Science in a Swag Bag by Shar Levine
Inside your bag you will find several items you can find around the house or at various fast food outlets. Here’s how to create some really cool science activities using inexpensive materials. Just in case you are visual learners, videos of all the activities can be found on the provided memory stick.
Take Flight
The pad of paper kindly supplied by Josh Rosenberg and Gordon Urquhart from Macdonald Realty is more than just advertising; it is also a science experiment that will help you understand why planes fly. Challenge your students by having them try this activity with papers of different sizes. Fold the paper in half so it looks like a wing. Does the shape make a difference to the lift of the paper?
1. Hold the edges of a piece of paper between the fingers of each hand, leaving the long ends of the paper hanging down.
2. Blow just on top of the edge of the piece of paper. Try blowing lightly, then take a deep breath and give a huge blow onto the paper.
What happened?
As you blew on the paper, it rose into the air. Moving air has pressure. When air is flowing quickly, its pressure gets lower, or decreases. Slower moving air, on the other hand, has higher pressure. The higher air pressure below the paper lifts it up. This principle of moving air and air pressure is what creates lift. The change in the pressure of moving air was discovered by a Swiss scientist named Daniel Bernoulli, so it is called the Bernoulli principle.
Rubber Band
Here’s a snappy activity that will teach you something about molecules and make you giggle. Challenge your students by asking them how to make a rubber band get hot without putting it someplace warm or without using something to warm it.
1. Hold the rubber band across your upper lip or forehead. Make note of the temperature- how does it feel?
2. Now, moving the rubber band away from your lip, quickly stretch and unstretch the band several times. Don’t stretch it so far that it breaks.
3. Put the rubber band back against your lip or forehead. Does it feel hot or cold?
What Happened?
Before you stretched the rubber band it felt cool. After you stretched it, the band felt warmer. When you stretched the rubber band you rearranged the molecules. The movement of the molecules created heat. So each time you stretched and unstretched the rubber band you put energy into the band, which was then released as heat.
Stick
This stick can do more than swirl sugar and cream in your beverage. It’s also the beginning of a science experiment. Challenge your students by asking them how to tell the time without a watch.
1. Find a sunny spot and push the stick upright into the ground, grass or even a flower pot. The stick is called a “gnomon”.
2. At first light, place a stone or pebble at the end of the shadow cast by the stick. Continue doing this once an hour on the hour. By day’s end, you will have made a sundial.
What Happened?
The shadow cast by the stick changed position and length throughout the day. For the next few weeks the shadow will match the pebbles at the same time each day. The length of the shadow will change throughout the year, becoming shorter in winter and longer in summer. Noon on a sundial is when the sun is at the highest point during the day and the shortest shadow will be cast.
“A.M” means ante meridiem or before noon, while “P.M.” means “post meridiem” or after noon.
Catsup Packet
Catsup is not only good on fries, it’s good in a pop bottle. Watch! Challenge students by asking them how you can get the packet to go from the top of the bottle to the bottom without turning the bottle upside down.
1. Fill a large clear plastic soda pop bottle with warm water. Drop the catsup, soy or mustard packet into the bottle. It should float near the middle of the bottle and not sink to the bottom.
2. Put a cap on the bottle, then squeeze the sides of the bottle.
NOTE: If the packet in your science swag bag doesn’t work, you might need to find one that has a bigger air pocket. Grab several from a fast food restaurant and see which ones float when put into a bowl of warm water.
What Happened?
You made something called a “Cartesian Diver”. The food packet contains a small amount of air. When you squeezed the sides of the bottle you compressed the air in the packet and the packet sank. When you let go of the sides of the bottle the air inside the packet expanded and the packet rose.
Salt and Pepper
Cut down your sodium intake by using salt for a science activity. Challenge your students to separate the salt from the pepper without touching the salt, pepper or plate. No blowing on the salt or pepper allowed.
1. Sprinkle the salt and pepper onto a plate and gently shake the plate to combine.
2. Blow up the balloon and tie it off. Rub the balloon on a wool sweater, or rub it on clean hair. Hold the charged balloon over the plate.
What Happened?
The pepper jumped from the plate onto the sides of the balloon but the salt stayed on the plate. It is easier to lift the pepper with the static charge because pepper weighs less than salt.
Popcorn Plant
Did you know that the popcorn sitting in your cupboard is a seed that can be grown into a plant? This is the perfect activity for a classroom or even a school.
1. Place about 1/4 cup of unpopped popcorn between a sheet of paper towelling or coffee filter paper. Wet the paper so that it is damp but not dripping.
2. Place the damp towelling with the popcorn in a ziplock plastic bag and seal. Put the bag in a warm place, like a sunny window. In several days the popcorn will begin to germinate.
3. When the popcorn has long roots, gently place the germinated seed into a small pot filled with potting soil. Place the pot in a sunny spot and watch the plant grow. Transplant the popcorn outdoors when there isn’t any danger of frost. Harvest the corn when the husks dry out. The ear of corn will only be about 10 cm long.