It was hard at first to wrap my brain around doing a science based session of story times as a stay alone program for 10 4-5 yr olds for 30 minutes. In my 9 years of experience, I've never hosted a stay alone story time (crazy right?). How do I even begin? How messy should I get? What happens since I'm by myself trying to conduct experiments without parental help? What about food allergies? What kinds of questions do I ask? I decided that the whole session would be us pretending to be
scientists, using their tools, and experimenting/observing a new theme
each week.
One of my main concerns was organizing the flow. I like stations but it's hard to do that without more supervision so we tried to do as much as possible as a group first and then had a few choices to play with afterwards.
This was a great jumping off point for me from the Boston Children's Museum STEM Family Activity Guide & the Boston Children's Museum Sprouts.
Then I went to Pinterest for the rest. It's amazing how much comes up when you use the keywords Preschool, STEM and sensory.
Here is my outline of the sessions with some tips I learned along the way.
Class 1: What is a Scientist?
THE PLAN:
Book: What is a Scientist? by Barbara Lehn
We discussed the 5 senses that scientist use to experiment and observe.
Introduced magnifying glass
5 Senses song from Hi 5
Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes song
Magnet board game with 5 senses
Sound: Animal sound app guessing game
Touch: Mystery Box
Sight: Eye Spy with chalkboard dice
Take Home: worksheet exploring the 5 Senses at home
WHAT REALLY HAPPENED:
Using the songs was really jarring for them and I don't think they got much out of it. I actually over-planned this one as a group. I think this is one of the few that would have been OK with stations and have the kids choose where to go themselves after the magnet board game. It's hard with all the allergies worries to do anything with taste or scent so I stayed away from it but we did talk about it.
2. Color
THE PLAN:
Talk about scientists and how they use their 5 senses to experiment and observe
Book: Mouse Paint by Ellen Walsh (alternative: White Rabbits Color Book by Alan Baker)
Color Wheel discussion with them filling in color worksheet
Flashlights with CDs and color paddles to explore prisms and color mixing
Colors of the rainbow Song by Singing Time with construction paper
Talked about eye droppers and safety goggles
Color Volcanoes with baking soda, food coloring, and vinegar
Take Home: Color Wheel bookmark
WHAT REALLY HAPPENED: The song once again was too fast and the kids were far beyond color recognition anyway. Make sure to have enough supplies for EVERY kid each time something is passed out. I also passed out markers so kids could fill in their own color wheels but it would have been a better take home or station project with marbles or buttons. The kids loved the volcanoes. I should have went from the color wheel diagram with color paddles straight to the volcanoes. I had tubes full of baking soda and cups of mixtures of vinegar and food coloring on the side with eye droppers. This is very messy so take predations especially with their clothing. It was good practice with the droppers. Be aware that some kids might not want to get messy and have something for them too (I just left the color paddles out and the flashlights).
3. Sink or Float
THE PLAN:
Talk about scientists and how they use their 5 senses to experiment and observe
Book: Does it Sink or Float? by David Adler (did the experiments in the book as we read)
Experimented with various objects as a group with a Tupperware bin full of water ie: rocks, cups, balls, spoon, ice cubes, coins. Passed a cup around to talk about weight before/after water in it.
Introduced scales and weighing objects to make predictions
Pre-filled water table with Sink or Float kit from Lakeshore
Take Home: Sink or Float worksheet at home
WHAT REALLY HAPPENED:
I thought the water table would be a sure hit and it was for some kids but many just wanted to hang out by the scales and weigh things so I brought out marbles and anything else I had handy so they could compare. If I had more hands for this one, I would have separated more of the experiments in the Sink/Float kit and guided them a bit more scientifically. Most kids just dumped as many stones/animals as they could until it sunk. A count of the stones and weigh in would have been better.
