Backyard Science Experiments

By Dan

In celebration of this weekend’s Backyard Science Days, we’d like to share some experiments you can do right in your own backyard! Be sure to ask an adult for permission before you begin.

Veggie Racing: Build a racecar out of a vegetable! Use something like a cucumber or squash as the body and then use a nail to attach it to a base (we use hard Styrofoam – it’s like recycling!) Attach wheels (we use pine pro derby car wheels) to the base using smaller nails and then decorate your car. Once all the veggie cars are ready, line them up and see who wins.

Meet the Beetles: Put a meal worm, oats and a slice of apple into a container with an air hole. Be sure to put a new slice of apple in once the original starts to deteriorate. After a few weeks, the meal worm will become a beetle!

Bird Feeders: With the help of an adult, cut a hole in a plastic bottle (lower middle area). Drill two holes in the neck and run wire or string through it. Fill with seed and hang it in your favorite tree for the birds to enjoy. [Another Way:] If you have pinecones, cover them in peanut butter and roll them in bird seed. Set them out to watch squirrels and birds devour their treat.

Diet Coke & Mentos: Use a 2 litre bottle of diet coke and approximately four Mint Mentos (not the fruit version). Drop the Mentos in the bottle and watch the Diet Coke become a geyser. You can create a bottle rocket by putting the cap back on the bottle after the mentos have been added and then slamming the bottle into the ground head first. It will have a reaction much like a rocket taking off.

Spin Art: Put a small paper plate in the center of a Salad Spinner. Pick a combination of Tempera paint and put dots or a design on the paper. Put the lid on and spin! The plate will come out with a tie-dye look because of inertia moving the paint.