Try-it Lab: easy experiments for kids at home

You need

• A sunny day
• A stick or a pencil
• A lump of modelling clay
• Chalk or small pebbles
• A watch or a clock

What to do

1. Go outside with a grown-up on a sunny morning.
2. Stand the stick up in the clay on flat ground.
3. Mark the tip of the stick’s shadow with chalk or a pebble.
4. Come back every hour and mark the shadow again.
5. Look at your marks. How did the shadow move and change?
6. Remember to look at the shadow, never at the Sun.

You need

• A lamp without a shade
• A ball, about the size of an orange
• A dark room

What to do

1. Ask a grown-up to switch on the lamp and darken the room. Do not touch the bulb, it gets hot.
2. Stand facing the lamp. Hold the ball out in front of you, a little above your head.
3. Turn slowly to your left, keeping the ball in front of your face.
4. Watch the lit part of the ball grow from a thin crescent to a full circle.
5. Keep turning and watch it shrink again.

You need

• A large watermelon
• A smaller melon
• 2 oranges
• 2 grapes
• A pea and a peppercorn
• Paper and a pen for labels

What to do

1. Use the watermelon for Jupiter and the smaller melon for Saturn.
2. Use the oranges for Uranus and Neptune.
3. Use the grapes for Earth and Venus, the pea for Mars and the peppercorn for Mercury.
4. Lay them in a line in the right order from the Sun, with a label for each.
5. Guess how many grapes would fit across the watermelon. About 11 Earths fit across Jupiter.

You need

• A clear, dark night
• Warm clothes
• A blanket to lie on
• A torch covered with red paper

What to do

1. Go outside with a grown-up to a dark place, away from bright lights.
2. Switch off your torch and wait about 20 minutes.
3. Let your eyes get used to the dark. You will see more and more stars.
4. Find a bright star low in the sky and watch it twinkle.
5. Look for a bright light that does not twinkle. It might be a planet!

You need

• Paper
• A pencil
• Your imagination

What to do

1. Imagine you are flying to the space station for one week.
2. Write down 10 things you would take with you.
3. Look at each thing. Would it float away, make crumbs or need lots of water?
4. Cross out anything that would not work in space.
5. Add one small thing that would make you smile far from home.

You need

• A shallow dish or a plant saucer
• Pebbles or marbles
• Water
• A sunny spot near some flowers

What to do

1. Put the dish in a quiet, sunny spot near some flowers.
2. Fill it with pebbles or marbles.
3. Pour in water until it covers the bottom. The tops of the pebbles should stay dry.
4. Watch quietly from a little distance. Never try to touch a bee.
5. Change the water every day so it stays fresh.

You need

• A calm, friendly cat
• The cat’s owner nearby
• A quiet room

What to do

1. Ask the cat’s owner if it is OK to say hello.
2. Sit still and let the cat come to you. Hold out a hand so it can sniff it.
3. Watch the tail. A tail held up high often means the cat is happy to see you.
4. Watch the ears. Ears pressed flat back mean “please leave me alone”.
5. If the cat stays, stroke it gently along its back, the way the fur grows.
6. Stop if it walks away or its tail starts to swish.

You need

• A fish tank or a pond
• A watch or clock that shows seconds
• Paper and a pencil

What to do

1. Find a fish in a fish tank or a pond. Go with a grown-up.
2. Watch the flaps on the side of its head open and close.
3. Count how many times they open in one minute. Write down your number.
4. Watch a different fish and count again. Which one breathes faster?
5. Do not tap on the glass or put your hands in the water.

You need

• A notebook
• A pencil
• A window with a view of trees or a garden
• A bird book or bird poster, if you have one

What to do

1. Choose a window and watch it for 10 minutes on the same day each week.
2. Draw or write down every bird you see.
3. Note the date and the weather.
4. Look up the names of birds you do not know with a grown-up.
5. After a few months, compare your pages. Which birds left, and which ones arrived?

