Friday, August 14, 2020

Bubble Fun


For our next science activity we are going to be experimenting with bubbles!

We will be releasing this activity on the Surrey Libraries Facebook page on Thursday 20th August at 10.30am. 

For this activity, to make your bubbles, you are going to need:
  • A bowl of water
  • Washing up liquid
To make your bubble wands you may like to collect:
  • Straws
  • String
  • Pipe Cleaners
  • Paper Cups
  • Tape
  • Scissors

For more information watch our short introduction video.

Follow Surrey Libraries on Facebook and Twitter for the latest information and don't forget to visit Science Club on the Surrey Libraries YouTube Channel

Make a Colour Spinner


White light consists of 7 colours. If you know the colours in a rainbow you will know that they are red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet. We are going to be making a colour spinner that demonstrates the fact that white light is made from the 7 colours found in a rainbow!

The first thing you are going to need to do is draw a circle on your piece of card. You will then need to cut this out and divide it into 7 sections.


You will then need to colour each section one of the 7 colours of the rainbow - red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet


The last thing that you need to do is make 2 holes at the centre of the circle. You are going to thread a length of string through these holes and tie the two ends together.


You are now ready to wind up the colour spinner and let it go. When it starts to spin you should see that the colours start to mix together and if you can get your spinner to go fast enough the colours should appear white. 

Once you have experimented with the 7 colours in the rainbow, why not try making other colour spinners using different patterns, or colours and see what happens...

The video tutorial for this activity is available on Surrey Libraries Facebook Page or Surrey Libraries YouTube Channel.

Friday, August 7, 2020

Can you see a rainbow???


For our next science activity we are going to be making colour spinners!

We will be releasing this activity on the Surrey Libraries Facebook page on Thursday 13th August at 10.30am. 

For this activity you will need:
  • Card
  • Colouring pens/ pencils/ crayons
  • Scissors
  • Pen/ Pencil
  • Ruler
  • String/ Wool/ Thread
  • Something round to draw around

Click here to view the video explaining the materials you need.

Follow Surrey Libraries on Facebook and Twitter for the latest information and don't forget to visit Science Club on the Surrey Libraries YouTube Channel

Thursday, August 6, 2020

Make a Solar Oven


The Sun is the largest source of energy for the Earth. More solar energy hits the planet in one day than could be used in 27 years. In areas without electricity solar ovens could be a great option to cook food. Solar ovens are low cost, reduce carbon emissions and can reach temperatures between 120C and 175C.

To make your model solar oven, the first thing that you need to do is get your shallow cardboard box and draw a square on the top of your box about 4cm away from the edge. With the front of the box facing you, cut along 3 sides of the square, leaving the last edge as a hinge.


Cover the inside of the cardboard box and the inside of the cardboard flap with silver foil 


Put a piece of black paper on the bottom of the box, and cover the hole in the top of the box with cling film. Make sure that you tape the cling film in place. You may need some help with this part!

Your solar oven is now ready. You can use your wooden skewer to prop the lid open. 



Why not try putting something inside and seeing what happens...
You could start with something that melts easily like cheese or chocolate as your solar oven will take longer to heat things up than a regular oven.

The video tutorial for this activity is available on the Surrey Libraries Facebook Page or the Surrey Libraries YouTube Channel

Monday, August 3, 2020

Feel the Heat!!!


For our next science activity we are going to be making a model solar oven!

We will be releasing this activity on the Surrey Libraries Facebook page on Thursday 6th August at 10.30am.

For this activity you are going to need:
  • A shallow cardboard box (like a pizza box)
  • Silver Foil
  • Cling Film
  • Black Paper
  • A Ruler
  • A pen or pencil
  • A pair of scissors
  • Tape
  • A Wooden Skewer

For more information please watch this short introduction video. 

Follow Surrey Libraries on Facebook and Twitter for the latest information and don't forget to visit Science Club on the 

Thursday, July 30, 2020

Make a Balloon Hovercraft

Hovercrafts are amphibious, which means they can travel over both land and water. 

To make your balloon hovercraft the first thing that you need to do, is take the pop top from your plastic bottle and place it over the hole in the middle of your CD. You are then going to secure it in place. You can either do this with a glue gun or with strong tape. You will need to make sure that no air can escape at the join.

Once you have attached you pop top to your CD, make sure that it is in the closed position and you can then blow up your balloon and pull it over the top. 


When you are ready to release your model hovercraft you can open the pop top and the air from the balloon will start to be released and the hovercraft will move.

The way the hovercraft works is that air from the balloon is released and gets trapped beneath the CD. This trapped air reduces the friction between the floor and the CD. As air is released from the balloon it allows the hovercraft to glide across a surface on a current of air.

You may like to try out your hovercraft on different surfaces and see how they compare.

You could also try swapping the CD base and trying something like a paper plate and see if this makes a difference...

The video tutorial for this activity is available on the Surrey Libraries YouTube Channel


Tuesday, July 28, 2020

Can You Hover?


For our next science activity we are going to be making a balloon hovercraft!

We will be releasing this activity on the Surrey Libraries Facebook page on Thursday 30 July at 10.30am. 

For this activity you are going to need:
  • An old CD
  • A Balloon
  • A pop top from a plastic drinks bottle
You will also need either:
  • A glue gun or
  • Strong tape and a pair of scissors


For more information please watch this short introductory video

Follow Surrey Libraries on Facebook and Twitter for the latest information and don't forget to visit Science Club on the Surrey Libraries YouTube Channel

Paper Aircrafts

  In this activity we are going to be making a paper aeroplane, a glider and a helicopter and comparing how they fly For this activity you w...