4. Matter
THE PLAN:
Talk about scientists and how they use their 5 senses to experiment and observe
Book: What is the World Made Of? by David Adler (passed around objects and talked about it's state: Solid, Liquid or Gas following book's model. They didn't like the lavender scent I sprayed during the air test)
Made Slime with liquid starch, Elmers glue, and food coloring in Tupperware.
Take Home: The slime
WHAT REALLY HAPPENED:
This one was my favorite of the series. The kids loved the slime part and it was few enough ingredients that I let them experiment with pouring different amounts in and pointing out the differences between the two. Liquid starch was the gluten free option but it seemed watery. Borax might have been a better choice even though it's more toxic.
5. Air & Bubbles
THE PLAN:
Talk about scientists and how they use their 5 senses to experiment and observe
Book: Pop: A Book About Bubbles by Kimberly Bradley
Talked about air in our lungs and how it can blow up balloons, make pinwheels go or even through a straw to push a ball.
Had ball races
Talked about blowing bubbles: do they have a shape?
Bubble experiments using sugar, honey, salt, vegetable oil, liquid starch, glycerin.What works? (I premixed all this)
Introduce measuring cups
One tub of regular bubble solution: 1 cup water for every 1/4 cup dish detergent with different utensils like slotted spoon, colander, bubble wands, and pipe cleaners to experiment. Do bubbles change shape? Can you touch a bubble without popping?
Graduation Handout: STEM tip sheet from BCM sprouts
WHAT REALLY HAPPENED: This one had a classic case of many kids not wanting to get messy so they spent 15 minutes with straws trying to move balls around the room and have races. I had different weighted balls and taped them up a race track to try. Meanwhile, 2 kids were going nuts pouring stuff into our huge experimental tub (created on the spot) to see if the bubbles would blow after adding the solutions mixed with each ingredient. They LOVED pouring (but pre portion stuff). After about 1/2 of the salt container went in, we could safely conclude that after adding the salt, the bubble solution does not work.
CONCLUSIONS:
Find things with only a few ingredients so they can pour themselves
Go over different scientist tools and leave time for them to play with them
Keep repeating vocabulary but only a few things like Experiment, Observe, and Predict and use them every class
Focus on simple scientific topics: Air, water, light. They're only 4!
It was good to always talk about the rules and what a scientist does before each class
No songs (at least due to time constraints)
Plan for clean up (usually 1/2 hour) and towels, LOTS OF TOWELS
30 minutes wasn't enough, next time I'd go 45.
Always have on hand another experiment for kids that don't want to get messy or become sensory overstimulated
Get someone to take pictures (my hands were always dirty).
One of my main concerns was organizing the flow. I like stations but it's hard to do that without more supervision so we tried to do as much as possible as a group first and then had a few choices to play with afterwards.
This was a great jumping off point for me from the Boston Children's Museum STEM Family Activity Guide & the Boston Children's Museum Sprouts.
Then I went to Pinterest for the rest. It's amazing how much comes up when you use the keywords Preschool, STEM and sensory.
Here is my outline of the sessions with some tips I learned along the way.
Class 1: What is a Scientist?
THE PLAN:
Book: What is a Scientist? by Barbara Lehn
We discussed the 5 senses that scientist use to experiment and observe.
Introduced magnifying glass
5 Senses song from Hi 5
Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes song
Magnet board game with 5 senses
Sound: Animal sound app guessing game
Touch: Mystery Box
Sight: Eye Spy with chalkboard dice
Take Home: worksheet exploring the 5 Senses at home
WHAT REALLY HAPPENED:
Using the songs was really jarring for them and I don't think they got much out of it. I actually over-planned this one as a group. I think this is one of the few that would have been OK with stations and have the kids choose where to go themselves after the magnet board game. It's hard with all the allergies worries to do anything with taste or scent so I stayed away from it but we did talk about it.