You need

• A big open space, like a park or a playground
• 2 markers, like jumpers or hats
• A grown-up to help

What to do

1. Go to a big open space with a grown-up.
2. Put down the first marker. This is the whale’s nose.
3. Ask the grown-up to walk in a straight line with big steps, each about 1 metre long.
4. Count the steps out loud. After 30 steps, put down the second marker. This is the tail.
5. Now walk from nose to tail with your own steps. How many do you need?
6. Look back along your whale. That is how long a big blue whale can be!

You need

• A tall clear glass
• Water
• Milk
• A spoon
• A torch
• A dark room

What to do

1. Fill the glass with water.
2. Add a few drops of milk and stir.
3. Darken the room and shine the torch through the side of the glass.
4. Look at the water from the side. It looks a little blue.
5. Now look through the glass straight at the torch. The light looks orange, like a sunset.

You need

• A clear glass
• Water
• A sheet of white paper
• A sunny table

What to do

1. Fill the glass with water almost to the top.
2. Stand the glass on a table in bright sunshine.
3. Lay the white paper on the table next to the glass.
4. Move the paper slowly around until a small rainbow appears on it.
5. Count the colours you can see. Which one is at the edge?

You need

• A clear zip bag
• Water
• Blue food colouring
• A marker pen
• Sticky tape
• A sunny window

What to do

1. Draw a sun and some clouds on the bag with the marker.
2. Pour a little water into the bag and add one drop of food colouring.
3. Close the bag tightly.
4. Ask a grown-up to help you tape it to a sunny window.
5. Check it every few hours. Look for tiny drops near the top and little streams running down.

You need

• A small plastic cup
• A tray
• Modelling clay or damp sand
• 2 spoons of baking soda
• Vinegar
• Red food colouring

What to do

1. Put the cup in the middle of the tray.
2. Build a mountain of clay or sand around the cup. Leave the top of the cup open.
3. Put the baking soda and a few drops of food colouring into the cup.
4. Ask your grown-up to pour in some vinegar.
5. Stand back a little and watch your volcano bubble over!

You need

• 2 small pots or saucers
• Cotton wool
• Cress seeds
• Water
• A sunny windowsill
• A dark cupboard

What to do

1. Put damp cotton wool in both pots.
2. Sprinkle cress seeds on top.
3. Put one pot on a sunny windowsill and the other in a dark cupboard.
4. Water both pots a little every day.
5. After about a week, compare them. What looks different?

You need

• A notebook
• A pencil
• A clock

What to do

1. Write the days of the week in your notebook.
2. Each night, write down what time you go to bed.
3. Each morning, write down what time you wake up.
4. Write how you feel: sleepy, okay or full of energy.
5. After a week, count your hours. Do you feel better after a long night’s sleep?

You need

• A clock or timer
• A friend or grown-up to time you
• Paper
• A pencil

What to do

1. Sit still for a minute.
2. Put two fingers on the inside of your wrist, just below your thumb.
3. Press gently until you feel a little beat.
4. Count the beats while someone times 1 minute. Write the number down.
5. Now jump on the spot for 1 minute, then count again. What has changed?

You need

• A comfy place to sit
• Paper
• A pencil

What to do

1. Press gently on the front of your knee. Can you feel your kneecap move?
2. Run your fingers along your side and count some of your ribs.
3. Bend your fingers and feel the bumps of your knuckles.
4. Count the bones you can feel in one finger. Is your thumb different?
5. Draw the bones you found on your paper.

You need

• A small piece of plain bread
• A glass of water
• A grown-up

What to do

1. Ask a grown-up for a small piece of plain bread.
2. Take a bite and chew slowly. Do not swallow yet.
3. Keep chewing for about a minute.
4. Notice the taste. Your saliva is turning some of the bread into sugar, so it may taste a little sweeter.
5. Swallow, then have a sip of water.

