If you’ve ever visited a beach on a hot day you may have found it to be windier by the sea than it is inland. Sea breezes are caused by convection currents. What is a sea breeze? Sea breezes occur on summer days because land heats up faster than the sea. Warm air rises as…
These simple ice decorations are very easy to make, look fantastic, and provide lots of learning opportunities as children observe water freezing, becoming ice, and then melting back into a liquid. Young children will enjoy feeling the ice ( let it melt a little first ) and trying to melt it by dropping warm water…
Lolly stick or popsicle stick catapults are very easy to make, provide hours of fun and are brilliant engineering and design projects. We made our popsicle stick catapults space-themed and turned table tennis balls into planets. There are so many different catapult designs and themes to choose from; you’ll be busy for weeks! Catapults are…
When part of a liquid or gas is heated, it expands and becomes less dense. The warmer, less dense liquid rises upwards, and the cooler liquid falls to take its place. This cycle of a liquid or gas rising and falling is called a convection current. Understanding convection currents helps children understand heat transfer, weather…
These summer STEM Challenges are great fun, no matter the weather, and they all use materials you’ve probably already got around the house. Make treasure maps, play dough models, fizzy potions, sugar cube towers, and find rainbows in bubbles. Gather together friends or family and start experimenting. We’ve got enough ideas to keep you busy…
If you’ve ever blown a dandelion that’s gone to seed, you’ve probably found that the little parachute-like seeds detach easily and seem quite delicate. However, dandelion seed puff balls are stronger than you think! A whole dandelion head can be placed in water and removed again, almost completely undamaged! What happens to a dandelion in…
What is STEM? STEM is an acronym for science, technology, engineering and maths. It encompasses a huge range of disciplines related to the topics above. STEM education is an approach to teaching that combines science, technology, engineering and maths with a big emphasis on technology connecting traditional learning in the classroom with creative real world…
BrushBots are super simple mini robots that only need a few bits of inexpensive kit to create. All the materials can be reused in other robotics projects too. They are easy to build and can be customised in many different ways! These mini robots can be made as a class science project, a simple STEM…
If you love chocolate, this is the STEM challenge for you! All you need is a bar of chocolate, a warm sunny day and some bubble wrap, kitchen foil and black or white paper. The challenge is to find a way to package a chocolate bar so it doesn’t melt in the sun. This activity…
One of the things I love the most about Science Sparks is theming our activities, so today I’ve got some great Under the Sea themed learning ideas to share. These are mostly suitable for Early Years/Kindergarten age, but all could be extended for older children too. If you like these activity ideas, remember to check…
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