Experiment Tips
Guidance for parents, teachers, and science club leaders:
- Enthusiastic Attitude
Show genuine excitement for topics and activities. Encourage students to
take some risks, to try new things, and to make mistakes. Lessons are
designed for discovery and experimenting. Many are make-and-take-home
projects.
- Preparation
Know the experiment well–maybe try it yourself ahead of time. Note
safety precautions. Have plenty of materials for every child, pair, or
small group. Be sure you have enough time to do the activity without
rushing.
- Rooms & Space
Most experiments can be messy; avoid carpeted rooms. Arrange rooms so
everyone has elbow room to build, make, and try out things. Put
materials out where everyone has easy access to them. We suggest
arranging students in a circle or semicircle during discussions, student
presentations, or demonstrations.
- Participation
Be sure every student is active and involved. If working in pairs or
small groups, be sure everyone has a role and no one is taking over by
doing everything.
- Journals
Encourage students to keep journals about experiments. Entries might
include a brief description of the project, theories, observations,
reflections, feelings, questions, summaries of what was learned,
information about related careers, or how the topic is related to the
"real world". Some may keep a separate vocabulary section.
- Careers
Invite community people to visit and share jobs, careers, and hobbies
related to projects. Suggest visitors keep their talks short.
Encourage visitors to bring some hands-on things and visuals to share.
If possible, take tours to see careers in action. Remind all visitors
to reinforce importance of math and science literacy and classes.
- Students As Teachers
When possible, encourage students to teach and share experiments with
other children. Over time, some students may feel comfortable being
Science Club Leaders for groups of younger children. Remember the saying
that "you really know something when you can teach it to someone else."