You need

• Your toothbrush
• Toothpaste
• A timer or a song that lasts 2 minutes

What to do

1. Put a pea-sized blob of toothpaste on your brush.
2. Start your timer or your song.
3. Brush the outside of your top teeth, then the inside.
4. Brush the outside of your bottom teeth, then the inside.
5. Brush the chewing tops at the back. Spit out the toothpaste when the time is up.

You need

• A sheet of paper
• A pencil
• 2 or 3 helpers from your family or class

What to do

1. Write a short secret message on the paper, like “Meet me by the door”.
2. Tear the paper into 4 pieces, with one or two words on each.
3. Number the pieces from 1 to 4 and write the name of the person who gets them.
4. Give each piece to a different helper. Each helper walks a different way round the room.
5. The receiver collects all the pieces and puts them in number order. Can they read the message?

You need

• A sheet of paper
• A long room or hallway
• A pencil and a notebook

What to do

1. Fold a simple paper plane. Throw it gently and count how far it flies in big steps.
2. Fold the back edges of both wings up a little. Throw it again.
3. Now fold the back edges down a little and try once more.
4. Write down which plane flew the furthest. Can you work out why?
5. Always throw your plane away from people’s faces.

You need

• A friend or grown-up to be the robot
• A soft toy to be the treasure
• A room with a clear floor

What to do

1. Hide the soft toy somewhere in the room.
2. Your friend is the robot. The robot can only do exactly what you say.
3. Give one instruction at a time, like “Take 2 steps forward” or “Turn left”.
4. Keep the path clear, so the robot cannot trip over anything.
5. If the robot goes the wrong way, fix your instructions and try again.
6. Swap roles. Who wrote the best program?

You need

• Paper
• A pencil
• A grown-up to walk round with you

What to do

1. Walk round your home with a grown-up. Look, but do not touch any plugs or sockets.
2. Write down everything that uses electricity. Remember things that need charging.
3. Count how many things you found in each room.
4. Spot three things that are switched on but not being used.
5. Make a family list of ways to save energy, like switching off lights when you leave a room.

You need

• A fridge magnet or another small magnet
• Paper
• A pencil

What to do

1. Draw two columns on your paper. Call them “Sticks” and “Does not stick”.
2. Walk around your home or classroom with the magnet.
3. Gently touch the magnet to spoons, keys, doors, toys and anything else you find.
4. Keep the magnet away from screens, computers and cards.
5. Write each thing in the right column. Which ones surprised you?

You need

• A ball of salt dough or modelling clay
• A small toy dinosaur or a shell
• A cup or a rolling pin
• A tray

What to do

1. Flatten the dough into a thick circle on the tray with the cup or rolling pin.
2. Press the dinosaur’s feet or the shell firmly into the dough.
3. Lift it out carefully and look at the print.
4. Leave your print somewhere dry for a few days so it goes hard.
5. Swap prints with a friend. Can they guess what made each one?

You need

• 55 sugar cubes or small building blocks
• A tray or a plate

What to do

1. Lay 25 cubes in a square, 5 long and 5 wide. This is the bottom layer.
2. Build the next layer with 16 cubes, 4 by 4, in the middle.
3. Add a layer of 9 cubes, then a layer of 4 cubes.
4. Put 1 cube on the very top.
5. You used 55 cubes. The Great Pyramid needed about 2.3 million blocks!

You need

• Paper
• A pencil
• Play dough or modelling clay
• A lolly stick

What to do

1. Write your name in big capital letters.
2. Invent a rune for each letter. Use only straight lines, just like Viking carvers.
3. Write your name again in your new runes.
4. Flatten the play dough and carve your runes into it with the lolly stick.
5. Ask a friend to crack your secret code!

You need

• Empty boxes and cardboard tubes
• Sticky tape
• Child-safe scissors
• String
• Pens or paints
• A big sheet of paper

What to do

1. Draw a plan of your castle on the big sheet of paper. Mark the keep, the walls, the gatehouse and the moat.
2. Use a big box for the keep and tubes for the towers.
3. Cut square gaps along the tops of the walls to make battlements.
4. Make a drawbridge from card and string, so it can go up and down.
5. Colour the moat blue around your castle.

