Easy Science Experiments to Try with Your Kids at Home
We typically like to abide by the rule: “Don’t try this at home”. But sometimes, when people do science experiments at home they get some pretty cool results. And sometimes nature makes its own interesting experiments that remind us to be curious. While we don’t encourage doing most of these experiments without some expertise, we’ve gathered some experiments for you to admire. These are some cool science experiments that went right and we think you’ll agree, the results are pretty interesting.
Cracking a marble
This creative spirit wanted to discover what would happen if you heated up a marble over a flame and then immediately dropped it into cold water. As it turns out, the results are pretty cool! The marble is cracked all throughout the inside.
While it’s pretty fun to look at, we definitely don’t recommend trying this one at home. With the extreme change in temperature, the marble could explode and take an eye out. We’ll just admire from afar on this one.
Mist from a waterfall freezing against a cliff
Waterfalls are beautiful on their own, but add frozen mist to the mix and it looks like a winter wonderland. Mist off a waterfall can freeze if the temperatures drop rapidly, which makes it look like time froze the water in place (or maybe Elsa).
The waterfall itself doesn’t freeze because of the amount of water. However, the mist coming off of it can be almost frozen in place in extremely low temperatures. We’re adding seeing one of these to our bucket list right now.
Lightning striking sand
Someone walking along the beach came across this fascinating sand sculpture. If I found it I would have had no idea what could create it. As it turns out, lighting can strike the sand and petrify it, leaving it in this interesting shape that could be out of a Sci-Fi movie.
This formation is called a “fulgurite” and occurs when lightning hits sand at a certain temperature. They have been found all over the world but are pretty rare so if you see one, make sure to take a pic!
Polishing a coconut
Have you ever wondered what a coconut would look like completely polished? Neither have we, but now we’re happy we’ve seen it. We have to give it up for whoever had the time to polish this whole thing. How long do you think it took?
At first glance, the coconut is so smooth it could be a chocolate egg. If we had to guess what a naked coconut would look like, this is not it. While this is less of a science experiment and more of an interesting project, you can now say you’ve seen a hairless coconut.
Cabbage blooming
We’ve all left something in the fridge for far too long. Things get lost in the back and the smell usually reminds you about your forgotten food. Cabbage, if left for long enough, will begin to bloom into a beautiful plant that will eventually produce its own cabbage plants.
If you’re not fond of eating cabbage, you should consider using it as an aesthetic plant in your home. Trim it if you want to eat it or let it grow and use it as decoration! We think you’ll agree: It looks more interesting than it tastes.
Overcrowding Carrots
If you don’t have the green thumb, let us be the first to inform you that carrots need to be thinned out when you plant them, so they don’t overcrowd each other and end up in a tangled mess. Evenly space out your seeds if you don’t want the carrots to become intertwined while they’re growing underground.
However, if you want to grow a jumbled carrot family, be our guest. It will make for a cool picture, at least. Either way, they’ll taste delicious! We wonder why carrots twist together underground. Power in numbers?
Bacteria from an 8-year-old’s hand
Prepare yourself. This is a gross one. An 8-year-old put their hand in a petri dish and this is the bacteria that grew. We’re cringing too. It’s no secret that kids can be nasty, but seeing the germs on full display is pretty graphic.
It looks like this kid never washed their hands a day in their life. Grab the lysol wipes, stat! If you can get past the grossness, this would be an admittedly interesting science experiment to try yourself. Test yourself and see how clean you really are.
Leaving a bike outside for too long
One thing we’ve learned is that nature prevails! It can grow almost anywhere and in any conditions. This bike was left outside and moss started to grow in the crack in the seat. It’s probably not what they bought the bike for, but it’s pretty fascinating anyway.
If you look closely, it looks like a miniature forest, all in the seat of a bike. What we’ve learned here is that all nature needs is some sunlight and a little moisture to make a habitable home for itself.
Putting a highlighter in a microwave
The microwave is not typically the safest place to perform “do it yourself” experiments because of the potential for explosions and fire. We don’t know who the first person to put a highlighter in a microwave was, but they certainly discovered a pretty colorful result.
It almost looks like a smoke bomb went off. We’re 99% sure this is very unsafe, but it’s definitely fun to look at. How long do you think it took them to clean out their microwave? In this case we say: “Better them than us”.
Freeze drying gummy worms
Freeze drying almost anything is bound to result in something cool. We’re not sure who thought to freeze dry gummy worms but we are sure happy they did. They blow up and become crunchy but retain the same flavor (apparently).
So if you’ve ever found yourself craving a crunchy gummy worm, here’s your solution. If you can get past the cheese puffs texture, they probably taste really good! At the very least, they’re fun to look at.
Growing a pumpkin in a plastic mold
This is one of the more creative ways we’ve seen someone design a pumpkin. Forget pumpkin carving. This year, grow your own pumpkin in a mold of any shape you desire. While it will take some planning and forethought, the results are pretty amazing!
Choose any plastic mold and grow your pumpkin into an amazingly intricate design. While everyone else is carving pumpkins into jack-o-lanterns, you’ll have the most unique gourd on the block. Good luck growing a pumpkin, though. We don’t have tips for you there.