Make a Paddle Boat

                                       

In this activity we are going to be making a propeller to power your boat. Your propeller is powered by converting elastic potential energy into kinetic energy. 

This is an extension of our boat building activity from session 7.

For this activity you will need:

• A plastic bottle
• A milk bottle
• Tape
• Scissors
• 2 Wooden Skewers
• An elastic band
• A pencil
• A ruler

To make the propeller for your boat you first need to cut out 4 rectangles out of the plastic milk bottle. Make sure that your rectangles are all the same size. 

You next want to bend your 4 rectangles in half so that they have a crease in the middle. You are then going to tape them together in a cross shape.

To attach the propeller you will need to tape 2 wooden skewers to either side of your plastic bottle, making sure that at least half of the skewer sticks out behind the end of the bottle. Wooden skewers are sharp so remember to be careful!

You can now slide an elastic band between the two wooden skewers and the propeller can then be twisted between the elastic band. As you twist the elastic band you are winding the propeller and storing the elastic potential energy to power your boat.

For this activity we have used a plastic bottle for the boat, but once you know how to make a propeller why not try building your own boat and making a propeller for it. 

You can also try experimenting with different size propellers. Does a smaller/ larger propeller make your boat move faster/ slower?

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

Make a Mini Trebuchet

Trebuchets were used in the Middle Ages as a type of siege engine to throw stones at castle walls. It works in a similar way to a catapult, but it uses a pivot and a counterweight to create the force needed to throw the items

The first thing that you are going to need to do is tape the two paper cups to the cardboard base. You want to leave a gap between the paper cups of about half the length of your straw. 

You are now going to cut a small piece of paper and roll it into a tube around your straw. You are then going to tape it in place. Make sure that it can move freely around the straw. You don’t want to be to tight that it doesn’t move. You can then tape your straw between the two paper cups. 

You can now get your lolly stick and to one side attach your milk bottle top using some double-sided tape to make your basket. On the other side of the stick you are going to tape your battery. The battery is going to act as the counterweight.

You are now going to tape the lolly stick to the paper wrapped around the straw. Make sure that it is attached securely. 

You are now ready to test your trebuchet. Put something in the basket and see how far you can fire it. 

Although similar to a catapult the trebuchet works by converting gravitational potential energy – which you get by raising the counterweight, into kinetic energy.

Remember not to fire your trebuchet at anyone!

You may like to experiment with firing different things from your trebuchet and see if this makes a difference. You could try a cotton wool ball, ping pong ball, ball of paper... 

You could also try and make some adjustments to your trebuchet to see if it can fire longer distances. Does a heavier/ lighter battery/ counterweight make a difference? What happens if you have a longer/ shorter arm? Does the place that you tape the lolly stick make a difference? What happens if it is in the centre/ near the battery/ near the basket?

I hope you have fun with this activity.

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

How far can you throw???

For our next science activity we are going to be making a mini trebuchet!

We will be releasing this activity on the Surrey Libraries Facebook page on Thursday 3rd September at 10.30am. 

For this activity you will need:

•  A piece of thick card
•  2 paper cups
•  Tape
•  A lolly stick
•  A milk bottle top
•  A battery
•  A small piece of paper
•  A pair of scissors
•  Double sided tape
•  A straw

For more information watch the 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

Spaghetti and Marshmallow Towers

                               

If you pick up a piece of spaghetti and have a look at it you will see that on its own it is not very strong. It is quite bendy, but it also breaks very easily. However if you pick up several pieces of spaghetti and try and bend them they become much stronger

Making a spaghetti and marshmallow tower is a really fun thing to try at home as all you need is a pack of spaghetti and a pack of marshmallows. You may even already have them in a cupboard somewhere, or if not you can easily pick them up next time you go shopping.

When you start to build your tower think about what shapes you are going to use to make your tower. What shapes do you think are strongest? Why don't you have a look at some of the structures you see around you. What shapes have been used to make them? You will want to make sure that your tower is strong and doesn't fall over or collapse. 

To start to make your tower what you need to do is take a marshmallow and push a piece of spaghetti into the middle. You can then push some extra pieces into the marshmallow to start to build your structure. You can build both upwards and out to build a strong structure.

Now this can get a bit messy so be careful

We hope that you have fun with this activity and remember that once you have finished you can always eat the marshmallows!  

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

Bend or Break...

For our next science activity we are going to be making Spaghetti and Marshmallow Towers!

We will be releasing this activity on the Surrey Libraries Facebook page on Thursday 28th August at 10.30am. 

For this activity you are going to need:

• A pack of marshmallows
• A pack of dried spaghetti

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

Blowing Bubbles

A bubble is made from a thin sheet of soapy water called a soap film. Inside the soap film, soap molecules line up on the inside and outside of the bubble with a layer of water between them. As the water in the bubble evaporates the bubble bursts.

For this activity we are going to be looking at some of the different things that you may have at home that you can use to make some extra large bubbles. You may want to try and do outside if you can!

The first thing that we are going to do is make our bubble mixture, so we are going to add some washing up liquid to our bowl of water.

There are lots of different things that you have at home that you can use to make bubbles. If you have pipe cleaners at home you can bend these into different shapes to make bubble wands. 

You may have a paper cup. If you cut the end of the cup off you can use this to make bubbles

You can thread string through a straw and this will make a flexible bubble wand. You can experiment with different lengths of string and see how big you can make your bubbles

You can also try and make some 3D structures by taping some straws together and using these to make bubbles.

To make longer lasting bubbles, try adding glycerol. Glycerol holds onto the water in the soap film for longer so can help make longer lasting bubbles!

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

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