You need

• Play dough or modelling clay
• A lolly stick
• A smooth cup

What to do

1. Roll the dough flat with the cup to make a tablet about the size of your hand.
2. Press the corner of the lolly stick into the dough to make wedge marks.
3. Invent a wedge sign for each thing you want to count, like apples or cats.
4. Write a short list, such as 3 apples and 2 cats.
5. Leave your tablet to dry. Can someone in your family read it?

You need

• A globe or a world map
• An atlas or a book about flags
• Paper
• Coloured pencils

What to do

1. Choose five countries you would like to know more about.
2. Find each country on the globe or map.
3. Look up its flag in the atlas or book.
4. Draw each flag and write the country’s name underneath.
5. Cover the names and ask someone to guess each country.

You need

• Paper
• A pencil
• A friend or grown-up to practise with

What to do

1. Learn hello and thank you in Spanish: “hola” and “gracias”.
2. Learn hello and thank you in French: “bonjour” and “merci”.
3. Learn hello and thank you in German: “hallo” and “danke”.
4. Write all six words on your paper.
5. Greet someone in a different language each day this week.

You need

• A torch
• An orange or a small ball
• A small sticker
• A dark room
• A helper

What to do

1. Put the sticker on the orange. The sticker is you.
2. Darken the room and ask your helper to shine the torch at the orange.
3. Hold the orange at the top and bottom, and turn it slowly.
4. Watch the sticker move into the light. That is sunrise.
5. Keep turning until the sticker moves into the dark. Now it is night for you.

You need

• A grown-up you know
• Paper
• A pencil
• Coloured pencils

What to do

1. Think of three questions, like “What did you wear?” and “What was your favourite lesson?”
2. Write your questions on the paper.
3. Ask your grown-up and write down the answers.
4. Draw their school next to a picture of your school.
5. Talk about what has changed and what is still the same.

You need

• A world map drawn or printed on paper
• Coloured pencils
• Scissors
• A sheet of card

What to do

1. Colour each continent in a different colour.
2. Write the name of each continent on it.
3. Carefully cut out the seven continents.
4. Mix up the pieces on the table.
5. Put them back in the right places on the card. Time yourself and try to get faster.

You need

• A quiet place to sit or stand
• Your imagination

What to do

1. Sit or stand comfortably and let your shoulders drop.
2. Imagine you are holding a beautiful flower.
3. Smell the flower. Breathe in slowly through your nose.
4. Now imagine a fluffy dandelion. Blow its seeds away slowly through your mouth.
5. Do this five times. Notice how your body feels afterwards.

You need

• Paper or card
• Coloured pencils or pens
• An envelope, if you like

What to do

1. Think of a friend, or someone in your class.
2. Write down one thing you like about them.
3. Add a drawing, like a sun, a heart or their favourite animal.
4. Fold the note or put it in the envelope.
5. Give it to them and watch them smile.

You need

• A friend or someone in your family
• A clock or timer, if you like

What to do

1. Sit down facing each other.
2. Look into each other’s eyes and keep a straight face.
3. Try not to laugh, giggle or even smile.
4. The first one to laugh loses. Then play again.
5. Make it harder by pulling funny faces, without touching each other.

You need

• Paper
• A pencil
• Coloured pencils

What to do

1. Think of something that gives you butterflies.
2. Write it at the top of your paper.
3. Draw a staircase with three steps underneath.
4. On each step, write one small thing that gets you closer.
5. Colour in each step when you have done it, and share your plan with a grown-up you trust.

You need

• A sheet of paper
• A ruler
• A pencil
• Coloured pencils or pens

What to do

1. Draw seven boxes on your paper, one for each day of the week.
2. Write a small kind idea in each box, like “Say thank you to someone.”
3. Do one kind act each day.
4. Colour in the box when you have done it.
5. At the end of the week, talk about how it felt.