VanCleave's Science Fun

Your Guide to Science Projects, Fun Experiments, and Science Research

Teacher Tips:Making Science Fun

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Notes from Janice’s Desk Q. What makes science fun for kids?A. Kids find science fun when they are actively involved. As a science teacher I collected ideas that kids liked most about science. As a writer I used these ideas to create science experiment books that kids could play and find out about science. Following […]

Snake in the John

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Notes from Janice’s Desk A neighbor called and ask if  we knew how to get a snake out of the toilet. More information revealed that it was a large snake and was wound around in the toilet with only a loop of its body visible in the bowl. Thinking the snake was so coiled around […]

Math: Order of Operation

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Notes from Janice’s Desk I taught 8th grade math on a military base in Germany. The school was under construction, which gave me lots of supplies for math experiments. Yes, I said math experiments!! In fact, I used many science experiments to teach math. For example, when studying algebra unknowns, I borrowed a saw horse […]

SAT

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Notes from Janice’s Desk The letters SAT stand for Scholastic Aptitude Test, which is required by most colleges. But whether your children plan to go to college or not, I recommend Paul Osborne’s book, LD SAT. Yes, the letters LD stand for learning disabilities, but the content of the book is  applicable for instructing multi-aged […]

Tips for Teaching Science

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Notes from Janice’s Desk Tip 1:Make Science Activities a Hit in Your Classroom. Here are some strategies you can use to make science both a fun-filled adventure for students and the easiest and most organized period of your day. Know the Experiment. Read each experiment completely before starting, and practice doing the experiment prior to […]

Skin:Watersoaked

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Notes from Janice’s Desk There are various explanations of why fingers and toes wrinkle when  they are soaked in water for a time. Most scientists suggest that the tough outer layer of skin made up of dead keratin cells is responsible. But an exact reason cannot be given because it is not known –yet. In […]

Science Fair Project: Teacher Tips

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Notes from Janice’s Desk The best way to learn is by experience. So the best way to teach a process is for students to experience it. Teach the processes required for a successful science fair project using a classroom project. The class as a group will help design. You might even create a story to […]

Science Fair Projects: Gross Experiment

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Notes from Janice’s Desk I was recently told of a science project done by a team of young boys. The boys had excitedly described the event as being the grossest and coolest thing they had ever done. Their gross-cool experiment was chewing a piece of cracker, then spitting it in a container and testing it […]

Chemistry: Matter

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Notes from Janice’s Desk Chemistry is one of my favorite sciences. Actually, I am not sure which I like the best, chemistry or physics.  But there is such an overlap of between all the science, so I guess I like them all. Chemistry is the study of the properties (characteristics) and behavior of matter. Physics […]