Recommended for elementary school students' independent research! Experiment and observation ideas using everyday materials
Recommended for elementary school students who haven’t decided on a summer vacation independent research project yet! Choosing a topic can be tough, but in this article we introduce exciting ideas that will make you feel thrilled just reading them—from factory tours at candy makers to gemstone polishing, and even a DIY telescope you can build with materials you have at home! You’ll also find plenty of ideas you’ll want to tell someone about, like a curious experiment to check your ear age and a project to make water that’s both hard and soft.
You’re sure to find tips for independent research that use familiar items and are fun to try!
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Recommended for elementary school science projects! Experiment and observation ideas using everyday materials (71–80)
Observing ants
When kids see ants, they just can’t help wanting to chase them.
Many of us probably poked at an anthill with a stick when we were little, right? Observing ants is a perfect independent research project for children who love playing outside and looking at insects! These days, you can buy observation kits, so as long as you catch some ants outdoors, it’s easy to watch them up close.
For this project, all you need to do is watch the ants and jot down what you notice, so even younger elementary students can enjoy it.
You can also decide how many days to observe them, which makes it highly recommended!
DNA from orange juice
When you hear about extracting DNA, doesn’t it sound like you’d need some very special experiments or that it might be really painful? Actually, that’s not the case! You can extract DNA surprisingly easily! All you need is orange juice and anhydrous ethanol.
Just pour ethanol into the orange juice and let it sit.
That’s all it takes to extract the DNA from the orange juice! Anhydrous ethanol is highly flammable, so never do this near any source of fire!
Puka Puka Fruit: “Will it float?” “Will it sink?”
This is an experiment where you prepare various vegetables and test whether they float or sink in water! Try different conditions, such as keeping the peel on, peeling them, or using saltwater.
It’s fun to predict “Float?” or “Sink?” in advance and think about the reasons, then compare your predictions with the results.
Since the experiment only requires familiar materials, you can do it in a single day.
Because peeling fruit may involve using a knife, this experiment is recommended for 4th graders and older.
Recommended for elementary school students’ independent research! Experiment and observation ideas using everyday materials (81–90)
A fountain made with a plastic bottle
“The PET Bottle Fountain” is a science experiment suitable for upper elementary grades and above.
In this experiment, you increase the internal pressure of a PET bottle by leveraging how air volume changes with temperature.
The necessary materials include a PET bottle and a vinyl tube, among others.
Because the amount of water expelled varies with temperature, it can be interesting to calculate the pressure from the amount of water remaining inside the bottle.
Morse code
If you’re looking for a scientific experiment suitable for upper elementary school students, a Morse code experiment is recommended.
In this experiment, you send Morse code using electrical signals.
You’ll need materials such as a battery, enamel-coated wire, and aluminum plates.
Since building the device requires knowledge of electrical circuits, it’s best to get help from an adult.
Once the device is ready, try having a conversation with someone using Morse code.
Mysterious Ramen
“Mysterious Ramen” is a hands-on science project where you can enjoy a tasty dish.
The soup of this ramen starts out blue, but when you add vinegar, it mysteriously changes to pink.
The ingredients include instant ramen with a light-colored broth (such as a salty flavor), red cabbage, vinegar, and more.
In fact, red cabbage soup changes color depending on acidity or alkalinity, so try observing that reaction.
Let’s observe the reflection of light
How about doing an independent study observing the properties of light? In elementary school science classes, you probably do experiments to confirm light reflection, but let’s dig deeper into that for your project.
Shine a flashlight inside a box to check the direction the light travels, place a mirror, and observe the angles of reflection.
It could also be interesting to compare the flashlight’s brightness with the number of reflections.