We wrapped up Science Week for our DIY Summer Camp on Friday. I knew this would be a fun week! The kids had a blast doing summer science activities including experiments, making potions, and visiting the science museum. This may need to become an annual theme for us.
Kids love science any time of year! I love it because I feel like we are learning and having fun at the same time. Learning through play is very important in child development. It helps promote development of social skills, improves cognitive development, and strengthens problem-solving skills.
Those are really just a few benefits of learning through play. I also want my children to have a love of learning. School is a big chunk of their day and it only benefits them if they enjoy it. I hope that by creating a fun learning environment at home can help! See what you think about these fun summer activities.
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Soda Geyser Eruption Experiment
The week started off with a blast….literally! You have probably heard of this one. It is a fun science experiment for kids of all ages using Mentos candy and a 2 liter bottle of soda. You definitely want to do this one outside.
We learned that this experiment is actually based on a physical reaction and not a chemical reaction. Find all the details and a video on the experiment here.
Play Dough Volcano Experiment
The Play Dough Volcano Experiment was another big hit! Preschoolers will love this one. I love when we can be creative and include science. Make sure you do this one inside a tray or dish to help contain the eruption.
First we built the volcano from old play dough we had around the house. Then we did the fizzy “lava” experiment inside it. Working with baking soda and vinegar is super fun and kids love to see the reaction.
Fun Science Books for Kids
Before every theme, we head to the library to get fun books! Sometimes we read them all. Sometimes we don’t get around to looking at them all. I have them available in our reading nook though.
I love going through book lists from Pinterest. No matter what the theme I can always find great recommendations. Here are some of our favorites from Science Week. They are full of lots of fun experiments!
- Edible Science
- The Everything Kids’ Magical Science Experiments Book
- Super Simple Things to do with Bubbles
- Dog Science Unleashed
Ice Cream in a Bag – Best Summer Science Activity for Kids
You can’t do science in the summer without this fun activity! Ice Cream in a Bag was a big hit. We actually found the recipe in the Edible Science book but it is also online.
The hardest part of this experiment is shaking the bag! The results are definitely worth it though. We were so proud of our ice cream and it tasted delicious.
Fun Summer Science Kits for Kids
This year I made my life a little easier and purchased a few of our activities. The gooZooka slime was actually from Dollar Tree so that was a great find! The Rainbow Lab science kit was definitely the best purchase I have made all summer though.
This kit included so many popular experiments. It made the kids feel like real scientists. They started off with some fun color mixing activities using the test tubes.
Their favorite activity ended up being growing the amazing jelly-like crystals and watching them absorb all the colors. They played with this kit for hours. We didn’t even get to all the experiments.
I saved the kit so we could do the remaining experiments later this summer. We still have the rainbow glasses to play with and the Walking Rainbow Experiment to do. It also included the experiment for color changing flowers but I will need to purchase the white flowers before we can complete that one.
Visit to the Science Museum
As part of our summer camp schedule, we do one outing a week. Visiting a science museum was an easy choice for Science Week. In Charlotte we have a great one called Discovery Place. It was a fun field trip for us!
We spent the morning exploring the museum. There were so many exhibits and activities to look at. They even had a rainforest and aquarium area. My ten year old scientist was in heaven!
Potions Party for Kids
We love to end out the week with friends! I set up a Potions Party and had a couple of friends over for a play date. I try to keep this simple since their favorite part is really just playing with friends.
Do not attempt this if you are afraid to get messy! I just set out a variety of cups, bowls, funnels and trays. Then I decided to add dish soap, food coloring, glitter, vinegar and baking soda. It was messy but oh so fun!
Two Ingredient Glitter Slime
Science Week also had to include a little slime making! We are obsessed with this easy Two Ingredient Glitter Slime Recipe.
What do you think? Doesn’t that sound like a fun week? We packed in so many super fun Summer Science Activities. There is only one more week remaining in this Summer Camp at Home series. We kick off Shark Week on July 29th. We can’t wait!
