Each season brings along new themes to explore in our elementary classrooms. In schools around the country, fall brings on studies of pumpkins and leaves, and winter sparks interest in snow and ice. Spring weather invites explorations of puddles and mud, and summer’s heat naturally causes students to ask, “How can we cool off?” Our elementary science experiments can help students explore their natural curiosities. Check out this list of science activities for ideas that span the entire school year!
Fall
1. Growing Pumpkin Seeds in a Pumpkin
This experiment begins with the sensory-rich experience of cutting and scooping out goopy pumpkin “guts.” Take this classic experiment a step further by replanting the seeds right inside the pumpkin! Students can track their growth in journals to practice the basic science skills of recording and representing data.
Learn More: Pre-K Pages
2. Pumpkin Decomposition
Opposite to the last experiment, this activity teaches about the end of a pumpkin’s life cycle: decomposition. Make sure you keep the lid on this one–it could get smelly! Pair this experiment with a book like Pumpkin Jack to integrate literacy as well!
Learn More: Kelly's Classroom Online
3. Frozen Fizzy Spiders
Your students will explore basic chemical reactions with this frozen baking soda and vinegar activity. Hatchling spiders will emerge from their egg sacks in this fizzy science experiment! It is perfect for a theme about creepy critters around Halloween. The best part is that it only takes these few basic household supplies!
Learn More: Pre-K Pages
4. Dissecting Owl Pellets
A dissection experiment that you can do outside of a science lab! Owl pellets can be purchased on Amazon, and older learners can focus on fine motor skills as they search for clues to an owl’s diet hidden inside their pellets! This activity works great during a nocturnal animal theme.
Learn More: Gift of Curiosity
5. Leaf Chromatography for Kids
As leaves first begin their autumnal changes and fall to the ground, children are captivated by their colors! This chromatography (or color separation) experiment helps students isolate the specific hues in the leaves they gather. You just need a few basic supplies: paper towels, rubbing alcohol, and some kitchen items.
Learn More: A Little Pinch of Perfect
Winter
6. Escaping Animals
This fun sensory experiment doubles as an exploration of the states of matter! Your students can test their hypotheses of what will cause ice to melt, all while saving polar animals from their icy trap! Try this one several times with different add-ins, like salt, watercolor paints, and “ice picks."
Learn More: Views from a Stepstool
7. Colorful Ice Melt
You’ll have to gather some food coloring for the kitchen for this colorful experiment! Take the traditional salt-and-ice experiment a step further by adding in art concepts! The bright colors will highlight the exact ways that the ice is melting–leaving rivulets, holes, etc. in its wake.
Learn More: Artful Parent
8. "Ice" Crystal Names
Merge science and literacy with this crystal experiment! Challenge your class’s ability to follow directions as they make the borax solution from simple ingredients. Then, your students will be mesmerized as they watch crystals grow around their pipe cleaner letters! Display your results as part of your winter classroom decorations!
Learn More: Playdough to Plato
9. Snowball Catapults
Early physical science and engineering skills emerge from this STEM activity ! Challenge kids to use their problem-solving skills to develop a popsicle stick and rubber band catapult, then test them out with a friendly snowball fight!
Learn More: Mombrite
10. Melting Snowman Experiment
During your ice and snow-themed weeks, encourage children to make predictions and represent data as they watch a snowman melt! This is a perfect opportunity to complete some science journaling as you track changes over time and have students draw what they see at certain intervals.
Learn More: Mom to 2 Posh Lil Divas
Spring
11. Growing Grass Heads
During your ice and snow-themed weeks, encourage children to make predictions and represent data as they watch a snowman melt! This is a perfect opportunity to complete some science journaling as you track changes over time and have students draw what they see at certain intervals.
Learn More: Mom to 2 Posh Lil Divas
12. Disappearing Egg Shell
As you begin a study of oviparous (egg-laying) animals in the springtime, students can learn all about the protective shells that keep baby animals safe! As students watch an eggshell dissolve over the course of several days, you can encourage them to make observations, develop theories, and ask further questions.
Learn More: Premeditated Leftovers
13. Dissect a Flower
All teachers of little ones know that children love the process of deconstructing objects! They will have ample opportunity to do so in this “flower dissection,” where they will get to closely observe the parts of a plant. This activity prompts students to sort and classify.
Learn More: Science Sparks
14. Pollination
During a spring insect study, students can participate in this experiment to learn more about the ways that pollinators’ physical traits help plants grow! This is another experiment that encourages students to use the steps of the scientific method as they use loose parts to create the most effective pollinator.