2. Color
THE PLAN:
Talk about scientists and how they use their 5 senses to experiment and observe
Book: Mouse Paint by Ellen Walsh (alternative: White Rabbits Color Book by Alan Baker)
Color Wheel discussion with them filling in color worksheet
Flashlights with CDs and color paddles to explore prisms and color mixing
Colors of the rainbow Song by Singing Time with construction paper
Talked about eye droppers and safety goggles
Color Volcanoes with baking soda, food coloring, and vinegar
Take Home: Color Wheel bookmark
3. Sink or Float
THE PLAN:
Talk about scientists and how they use their 5 senses to experiment and observe
Book: Does it Sink or Float? by David Adler (did the experiments in the book as we read)
Experimented with various objects as a group with a Tupperware bin full of water ie: rocks, cups, balls, spoon, ice cubes, coins. Passed a cup around to talk about weight before/after water in it.
Introduced scales and weighing objects to make predictions
Pre-filled water table with Sink or Float kit from Lakeshore
Take Home: Sink or Float worksheet at home
I thought the water table would be a sure hit and it was for some kids but many just wanted to hang out by the scales and weigh things so I brought out marbles and anything else I had handy so they could compare. If I had more hands for this one, I would have separated more of the experiments in the Sink/Float kit and guided them a bit more scientifically. Most kids just dumped as many stones/animals as they could until it sunk. A count of the stones and weigh in would have been better.
4. Matter
THE PLAN:
Talk about scientists and how they use their 5 senses to experiment and observe
Book: What is the World Made Of? by David Adler (passed around objects and talked about it's state: Solid, Liquid or Gas following book's model. They didn't like the lavender scent I sprayed during the air test)
Made Slime with liquid starch, Elmers glue, and food coloring in Tupperware.
Take Home: The slime
WHAT REALLY HAPPENED:
This one was my favorite of the series. The kids loved the slime part and it was few enough ingredients that I let them experiment with pouring different amounts in and pointing out the differences between the two. Liquid starch was the gluten free option but it seemed watery. Borax might have been a better choice even though it's more toxic.
5. Air & Bubbles
THE PLAN:
Talk about scientists and how they use their 5 senses to experiment and observe
Book: Pop: A Book About Bubbles by Kimberly Bradley
Talked about air in our lungs and how it can blow up balloons, make pinwheels go or even through a straw to push a ball.
Had ball races
Talked about blowing bubbles: do they have a shape?
Bubble experiments using sugar, honey, salt, vegetable oil, liquid starch, glycerin.What works? (I premixed all this)
Introduce measuring cups
One tub of regular bubble solution: 1 cup water for every 1/4 cup dish detergent with different utensils like slotted spoon, colander, bubble wands, and pipe cleaners to experiment. Do bubbles change shape? Can you touch a bubble without popping?
Graduation Handout: STEM tip sheet from BCM sprouts
WHAT REALLY HAPPENED: This one had a classic case of many kids not wanting to get messy so they spent 15 minutes with straws trying to move balls around the room and have races. I had different weighted balls and taped them up a race track to try. Meanwhile, 2 kids were going nuts pouring stuff into our huge experimental tub (created on the spot) to see if the bubbles would blow after adding the solutions mixed with each ingredient. They LOVED pouring (but pre portion stuff). After about 1/2 of the salt container went in, we could safely conclude that after adding the salt, the bubble solution does not work.
CONCLUSIONS:
Find things with only a few ingredients so they can pour themselves
Go over different scientist tools and leave time for them to play with them
Keep repeating vocabulary but only a few things like Experiment, Observe, and Predict and use them every class
Focus on simple scientific topics: Air, water, light. They're only 4!
It was good to always talk about the rules and what a scientist does before each class
No songs (at least due to time constraints)
Plan for clean up (usually 1/2 hour) and towels, LOTS OF TOWELS
30 minutes wasn't enough, next time I'd go 45.
Always have on hand another experiment for kids that don't want to get messy or become sensory overstimulated
Get someone to take pictures (my hands were always dirty).
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