, that's a goal for me, I guess... to focus on Mr Z's skills and knowledge a bit more than usual.

Anyway, I asked Mr Z specifically, while holding up two towers which one had more. He usually picked the correct tower that had the most. The blue towers tricked him though since they were equal. He didn't know how to answer that question.

Then Mr Z matched all the towers to the colors on the spinner.

This was a fantastic little game and so much more than just a game. We turned it into matching, counting, sorting and greater/less than. We all had a good time with this one, when we could all take turns properly.