Learn More: The First Grade Round Up
15. Wind Strength
During studies on the weather, students often participate in experiments that help them “see” the wind. Allow students to take this one step further by testing the force of the “wind” required to move differently weighing objects. A perfect experiment for developing and testing hypotheses, as well as using comparative language!
Learn More: Preschool Toolkit
Summer
16. Moon Craters
As summertime’s meteor showers begin, many schools take the opportunity to study outer space! Curiosity about our nearest planetary body, the moon, leads to inquiries about its appearance. Teach students about how the moon got its craters with simple materials: a cake pan, flour, and marbles!
Learn More: Mombrite
17. What Melts in the Sun?
This is a simple science experiment for those long summer days spent outside! It’s also easy to set up with anything you might have on hand. Let students test their theories, experiment with the lengths of time they leave objects in the sun, and follow up with a delicious popsicle treat!
Learn More: Frugal Fun for Boys
18. Sunscreen Paintings
Teach students the importance of SPF by painting dark paper with sunscreen! After leaving their paintings sitting out in the sun, students will notice the difference between the paper protected by lotion and the parts left untouched. Try it again on a cloudy day and compare the two paintings!
Learn More: Kaplan Company
19. Solar Oven S'mores
Work together to harness solar power in a DIY solar oven made from recycled materials! Bring in math skills by encouraging students to measure the temperature inside the oven and experiment with cook times to make the perfect s’more! Celebrate students’ hard work by enjoying these sweet treats afterward!
Learn More: NASA-Climate Kids
20. Oil and Water
Explore the concept of density during water play by adding oil and food coloring! Challenge students to record what they observe, experiment with the basics of color mixing, or find a way to mix the two substances. This experiment is a perfect outdoor activity for preschoolers!
Learn More: STEAM-Powered Family
21. Air Compression Cloud
This is a very simple experiment that only requires one disposable plastic water bottle. Make sure it’s clean, empty, and dry. Close the cap and twist the bottle very tightly- forcing the air molecules together. As the cap is opened there will be a pressure release. The expansion of the compressed molecules will create a cloud.
Learn More: Raising Da Vinci
22. Balloon Magic
Take a clean and dry bottle. Add some baking soda and vinegar to it. Immediately cover the mouth with a balloon. When the two liquids react, a harmless gas will be formed. This gas will not be able to escape the bottle because of the balloon and will inflate it instead.
Learn More: Simple Play Ideas
23. Bending Water
Blow a balloon. Now add some static charge to it by rubbing it over your hair or your shirt. Place the charged balloon close to the running water. The stream of water will bend because of the electric charge, leading to a fun activity.
Learn More: STEM Newcastle
24. Bouncing Ball Experiment
Take equal parts of warm water and borax and mix well. In another cup, take equal parts of glue and cornstarch and add a little food color to it. Combine both mixtures and knead them into a ball. Now watch the mixture bounce before your eyes!
Learn More: The STEM Laboratory
25. Bouncy Egg
Take an egg and cover it in vinegar. Let it sit for 24 hours. After 24 hours have passed, remove the egg and rub off the shell. That's it! Now you have a bouncy egg. You can add cool effects by shining a light under it to make it appear even more mesmerizing.
Learn More: Cool Science Experiments
26. Color-Changing Flowers
Take 2-3 cups of water and add a different color dye into each. Place one white carnation flower with the stem in each cup. Observe the change in color as the plants “drink” the water. Explain that this is how they absorb vital nutrients and food from the soil.
Learn More: Mott Children
27. Dancing Raisins
Pour any clear carbonated beverage into a glass and add raisins to it. The escaping gas will make the raisins move up and down in the liquid, making them “dance.” Kids will learn about gas evaporation in this fun science activity.
Learn More: Buggy And Buddy
28. Elephant Toothpaste
Take ½ cup of hydrogen peroxide in a bottle and add 10 drops of food color to it. Now add 1 tablespoon of dish soap and mix the solution thoroughly. Set aside. Combine water and yeast in another glass and let it sit for 30 seconds. Now transfer the solution from the glass into the bottle and watch it explode.
Learn More: Cool Science Experiments
29. Exploding Pumpkin
This is one of the easiest STEM activities you can do with your kids. Carve the inside of a small pumpkin and draw a horror face on the outside with a permanent marker. Take ¼ cup vinegar and add two drops of coloring agent to it. Mix and pour the liquid inside the pumpkin. Add 1 tablespoon of baking soda, stand back, and watch colored foam spray out of the pumpkin head.
Learn More: Our Family Code
30. Fire Snake
Looking for a STEM activity that your kids will remember for a long time? Try the fire snake! Mix baking soda and sugar in 1:4 proportion. In another container, take some sand and add some type of fuel to it. Place the baking soda and sugar mixture on it and light the fuel. Now have fun observing the black snake this concoction makes.
