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)
Shiitake cultivation
If you’re looking for a science project theme where you can enjoy delicious food, growing shiitake mushrooms is a great choice.
In this experiment, you’ll use a shiitake mushroom growing kit to actually cultivate the mushrooms.
Depending on the temperature, it takes about a week for the mushrooms to grow, so be sure to prepare with enough time.
It’s easy for anyone to do, so it’s recommended even for lower elementary school students.
Morning Glory Observation
When it comes to classic summer projects, observing morning glories is a favorite.
Since many schools grow them, it’s a recommended project even for lower elementary students.
But simply observing isn’t much of a study, so try comparing different fertilizers to see which promotes better growth, or investigate the relationship between sunlight hours or temperature and the flowers that bloom.
It takes time for the flowers to blossom, so be sure to prepare well in advance.
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.