For a list of students who have achieved Science Stuff
certificates, click here.
Dr. L's Science Stuff List
What is it?
A list of interesting science stuff to see and do.
Who can do it?
Kids of all ages, although some items are best for ages 10+.
Why did I write it?
- A challenge to motivate students to study science.
- An encouragement to study a broad range of sciences.
What it is not?
- Not detailed instructions. You'll have to study.
- Not complete. A lot of good things are not on the list.
Rewards
- Learn a lot.
- Certificates to hang on your wall:
- If you complete 4 from each category, you get a Stuff Certificate
- If you complete 8 from each category, you get a Big-Stuff Certificate
- If you complete 10 from each category, you get a Super-Stuff Certificate
- If you complete everything on the list, you get a Wow! Certificate
- Your name on the Science Stuff list at
www.pilgrimworks.com.
Rules
- Record all your observations in one notebook.
- For each item, you must have:
- Date and time observed
- Description of the event
- An adult's signature
- To obtain a certificate and have your name added
to the Science Stuff list, an adult must mail a letter
to the address below. They must certify that they have
checked your notebook and you have indeed done everything
on the list according to the rules. Also include the following:
- For the Wow! Certificate, send $10 and your entire notebook
- For the other certificates, send $5 and a photocopy of the list,
with the items you have done checked
Your certificate (and notebook, if necessary) will be mailed
back to you. The address is:
Pilgrim Works
201 Griffin Dr
Greenville, SC 29607
- Parents or teachers can and should help as much as possible
with these activities - adult supervision is required.
- Paper Copies of this document may be freely distributed
provided 1) You distribute them free of charge,
and 2) You distribute the complete document
exactly as written with no additions, modifications,
or deletions. Please do not make electronic copies.
Distribute this web address instead.
The List
Chemistry
- grow sugar crystals
- make a colloid
- do magic marker chromatography
- find 15 chemical elements around your house
- make a red cabbage indicator and test an acid and base
- make a vinegar/baking soda volcano
- observe electrolysis
- make a battery
- make a bubble solution, blow a 12 inch bubble
- make a soap powered boat
- send a message written with invisible ink
Physics
- see the field around a magnet with iron filings
- Fly a model rocket or a hot air balloon
- make a flashlight
- make a periscope
- tune a water xylophone and play a song
- make an electromagnet
- pull a tablecloth out from under dishes
- demonstrate attraction and repulsion with static electricity
- refract sunlight into a spectrum
- measure the speed of sound
- make a pinhole camera and take a picture
- measure the acceleration of gravity
- boil water in a paper cup
- make a crystal radio
- demonstrate the Bernoulli effect
Meteorology
- see and identify six kinds of clouds
- measure the distance to a lightning flash
- make a rain gauge
- make a weathervane
- cut open a hailstone
- see 5 kinds of precipitation
- make your own weather forecasts for 2 weeks
- see a lunar halo
- see a double rainbow and record the order of the colors
- measure the dew point
- see a sun dog
- measure the time between high tides
- track a hurricane on a map
Astronomy
- identify 10 constellations in the sky
- identify 3 asterisms in the sky
- see the milky way
- see Saturn, Jupiter, Venus, and Mars
- see Mercury
- see a Solar Eclipse or the Northern Lights
- see a Lunar Eclipse
- see a meteor
- see a Comet
- see the Andromeda Galaxy
- see a binary star
- observe a Variable star over a cycle
- Build a working sun dial
- Find and observe a star of each magnitude 1-6
- see a satellite or spacecraft in orbit
- locate a named crater on the moon
Biology
- find a bird's nest
- find a cocoon
- maintain a bird feeder for a month
- see and identify 10 species of wild birds
- see a cow being milked
- grow and eat a vegetable
- view a negative afterimage
- find your blind spot
- identify a person by their fingerprints
- measure your lung capacity
- make a wet bulb thermometer
- make a two colored carnation with food coloring
- grow a bean plant in a cup
- grow a potato plant from an eye
- grow bread mold
- produce and collect carbon dioxide from yeast
- catch and release a butterfly and moth
- build an earthworm farm or an ant farm
Geology
- grow a stalactite
- find a fossil
- find an Igneous rock
- find a Metamorphic rock
- find a Sedimentary rock
- visit a cave
- learn the history of earthquakes in your area
- learn to use a topographic map and compass
- find a geology map of your area and find out what is under your house
- see a glacier
- collect and test rocks of six different hardness levels
Mathematics and Computers
- make a mobius strip
- make a paper slide rule
- learn to bisect an angle
- learn what a googleplex is
- dissect an old floppy disk
- make up a code and a cipher
- learn to count to 25 in binary
- make a magic square
- learn about kissing numbers
- make a Tower of Hanoi puzzle and learn to solve it
- make a set of Napier's Bones
- write a computer program to check for prime numbers
- learn about Babbage and Ada
Note: Some experiments involve an element of danger
(sun observations, model rockets, etc.) or legal responsibility
(fossil collecting. etc.). You are responsible to research each
item and perform it properly. In all cases adult supervision
is required.
© Copyright 1999 by Bill Lovegrove. You may make paper
copies as noted. All other rights reserved.
Last Updated 3/13/1999