WQPT | Science for Kids | Brought to you by a grant from the ALCOA Foundation

If you are inquisitive and like to observe and explore the world around you, then you're among the many PBS Kids who like to ask lots of questions.

Why are bees disappearing? Where does oil and gas come from? Why does the Mississippi River flood? How do plants grow? How does that happen?

Check out first and second graders at the Center for Math and Science in Rock Island who studied insects, dinosaurs, rocks, water and plants this year. And that was just in class! They also attended after school and extracurricular activities like Saturday Science, Technology Club and Tech Camp, along with their parents, because it was fun and fantastic to learn about all things related to STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) subjects. Supervised by teachers Michael Carton and Julie Hansen, these kids are excited about all the cool careers in these fields.

Our partnership with the Alcoa Foundation has enabled these young students to receive an early introduction to challenging yet fun classroom activities, after school programs and excellent resources.

The first and second graders at the Center for Math & Science would like to share their videos from Mr. Carton's science class.

These experiments are fun and easy to do. Be sure to ask an adult for permission or assistance before you get started.

		Egg and Water Density
		This experiment will help you to determine the answer to the question, "Which is more dense, salt water or tap water?" Before you make a hypothesis, gather a little bit of information on what "density" is and what it means. Once you figure out what it is, take a second to write down some of what you learned and which kind of water you think will be more dense (your hypothesis). Download the Instructions & Worksheet.

		Egg Drop
		This is one of those experiments you have to see to believe! It is made possible by inertia, so before you try to perform the experiment, do some research and see what you can learn about inertia. As always, make sure you write down what you learned on the worksheet that goes with this experiment. Download the Instructions & Worksheet.

		Evaporating Water
		The question/problem you'll be answering with this experiment is, "What will happen to the water that's sprinkled on the table?" There are a couple different things to consider when the time comes to make your hypothesis. First, will there be a difference between what happens to the water underneath the cup and the water on the rest of the table? If there will be a difference, what will happen with the water under the cup? And what will happen to the water on the rest of the table? Download the Instructions & Worksheet.

		Exploring Gravity With Quarters
		Have you every wondered how gravity works? Well, in this experiment, you will get to see one amazing thing that occurs with two falling objects! Before you start, you will want to do some research and find out what you can about gravity. Write down on the worksheet some of the information you gathered, and then get ready to make your hypothesis! Download the Instructions & Worksheet.

		Moving Molecules
		The question you're trying to answer by doing this experiment is whether or not water molecules inside a motionless container are moving—and if they are moving, which molecules are moving faster: the hot or the cold water molecules? Download the Instructions & Worksheet.

		Oil and Water
		In this experiment, we will be exploring density—specifically, the density difference between ice and water. Before you can begin the experiment, you will need to look up some information on density and record what you learn about it on your worksheet. Once you've done this, you can make a hypothesis! On the worksheet, circle the density statement(s) that you think will be true. Download the Instructions & Worksheet.

		Surface Tension #1
		In this experiment you'll be learning about surface tension. The question you'll be trying to answer is this: "Once the surface tension in a bowl of water is broken by soap, will it ever be as strong as it was before the soap?" Download the Instructions & Worksheet.

		Surface Tension #2
		In this experiment, you will be exploring what surface tension does to water by carefully observing a glass of water that has items placed into it. Hopefully you learned a little bit about surface tension before doing the previous experiments related to this same topic, so you won't need to do much information gathering. If this is true, you can go ahead and make a hypothesis about what you think will happen to the water at the top of the glass. Download the Instructions & Worksheet.