I love tinkering with high-tech applications, circuits, and robotics to answer difficult science questions, but it's important to remember you don't need fancy and expensive materials to be a researcher. With a walk through your kitchen and some rummaging through your closet, you can find materials to become an engineer and scientist.
At Kensington branch, we made egg contraptions from recycled materials, pipe cleaners, coffee filters, and straws to protect raw eggs from a high fall. We set down newspaper and a set-up a ladder, and the children tested their contraptions from different heights to see if they could protect their egg. (Only adults were permitted on the ladder.)
We learned that the higher our egg dropped, the harder the fall, and the faster the contraption dropped. The children collaborated and found that by attaching a parachute to their contraption, it fell at a slower pace and protected the raw egg.
What you need:
- Eggs
- Ladder or Step stool (with an adult's help)
- Scissors
- Tape (Optional)
- String (Optional)
- Straws (Optional)
- Pipe Cleaners (Optional)
- Coffee Filters (Optional)
Tips:
Don't put your egg in the contraption until you test out the contraption on its own.
Want more STEM? Come to other Library Lab events at your local Library!
This blog post reflects the opinions of the author and does not necessarily represent the views of Brooklyn Public Library.
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