STEM Club: Learning Science through Inquiry and Experimentation

In this club, your child will encounter a broad range of scientific topics, from understanding color blindness to uncovering whether mothers truly have eyes in the back of their heads! While we moms may already know the answer to that question, it's a chance to pass on our knowledge to our curious youngsters. Throughout this course, we'll delve into a diverse array of subjects (over 70 weeks' worth!) using methods like analyzing articles, engaging with interactive video lessons, playing games, completing projects, and conducting at-home experiments. My goal is to cater to all learning preferences!

Take a look at the first 20 weeks (with more topics to come!!). All of these lessons are interactive in SOME way: Worksheets (always provided), digital games, digital labs (that we do together), hands on lab (supplies always provided in class 1 week before lesson AND again as an announcement on the same day, AND a reminder by 8pm EST on Sundays - you'll always have plenty of time to get the items). 


THIS WEEK: WEEK OF 11/24

This week in STEM class, we’ll be diving into the fascinating world of chemical reactions with a fun and fizzy experiment: Lemon Volcanoes! 🌋✨ You won’t believe the bubbly eruption we can create using simple ingredients from your kitchen!

Materials You’ll Need:
1 or 2 lemons 🍋
Baking soda 🧂
Liquid dish soap 🫧
Food coloring (optional but adds flair!) 🎨
A butter knife and a spoon (for scooping and cutting)
A tray or plate to contain the fun (and the mess!) 🥳
What We’ll Explore:
We’ll learn how acids and bases interact to produce carbon dioxide gas—a chemical reaction that powers our volcano! You’ll also discover how to observe, hypothesize, and experiment like a true scientist.

Bring your curiosity and creativity as we experiment with different colors and ingredients to see how we can make the biggest, most colorful eruption! 🌈💥

Let’s make science fun, messy, and unforgettable! I can’t wait to see what you create.

See you in class!





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CLASS WE HAVE COMPLETED SO FAR CAN BE FOUND BELOW :) 

Weeks 1 - Week 6  is focused on understanding our senses. We will spend a lot of time asking and answering questions about how things work around us: 

Week of 5/15 --- Week 1: What does it mean to be colorblind? 
   **Color Blindness test and Color Sorting Game (all materials will be provided) 
   **we will use a colorblindness simulator, so having an additional device is necessary to really enjoy this lesson. This lesson is heavy on inquiry/discussion/new perspectives. 

Week of 5/22 --- Week 2: Beyond the five senses: Body awareness 
    **need something to write with, something to write on, and a blindfold. Students will 
     also participate in yoga to learn more about proprioception.   This class if heavy on 
     inquiry/discussion/new perspectives

Week of 5/29--- Week 3: Beyond the five senses: Temperature 
    **need thermometers, blankets, beverages at different temperatures, spray bottle 
        with water.  This lesson is very lab dominant and having the supplies is very 
     important! Infrared thermometers are preferred! 

Week of 6/5 --- Week 4: Exploring our world: How does sound travel?
     **Need string or rope, color ribbon, a slinky (if time allows - a sheet pan and a stick!)

Week of 6/12--- Week 5: Are you left- or right-handed, and does it matter?
     **Several small balls (tennis ball works well), Balls for kicking, Bucket, garbage can or 
         other container, Pencils or pen, paper

Week of 6/19---Week 6: Does color affect our sense of taste?
     **Jellybeans of various flavors , Grape soda, root beer and club soda, Food coloring , 
     Clear containers, Small paper cups, Blindfolds (optional), Writing utensil, Copy of 
      tables (will be provided) 


Weeks 7 - Week  14 focuses on Physical Science (with lots of hands on labs!) 

Week of 6/24: Football Science 
       ***Students will need a football and plenty of space 

Week 7/1: Why do some things float and others sink?

Week 7/8:  Bartholomew and the Oobleck

Week 7/15: Does the type of paper make a difference in paper airplanes?

Week 7/22: Why does poop splash? (yep, you read that right!) 

Week 8/5:Bouncing Bubbles (you will need to prep for this class 24 hours in advance!!** and I will send multiple reminders**) 

Week 8/12: Chromatography Butterflies

Week 8/19: Lava Lamps
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Weeks 15 - Week 21  Focuses on Engineering (lots of building)

Week 8/26: Wind Energy - Students will make their own Wind Turbine! 

Week 9/2: Can you make a boat out of aluminum foil?

Week 9/9: Can you make a wind-powered car?