Changing seasons, fall colors, and a fun holiday make for many teachable moments during October.

This month watch as Chloe, our budding young scientist, and  Ms. Terri show you an activity called Gilbert Gas’s Oozing Bubbles. We love Halloween so we offer a spooky twist (Ghost Bubbles) but if you don’t celebrate the holiday, you can simply teach about states of matter. Our video shows a little more dramatic variation, but you can make the same point with a tall cylinder or glass, water, some dishwashing liquid, and the secret ingredient—dry ice (carbon dioxide in solid form).  Kids love this really cool demonstration.  

Want more ideas? Take a look at some of our other October videos from the past. These include Zany Science Zeke’s lesson on polymers. We’ve “Halloweened” it up by calling it Wanda the Melting Witch. It’s pretty cool regardless of what you name it! There’s also a variation of Vinnie Volcano’s Volcano (chemical reactions) we’ve modified to make a spewing pumpkin. Finally, try Ollie Oxygen’s Fun Foam (exothermic reaction) to make a Halloween or fall potion.

Fall and science just go together. Enjoy the season and the ideas we offer to make it full of fun, robust, and memorable learning.

“We did a great science worksheet today!” said no kid ever. As an educator, make a new school year resolution to be the one that “comes home to the dinner table” (in a good way of course)! We remember experiences. We remember doing things. We remember concepts when we can apply those concepts.

What better subject than science to make the classroom come alive? This month we offer some simple and very fun science activities that are guaranteed to make children look forward to coming to class and then telling others about what they have learned. But, it’s not just about the “wow” factor. It’s also important that the concepts learned are meaningful and robust.

So how do we start the new school year with a bang? Fall is a great time to read Friction Fred to learn how Fred uses friction to help the Foops win the football game. Try all the fun activities in the Quirkles Teacher Guide and More Quirkles Experiments book to reinforce the story and science. Have distance contests on different surfaces, try “Friction Fred’s Magic Spoon,” and design a new version of  Fred’s Friction Flyers football shoes.

But that’s not all. This month we offer a bonus, that, while not in this book, ties to Friction Fred. Watch our video to learn how to make armpit fudge. Instead of the conventional way of ingredient mixing, we use the friction and the heat of the human body, namely the armpit, to do the work. It’s actually quite tasty and just gross enough to be wonderful to a young child!

The Quirkles stories and activities are full of ways to make learning memorable. So what are you waiting for? It’s time for some educational, fun science! 

Dry ice (carbon dioxide in solid form) not only helps reinforce the concept of states of matter but adds an element of fun to any fall party.

Try this unconventional way to learn about friction!