Chemistry

• Use Epsom salt to make crystal spikes. Cut out construction paper and put it in the bottom of a pie pan. Place one tablespoon of Epsom salt to 1/4 cup of warm water and stir together. Put the mixture on the black paper and place the pie pan out in the sun. The water dissolves, and the salt remains, leaving long crystals. Experiment with a dipping bird, available at magic and hobby stores, to witness how the bird uses heat for movement. Wet the bird's head fully in water. Place a glass of water so that the beak of the bird touches the water with every movement. The bird will continue to move because of the difference in temperature between the water and the air.
  
  

Life Sciences

• Make a bird feeder out of a cardboard milk carton. Cut out the middle of the carton and put birdseed in the bottom. Glue a piece of yarn around the top and place on a tree branch or pole. Observe the types of birds that come to the feeder, and make notes about how often different types are seen. Try to identify all the birds using books or online resources. Color flower petals. Place a white carnation in a cup of water with red food coloring to see how the water travels. Cut the end of the flower. The water will travel up the stem and turn the petals red.
  
  

Building

• See how many pennies you can hold on a piece of paper. Stack two piles of books that are the same height six inches from each other. Use one sheet of paper in the middle and stack pennies on top. Change the shape of the paper to see whether you can stack more pennies by changing the design. Build a tower out of cups. Use paper cups and stack them to build the tower. Try to change the placement of the cups to stack the tower higher.
  
  

Other

• Make butter from heavy cream. Pour heavy cream into a jar with a lid. Shake the jar vigorously for 10 minutes. The cream will turn into a solid butter because the fat and protein globs will stick together and create a solid. Shine pennies with lemon juice. Place a dull penny into a paper cup and pour enough lemon juice into the cup to cover the penny. Take the penny out after five minutes and rub with a cloth. The acid in the lemon juice will remove the oxidation on the penny.