Learn More: Wonder How To
31. Green Money
Place a kitchen towel on a plate and place pennies on top of it. Pour vinegar over the coins and observe the color change for the next few hours and days. The coins will turn green as they are made of copper. On exposure to oxygen, this copper will turn into copper oxide.
Learn More: WLTX.com
32. Invisible Ink
Mix equal parts of baking soda and water. Use this solution as ink and write on paper. Paint the paper with grape juice to reveal the message. It is one of the more fun activities for kids where they learn and play at the same time. Leave them a secret message using this technique.
Learn More: Children's Museum
33. Surface Tension Challenge
Take a coin and place it on any flat surface, like a table. Now gradually add drops of water to it using a syringe or dropper. You will soon notice a dome of water forming on top of the coin. This happens because of the surface tension of the water molecules.
Learn More: Scientific American
34. Jelly Bean
This Jelly Bean science experiment is one of those STEM activities that most kids love. Just arrange the jelly beans in a circle on a plate. Now add warm water slowly so that you do not disturb the arrangement of the beans. As the water comes into contact with the beans it will dissolve the dyed sugar coat on the jelly beans- forming a beautiful rainbow.
Learn More: Super Teacher Worksheets
35. Lava Lamp
Take a glass of water and add any dye to it. Now take a jar and add a cup of oil to it. Pour the colored water into the jar and add a fizzing tablet. The tablet will create carbon dioxide and form supercool bubbles which will move up and down in the jar.
Learn More: TheDadLab
36. Melting Ice And Salt
Take a glass of water and add ice cubes to it. Sprinkle in ½ teaspoon of salt and lay a string over the ice cubes. The salt will melt the water on the ice and as the water refreezes, the string will get trapped in the ice. So, when you pull out the string, the ice cubes will appear like a necklace on it.
Learn More: Little Passports
37. Magic Milk
Pour some milk into a flat dish. Add a few drops of different dyes or colors to it. Now take a cotton swab covered in soap and dip it in the middle of the colors. The reaction between the fat and protein in the mixture will make the colors “dance”.
Learn More: Parents First
38. Rainbow Paper
Add a drop of clear nail polish to a bowl of water and dip black construction paper into it. Let it dry. Now take it out and tilt it at an angle under light to observe the rainbow patterns.
Learn More: Curiodyssey
39. Spiral Paper
Take a sheet of paper and cut it into a spiral. Attach the paper to a string and hang it. Place a lamp below the spiral and watch the spiral go round and round. This happens because the air around the lamp gets heated. As hot air is less dense than cold air, it moves upwards, pushing the spiral and making it dance.
Learn More: Fizzics Education
40. Tea Bag Ghost
You can make ghosts out of a tea bag. This cool experiment involves drawing a cute ghost on your tea bag, balancing it upright, and lighting the top; that’s it. Now watch the “ghost” fly away!
Learn More: Netflix Jr.
41. Magic Jumping Coin
Lower the temperature of a coin and glass bottle by placing them in cold water. Place the coin on top of the bottle and wrap your hands around it. The heat in your hand will warm up the glass bottle. It will then warm up the air molecules inside the bottle. This will cause the coin to jump up.
Learn More: What Do We Do All Day
42. Unpoppable Balloon
One of the most fascinating and simple science activities is the unpoppable balloon experiment. All you need is an inflated balloon, a skewer, and dish soap. Dip the skewer into the dish soap and pierce the balloon carefully with it. The skewer will not pop the balloon.
Learn More: Sick Science!
43. Walking Water
Take 7 empty jars and add different colored water in all the odd-numbered ones. Keep the even-numbered jars empty. Roll a sheet of paper towel and bend it in the middle. Place one end in a water-filled glass and another in an empty one. Stare at the experimental setup and observe water “walking” from the water-filled cups to the empty ones. The mixing of the colors will also develop new hues in the even glasses.
Learn More: The Best Ideas For Kids
44. Watch the Water Rise
Fix a lit candle on a plate. Pour water onto the plate. Add color to the water with a dye to improve visibility. Lower an upside-down glass over the candle to completely cover it. As the flame burns out, the water will rise in the glass.
Learn More: Frugal Fun 4 Boys
45. Why Do Leaves Change Color?
In this simple experiment, kids will learn that there are many pigments present in leaves, but since chlorophyll is the most dominant, it imparts a green color. Take a leaf and break it into pieces. Place it in a jar containing alcohol. This will transfer all the pigments to the solution. Dip one edge of a coffee filter into the solution and observe the separation of colors as the liquid rises on the strip.
Learn More: How Wee Learn
35 Christmas-Themed Science Experiments for Middle Schoolers