Popcorn Painting

Katherine Marie photography has a great way to combine an after school snack and activity.  She sets out edible paint, a dish of popcorn and some paintbrushes for an afternoon of popcorn painting.  You can use food coloring as well and even dilute it with milk or water.

Good for ages 4 and up.

Get the instructions here:
http://katherinemariephotography.com/blog/archives/2509

Disappearing Egg Shell Science Experiment

Science sparks has a great science experiment using an egg and vinegar to create a chemical action where the acid from the vinegar disolves the egg shell.

Good for ages 4 and up.

Get the instructions here:
http://www.science-sparks.com/2012/01/16/how-to-get-an-egg-yolk-without-cracking-the-egg/

Crayon Painted Rocks

5 orange potatoes has a unique idea of painting pebbles with crayons.  Basically you need to heat the rocks in the oven until they're warm enough to melt crayons.  Using the melted crayons you can paint the rocks.  Amazingly they warn the wax gets hotter than the rocks.

Good for ages 7 and up.

Get the instructions here:
http://www.5orangepotatoes.com/blog/2011/03/04/hot-rocks-painting-with-wax-on-rocks/

Pencil Catapult

Random scraps demonstrates how to make a catapult using pencils, rubber bands, and an empty tissue box. They recommend using marshmallows for catapulting. Yum.

Good for ages 7 and up.

Get the instructions here:

http://random-scraps.blogspot.com/2010/06/marshmallow-catapult.html

Popsicle Stick Catapult

Science sparks demonstrates elasticity and shows how to make a catapult out of popsicle sticks, rubber bands and a plastic bottle cap.  Kids will have fun finding different objects to catapult across the house and seeing how they compare.

Good for ages 8 and up.

Get the instructions here:
http://www.science-sparks.com/2012/01/09/making-a-catapult-looking-at-elasticity/

 

Almost unschoolers has a simpler popsicle stick catapult using a clothes pin and bottle cap and block of wood to anchor it. 

Get the instructions here:

http://almostunschoolers.blogspot.com/2010/07/clothespin-torsion-catapult-for-kids.html

Do it and how has a scaled down catapult using the same supplies, just less of them.

Get the instructions here:

http://doitandhow.com/2011/10/01/craft-stick-catapult/

Floating Ketchup Experiement

Science Bob shows how to make a package of ketchup float in a plastic bottle demonstrating the science of buoyancy and density.  All you need is an empty bottle, a package of ketchup, some water and salt. 

Good for ages 4 and up.

Get the instructions here:
http://www.sciencebob.com/experiments/magic_ketchup.php

Clover Pinwheel

The land of nod shows how to make shamrock pinwheels for St. Patrick's Day. All you need are green pipe cleaners and green construction paper.

Good for ages 8 and up.

Get the instructions here:

http://blog.landofnod.com/honest-to-nod/2012/03/shamrock-pinwheel-.html

 All parenting uses patterned scrapbooking paper.

Get the instructions here:
http://www.allparenting.com/my-home/articles/967145/diy-shamrock-pinwheels-for-st-patricks-day