Table of Contents
Introduction 1
How to Use This Book 2
Everyday Technology
6 Quick Challenges 6
How Do Microwaves Heat Food? 7
Melting at the Speed of Light 8
How Do Mirrors Reflect Images? 10
Build a Fun House Mirror 11
Make a Colorful Kaleidoscope 12
How Do Rockets Fly? 14
Balloon-Powered Rockets 16
How Does Glue Hold Things Together? 18
Artwork that Sticks 19
How Do Batteries Power Devices? 20
Make a Lemon Battery 22
How Do Bridges Hold Weight? 24
Build A Bridge 26
How Does an Umbrella Open? 28
Design an Umbrella 29
How Do Light Bulbs Light Up? 30
Set Up a Circuit 32
Human Beings
6 Quick Challenges 36
How Does Hair Grow? 37
Make Your Own Shampoo 38
Hair Strength Investigation 39
How Do We Sneeze? 40
Achoo Challenge 42
How Do We Fall Asleep? 44
Keep a Dream Journal 45
How Do Ice-Cream Headaches Happen? 46
Homemade Ice Cream 48
How Do Baby Teeth Fall Out? 50
Make "Tooth Plaque" 51
How Do We Taste Food? 52
Colorful Taste Test 54
How Do We Hiccup? 56
Build a Model Diaphragm 58
How Do Fingers Become Wrinkly in Water? 60
Wrinkly Skin Challenge 61
Amazing Animals
6 Quick Challenges 64
How Do Chameleons Change Color? 65
Warming Up with Color 66
Colorful Games 67
How Do Flamingos Balance on One Leg? 68
Balance Challenges 69
Balance a Flamingo on One Leg 70
How Do Dogs' Noses Pick Up So Many Scents? 72
Scent Matching Game 73
How Do Snakes Slither? 74
Build a Bubble Snake 76
How Do Animals Hibernate? 78
Heart Rate Investigation 79
How Do Cats Land on Their Feet? 80
Finding Gravity 82
How Do Bats Navigate in the Dark? 84
Echolocation Experiment 85
How Does a Whale's Blowhole Work? 86
Make a Waterspout 88
How Do Butterflies Communicate? 90
Plant a Butterfly Garden 92
Digging Up Dinosaurs
6 Quick Challenges 96
How Do We Know About Dinosaurs? 97
Create Fossilized Prints 99
Make Fossils Out of Glue 100
How Did the Dinosaurs Go Extinct? 102
Impact Crater Experiment 104
How Did Dinosaurs Care for Their Babies? 106
Bubbly Dinosaur Eggs 108
How Fast Did T. Rex Run? 110
Analyze Fossil Footprints 112
How Did Triceratops Use Its Horns? 114
Observe a Living Dinosaur 116
How Did Dinosaurs Stay Balanced? 118
Dinosaur Marshmallow Model 120
The Great Outdoors
6 Quick Challenges 124
How Do Plants Drink Water? 125
Change a Flower's Color 126
Wandering Colors 127
How Do Mountains Form? 128
How Do Earthquakes Happen? 129
Edible Tectonic Plates 130
Gelatin Earthquake 131
Build a Seismograph 132
How Do Volcanoes Erupt? 134
Make an Apple Eruption 136
Create an Underwater Volcano 137
How Do Flowers Get Their Scents? 138
Make Rose Potpourri 140
Keep Flowers Smelling Fresh 141
How Do Icicles Become Pointy? 142
Make Rainbow Icicles 144
How Do Deserts Get Sand? 146
Close-Up on Sand 148
How Do Tree Leaves Change Color? 150
Leaf Chromatography 152
Wild Weather
6 Quick Challenges 156
How Do Clouds Get Their Shapes? 157
Become a Meteorologist 158
Cloud in a Jar 159
How Does Lightning Happen? 160
Light It Up 162
How Do Animals Sense a Storm Coming? 164
Make a Barometer 166
Altitude and Air Pressure 168
How Does the Wind Blow? 170
Watery Wind Model 172
How Does Rain Fall from the Sky? 174
Make It Rain 176
Whipped Cream Cloud 177
How Does a Tornado Start and Stop? 178
Sparkly Tornado 180
How Do Rainbows Form? 182
Make a Rainbow 183
The Ocean
6 Quick Challenges 186
How Deep Is the Ocean? 187
Mapping the Ocean Floor 188
How Far Can Ocean Waves Travel? 190
Ocean in a Bottle 192
How Did the Ocean Get So Salty? 194
Saltwater Rainbow 196
Floating Grape Experiment 197
How Do Coral Reefs Grow? 198
Edible Polyps 200
How Does Seafoam Form? 202
Frothy Foam Fun 204
How Do Marine Animals Stay Warm? 206
Blubber Mitten 208
Outer Space
6 Quick Challenges 212
How Did the Moon Form? 213
Design a Moon Phase Calendar 214
How Does the Sun Heat Earth? 216
Solar S'mores 218
Sun Prints 219
How Do Eclipses Happen? 220
Solar Eclipse Crackers 222
How Did We Put a Rover on Mars? 224
Pasta Planet Rover 226
How Did Saturn Get Its Rings? 228
Saturn's Not-So-Solid Rings 229
How Do Black Holes Work? 230
Explore Black Holes 232
How Do Meteor Showers Happen? 234
Marshmallow Meteorites 236
How Did Constellations Get Their Names? 238
Create a New Constellation 240
Make a Constellation Projector 241
Fantastic Food
6 Quick Challenges 244
How Do Fizzy Drinks Get Their Bubbles? 245
Raisin Elevator 246
Mix Milk and Cola 247
How Do Pumpkins Grow So Big? 248
Make Pumpkin Slime 250
How Are Fruits Different from Vegetables? 252
Cranberry Juice Code 254
Ripen Fruit Faster 255
How Do Popcorn Kernels Pop? 256
Perfect Popcorn 258
How Do Onions Make Your Eyes Water? 260
Grow an Onion Garden 262
How Do Apples Turn Brown? 264
Fresh Apples 266
How Is Rock Candy Made? 268
Make Rock Candy 270
How Does Eating Mint-Flavored Things Make You Feel Cold? 272
Sweet Sparks 274
Fun and Games
6 Quick Challenges 278
How Do Parachutes Open and Float? 279
Parachute Challenge 280
How Do Fireworks Explode? 282
Fireworks in a Glass 284
How Are Crayons Made? 286
Make a Crayon Candle 288
How Does a Moving Bike Stay Upright? 290
Egg Helmet 292
How Do Bubbles Form? 294
Experiment with Bubbles 296
How Do Lava Lamps Work? 298
Lava Lamp 300
How Do Roller Coasters Make Riders Feel Weightless? 302
Build a Roller Coaster 304
Making a Difference
6 Quick Challenges 308
How Do Community Gardens Work? 309
Build a Community Garden 310
How Can We Project Animals Like Bees? 312
Build a Bee Hotel 314
How Do We Reduce Food Waste? 316
Composting in Action 317
How Do Wind and Water Create Power? 318
Build a Pinwheel 319
How Does Planting Trees Help the Planet? 320
Make an Herbarium 321
How Does Recycling Work? 322
Repurpose Old Things into New Stuff 324
How Can We Clean Plastic from Our Seas? 326
Design an Ocean Cleaning Machine 327
Resources 328
Index 332
Credits 339
