Science for the Non-Science Kid: The Cook

If your child is not interested in doing a science project, find what does interest him and look at the science behind it.

What if your child likes to cook? Really, the kitchen is a chemistry laboratory, and every meal is the result of a successful science experiment! Not sure how to convert a cooking session into a science fair project? You are in luck! There are a number of books and references to help you!

I have a copy of "Science Experiments You Can Eat" by Vicki Cobb (Illustrated by Peter Lippman). It has a experiments ranging from the simple (suitable for a kindergarten-level child) to quite complex.

"On Food and Cooking" by Harold McGee "Cook's Illustrated" Magazine are more comprehensive references. They are targeted towards the adult cook, and are focused on better meals rather than better science projects. Still, they are quite useful in understanding the science behind food preparation.

An advantage of a food-based science project is that it is easy to repeat. Running through an experiment several times makes for a better science project.

Science For the Non-Science Kid

I have one son who is a natural scientist. He is always doing experiments or collecting rocks or demonstrating the latest think he learned. The other son is pretty ambivalent about science, although he is keen on other academic subjects. I talked with a number of other parents in a similar predicament -- their child is apathetic, even hostile, to the idea of doing a science project.

How to get a decent science project out of a kid that could care less about science?
I am going to tackle this in a series of posts.

I don't have all the answers, so if you have something to add, chime in with a comment.

The basic strategy is:

• Keep exposing your child to science-type stuff. Something is bound to click. Set the example.
  
• Figure out what your child is good at, and build on that. Science permeates everything, so the thing your child is interested in probably has a potential science project that just needs to be figured out.
  
• Don't sweat it.
  

Turning Observations into an Experiment

Had an interesting conversation a couple of weeks ago. A friend called to ask about a good idea for an experiment. She was concerned, because they had done some observations of insects over the summer, but since the insects were gone, there was no way to test any hypothesis based on the observations. In the course of the conversation, however, she mentioned an idea her child had based on the insects' nest, which remained. It sounded like a great project.

Key to the development of a good hypothesis is familiarity with the subject. That comes from puttering around. Get your child's hands on the subject and soon you will get insightful questions and ideas.

"Thunderstruck", by Erik Larson (an excellent book, but NOT for elementary school students), discusses how Marconi and his contemporaries developed working radio transmitters without a good understanding of the underlying theory. The more they tinkered with the technology, the more instinctual understanding they had. This allowed them to design and conduct better experiments.

Items Not Allowed at the Austin Energy Regional Science Festival, as Interpreted by LOLCATS and Other Popular Internet Phenomena (Part Four)

"Do not cause injury or stress to any animals. This includes killing an animal, giving chemicals to an animal, or keeping an animal in a container not similar to its usual habitat. Remember that live animals will not be allowed at the Austin Energy Regional Science Festival."
--Elementary Division Handbook

Idea for Science Project

A few weeks ago, my son felt a bit sick. He was asking to take his temperature often. This led to an idea for a science project. I suggested he take his temperature every hour, then write down the temperature and, time of day, and what he had been doing.

He wasn't interested in doing that, but it still seems like a good science project to me. I think a few hundred years ago, some diligent fellow weighed himself constantly -- I think he had some sort of sling that he stayed in most of the time -- and recorded his activities, as well as dutifully weighing and classifying his intake and, um, output.

Astronomical Events

Winter is a great time for star watching. The long nights combine with the spectacular winter constellations for a fun star-watching experience. Astronomy is a good hobby for kids. It is cheap, easy to do, and the night sky is available anywhere in the world, as long as there is good weather.

We are fortunate in having an excellent local star-watching organization, the Austin Astronomical Society. They have good viewing information at their Web site and host youth activities.

http://meteorshowersonline.com shows that there is a meteor shower going on until the 25th of this month, the Ursids. Although this is not the largest meteor shower, it is easy to find in the sky, as the radiant point is between the Big Dipper and the North Star.

Explaining Collections

Had an interesting talk with a mother at the Celebrations Program. She wanted more guidance on how to do science projects, but in the course of our conversation, she mentioned a great tip.

Her daughter had done a collection-type science project. The judging notes asked why the student had used the classifications that she did.

The key to a good collection is to have a good classification of the objects in the collection. Classification criteria can be quite simple, but it is vital to explain the classification criteria and why you chose that set of criteria.

As an example, let's think about something basic: a collection of rocks can be classified by color, roughness, hardness, appearance, weight, attraction to a magnet, density, melting point, ability to be polished, location found...and I bet you can think of a dozen more. For just rocks.

Elementary school students are often not so good at explaining stuff. They have a lot of brilliant thoughts passing through their heads, but they may need help figuring out how those thoughts got started. Practicing their presentation can help. Have them talk a lot about their project -- to everyone and anyone who will listen. Grandma and Grandpa can help, but do not be hesitant about seeking out experts.

Returning to the rocks example, if my son did a rock collection, I would start at the Texas Memorial Museum. They have a nice minerals collection there, and I bet I could find a geologist who would be happy to discuss rocks with an elementary school child.

Santa Claus is Coming!

I've always suspected Santa Claus was a scientific sort of fellow. My theory is that he delivers all those presents by using the Heisenberg uncertainty principle to be in many places at once. That is probably why he does not want little children to spy on him. If they observe him, they can collapse the probability waveform and ruin the whole enterprise.

Maybe Santa will help with your science project by bringing some cool science toys.

Make Your Vacation a Science Project Vacation!

A lot of folks like to travel over the Winter break, and a lot of parents are getting nervous because their kids have not yet decided on a science fair project. Well, as I said before, it is best to let your children discover their project, but there are some creative ways of giving them a nudge in the right direction. Why not work a science museum visit into the vacation agenda? Usually, your child will come up with at least one good ideat!

Last year, we went to Southern California for our Christmas Vacation. While we were there, we mad time to visit two great science museums; the Page Museum at the La Brea Tar Pits and the Discovery Science Center in Orange County. The concept of large beasts mired in goo was irresistible to one child, so with a quick visit to the gift shop, we had the makings of a great diorama of a mammoth, stuck in tar, attacked by saber-toothed cats (which, we learned, were not really tigers -- Hmm). The Discovery Science Center had a exhibit on viscosity, which let us expand on this theme, and a cool presentation on taste and smell, which gave us a back-up project.

OK, so not everyone is going to Southern California. If you are traveling at all, check out to see if there is a science museum where you are going.

Does anyone have any "science on vacation" stories or tips on where to go?

I'm Back

OK, October and November were pretty hectic with Cub Scouts and work, but I am back!