Science & STEM

Science with young children is not about explaining. It is about noticing: will this float, what happens if we add more, why did that one fall over. The activity gives you the question; the talking afterwards is where most of the thinking happens.

Everything here works with kitchen materials — water, bicarbonate of soda, vinegar, food colouring, cardboard, string, tape. None of it needs a kit, and none of it requires you to know the answer in advance. "Let's find out" is a complete response.

Several of these fail the first time on purpose. A marble run that works immediately teaches far less than one that needs three attempts, and children who are allowed to fix things stay with a problem much longer than children who are shown the answer.