Learn and have fun

BUCKET BUCKET WITHOUTWITHOUT

A BOTTOMA BOTTOMAND OTHER

EXPERIMENTS

FOR CHILDREN

Sanja Matijašević

2

BUCKET

WITHOUTWITHOUT

A BOTTOMA BOTTOMAND OTHER

EXPERIMENTS

FOR CHILDREN

Sanja Matijašević

A day made for walking

Children are lucky.Any time

and any dayis the right time

for playing and learning!

Rainy weather is ideal for fishing

The perfect time to work in the field

Hi!My name is Curly.I want to share with you everything I know about the colorful and mysterious surroundings we live in. I believe you have no idea how many adventures are waiting for you, and you don’t even have to leave your home. Are you ready?

6

THE PAPER LID

You can fi nd them everywhere. On shelves, on the desk, in the drawers, and often on the fl oor. How can the torn notebook sheets covered in writing be used? That’s right, the sheets with the drawings you no longer like. Here’s an idea: use them to make a lid which will stop water from leaking out of a glass, even when it’s turned upside down.

a sheet of

paper

a cup watera sheet of

paper

a cup waterW

hat you need:

7

2. Cover the cup with a sheet of paper. Put your palm over the paper and quickly turn the glass upside down.

3. When you remove your palm, you’ll see that ordinary paper prevents the water from leaking out of the glass.

1. Fill the cup with water to the very top.

Just between you and meJust between you and me: In this experiment you have an invisible

helper. It’s the air which fi lls the room. Once you remove your

hand from the paper, the air will keep pressing the paper

and keep the cup covered.

8

I love transmission-line posts. Sometimes I count them while I’m traveling. I like them because they support the lines on which the birds rest from long fl ights. I know, adults keep telling me that these lines in fact transport electricity to our house, but I somehow prefer the bit with the birds. I once made a watery transmission line and used it to transfer water from one place to another. No birds came to rest, but it was fun. You should try it too!

WATERY TRANSMISSION LINE W

hat you need:

three tall

glasses for water two coff ee

cups

three nails a pair of scissors

some wool

water

9

1. Arrange the glasses and cups close to each other, so that the cups are placed exactly in the middle of the space between the glasses.

2. Cut two long pieces of wool and put them on top of each other. Then tie the wool to the nails (just like in the picture).

3. Put one nail in each glass. Spread the wool a bit between the rims of glasses, so that it hangs between them.

4. Fill all of the glasses with water. Wait for half an hour and you’ll see that the cups will start to fill with water. Water transmission successful!

Just between you and meJust between you and me: Once the wool becomes soaked with

water, small drops will form inside it. Because of their weight, the

drops become separated from the wool and they fall into the cups.

10

INFLATE A TIED BALLOONW

hat you need:

a balloon some rope a big jar

with a lid

a nail a hammer a vacuum

cleaner

Anyone who ever threw a birthday party knows how boring and hard it can be to infl ate balloons. Did you know that a balloon could be infl ated even when you’re not blowing in it? Actually, it can even be infl ated when it was tied up properly, so that no air could enter it.

11

Just between you and meJust between you and me: When you use the vacuum cleaner

to take out all the air out of the jar, the air in the balloon

starts to expand and the balloon starts to grow.

2. Put the balloon in the jar and close it properly. It is very important that the lid fits well to the opening of the jar.

3. Turn on the vacuum cleaner and place the hose (without any attachments) on the lid. Soon the balloon will start to expand.

1. Inflate the balloon just a little, so that it can fit in your hands. Then tie it hard with a rope. Make a hole in the middle of the jar lid using the hammer and the nail.

12

THE SMILING FROG

a thin piece

of stringred sewing

thread

water and dishwashing

liquid

a water

container a piece of

cardboarda pencil, a pair of

scissors and some glue

W

hat you need:

Not many people keep frogs as pets. If the frogs could laugh or cry, maybe things would have been different. But until they learn, you can make your own frog which will change its mood according to your wishes.

a thin piece

of stringred sewing

thread dishwashing

liquidcontainer cardboard a p

cissors and some glue

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1. Pour some dishwashing liquid in the container previously filled with water. Mix the liquid with your fingers until you create foam. After this, make sure you wash your hands!

2. Bend one end of the string and make a circle. Then tie the thread to the opposite parts of the circle, but so that it stays loose (the thread should not touch the edges of the string).

3. Use the cardboard to draw eyes, then cut them out and glue them to the upper half of the circle. Now your frog is ready to play.

Just between you and meJust between you and me: The bubble acts as a stretched elastic

layer of rubber which shrinks after being touched. If the bubble is not

punctured, it attracts the thread to the string frame during

the process of shrinking and stretches it.

4. Dip in the string frog in the container with foam, and then take it out. A bubble layer will form on the frame. If you’d like the frog to smile, use the top of the pencil and gently touch the part above the thread (where its nose should be). If you’d like the frog to show a sad expression, touch it gently below the thread (where its chin should be).

14

TO SPITE THE BIG BAD WOLF

a hair dryer two ping-pong

balls

some sewing thread

a pair

of scissors some

adhesive tape

W

hat you need:

“I’ll huff and I’ll puff and I’ll blow your house down!” This is the famous threat which made the three little pigs shudder. I bet that the big bad wolf had no idea that the objects could be joined together if you blew between them. What’s that? You don’t believe me? See for yourself then!

balls threadtape

15

Just between you and meJust between you and me: By blowing, you are weakening the

air pressure between the balls. The air from the side starts to

press the balls more strongly and forces them to join together.

2. Switch on the hair dryer and place it so that it blows between the balls.

3. What’s going on? The balls are stuck together! Do you believe me now?Just between you and me: By blowing, you are weakening the air pressure between the balls. The air from the side starts to press the balls more strongly and forces them to join together.

1. Cut two pieces of thread of equal length. Stick one end of the thread to the ping-pong, and the other to the back of the chair. The distance between the hanging balls should be enough for a hand to pass between them.

16

THE CLOWN DOESN’T WANT

TO GO TO SLEEP

Sleep makes you grow. In dreams you can be a princess, you can fl y, defeat a giant and a lot more… Why is it so hard for us to go to bed then? I will introduce you to a friend today. He is a clown and he never sleeps. Why don’t you try persuading him!

a dried egg shell

a white sheet of paper

and a pair

of scissors

some fl our, water, some

adhesive tape

decorative paper, glue

red wool coff ee cup and spoon

W

hat you need:

egg shell of paper and a pair

of scissors

water, some adhesive

tape

paper, glue

17

1. Stir in a spoonful of flour in the coffee cup with two spoons of water. Use this mixture to fill the bigger half of the dried egg shell.

2. Use the sheet of paper to make a cone. If necessary, shorten it, so that the opening rests on the egg shell.

3. Use the decorative paper, or colored paper to make the eyes, nose and mouth for the clown and glue them to the cone.

Just between you and meJust between you and me: The biggest part of the clown’s mass is in

its shell. More precisely, it’s the dough with which the shell was fi lled.

All bodies tend to take positions in which the center of their mass is

above the surface on which they are standing.

4. Cover the top of the cone with glue and then roll it in the finely shredded wool. Connect the cone and the filled egg shell with the adhesive tape.

5. Try to place the clown in the sleeping position. Knock him down again! Try again! Why does the clown keep getting up?

Let’s play and

learn together!

What would you like to be? A curious

scientist, a great mathematician, or an

explorer? In this book you’ll find suggestions

for games and fun tasks which will help

you discover various interesting things

from the wonderful world that

surrounds you.

Learn and have fun