Learn how different colors interact with heat in this simple solar-powered activity!

This activity is geared toward elementary-level learners, but can easily scale up or down depending on existing science knowledge. Younger children may appreciate performing the experiment with less emphasis on the background and concluding information, while older students may choose to supplement this lesson with in-depth research on wavelengths and energy.

For centuries, spies, armies, and diplomats have used codes to transmit secret messages. In the present day, with so much of our data stored on computers, encryption of information has become even more important. Cryptography is the study of writing and breaking codes. Modern cryptography draws from mathematics and computer science to create more security.

Let’s learn about different encryption methods and use them to create an escape room in this all-ages activity!

This chemistry experiment uses an acid, vinegar, and, a base, salt, in one bowl to clean copper pennies, and in another bowl, just vinegar to turn a penny green! When dirty pennies are placed in vinegar and salt, the copper oxide on and some of the copper on the penny dissolve in the water and is removed from the pennies surface. When the penny is rinsed off and wiped clean, it looks brand new! When a penny is soaked in just vinegar, it speeds up the process of oxidation and over a few hours the penny will be greener.

Make your own bouncy ball with this easy at-home recipe

A fun all-ages activity, with adult supervision required for younger learners (mess potential!)

There are plenty of ways to crush a can using your own strength, but you can give your muscles a break and let physics do the work for you. Let’s collapse a can using only water, heat, and a physical phenomenon!

Adult supervision is a must for this activity!

I remember as a kid celebrating the Winter Solstice in my 2nd grade class. Leading up to the event, my teacher prepared us by learning the phases of the moon. We drew and colored in the cycles of the moon and learned why the moon looks the way it does throughout the month. While students are learning from home, I thought this fun and yummy activity would be a great addition to the blog to get kids at home interested in the learning the phases of the moon.

Have you seen the wave pendulum at the Discovery Center? It features golf balls hung from different length strings, and when you pull all the balls back at the same time, they swing back and forth at different rates. As they swing, they seems to form a wave shape. The way it works is almost like magic, but there’s no witchcraft involved—just physics! Since we can’t go to the Discovery Center’s wave pendulum right now, let’s make our own to play with at home!

This activity takes a bit of finesse and care to get right—good for older learners!

Erosion is a geologic process that wears down and moves rocks and soil. Most erosion is caused by wind, water, and ice, often in the form of glaciers. The surface of the earth is constantly changing due to erosion.

This activity is good for younger learners, and there is some mess potential!

Rock and soil samples reveal a lot about the chemistry, physical structure, and ability to support life on a planet, moon, or asteroid.

Can you complete this engineering challenge to design a device that takes core samples of a potato “asteroid”? This activity is geared toward upper-elementary and middle-school students.

An endothermic reaction is the absorption of energy, usually heat, that changes the chemical structure of a compound. One example of an endothermic reaction is cooking! In a recipe, how each ingredient reacts to heat affects the final product. Let’s see what certain ingredients in a cupcake contribute to the baked good by omitting them!

Good for all ages with adult supervision—oven use and mess potential!

Can you make Space Goo strong enough to protect an egg? Find out with this simple at-home activity! Hands-on fun for all ages, with adult supervision (mess potential!)

Learn about the chemical reaction of decomposition while making a sweet treat!

Adult supervision is strongly recommended for this activity—hot sugar can leave a pretty nasty burn.

We live in a three-dimensional space. That means that solid objects around us have length, width, and depth. In geometry, we can talk about specific types of solid objects, one type being Platonic solids.

This is a geometry activity that is good for all ages—some younger learners might need an adult’s help constructing the solids and there is a link to a deeper explanation of Euler’s Formula for more advanced learners!

Computers work by adding binary numbers using circuits of logic gates. In this module, learn about some of the most common types of logic gates, and model them by building circuits out of dominoes.

This module is geared toward upper-middle and high school students.

Weather: it’s more than just a conversation-starter.

What causes weather, how do we study it, and what is the weather like on other planets? Learn all about it in today’s lesson, geared toward middle-school learners!

We can study the way regular polygons interact with each other, and one way they can do so is through tessellations. A tessellation, also called a tiling, is a way to cover a surface with a repeating pattern of flat shapes such that there are no overlaps or gaps. A good example of a tessellation is actual tile, like what you would find on a bathroom floor.

This is a geometry activity that is good for all ages!

What did we know about the Moon before Apollo 11 landed there? Learn about the surface of the Moon and then make your own Moon sand with this fun at home activity.

Turn April showers into an opportunity for at-home science! In this all-ages activity, learn how to track rainfall using a simple homemade rain gauge.

Adult supervision required—sharp objects utilized in one step.

Try out this fun and yummy math activity using skittles! Learn the basics of fractions, decimals and percentages. Activity meant for kids grades 3-5, who already have a basic understanding of fractions (what a fraction is and addition of fractions). This video provides a visual for kids learning fractions.