Making science accessible to the youngest children
Kids with, or without reading skills, can use the book, prepare, and play with science activities independently. Each activity is also linked to a QR Code with a Youtube video. You can buy the book from Amazon US or at your local Amazon with ASIN: B08NWQZQRB. You can check the full content (PDF) here: https://t.co/ktyNO6YSwq?amp=1
I am a stay at home mum of twins, previously a scientist. I wrote a book for young kids (ages 3–7). The book has simple, graphical instructions on how to set up and play with science activities at home. It allows young children, even without reading skills to decide which science activity they want to explore & to prepare & play with the activities independently. Every science activity is linked to a QR code with an engaging Youtube video. The videos offer further insights into the activities through different types of media. Our science activities use household items only aiming for a low-cost play. The book also includes suggestions on how to extend the activities and kid-friendly scientific explanations. By combining print books, Youtube videos, and parental support, we create a holistic, real-life experience allowing young kids to choose, play, and learn science.
How it all started?
I spend four years as a stay at home mother. This meant that I would spend the majority of my day playing with my twins, which was a great opportunity to teach them what I am most passionate about Science! Involving science in our everyday activities was an ideal scenario: my kids would have fun and learn a lot, and I would experience my kids learning science through fun play! But finding playful science activities for young kids was tricky.
Coming up with ideas for science play was challenging. I had to spend hours researching possible science activities online and in books. I spent a long time shopping for the required items of the activities and testing the activities in advance, to make sure I could replicate them. Sometimes, the activities weren’t easy to replicate at home or they had unclear instructions.
When I finally found an activity I liked and I could replicate, I would spend time to prepare an explanation for the science behind the activity. I wanted to create an explanation that is brief, short, and easy for young kids to understand, and hopefully, remember.
And for the final part, I had to convince my kids to join me and play. And that was the hardest part. It was the hardest part because my kids wanted to make the choice for what we will play. If I suggested something, it would not be as exciting as if they actually chose to play with something. They liked the power that comes with a decision, they liked the feeling of having control over what we will play and what we will learn. And I wanted to encourage them to make those decisions. It would give them great confidence and excitement, and it would give me, a little glimpse of what they most like to play. Plus, developing decision-making skills is a useful skill for adulthood.
But, giving my kids the ability to choose the science activity we would play, meant that I had to preplan and prepare for multiple science activities!
The book
So, I decided to write a book. A book for kids of young ages with or without reading skills. A book to inspire and empower kids so they can choose the science activity they want to play with. A book that kids can use, pause, and play in real life with science activities. Activities that use only household items. Activities that you can easily replicate at home. Activities that you can experience deeper using not only the book but also a short video creating a multimedia experience that was fun and complete. In my book, I wanted to include kid-friendly explanations and suggestions on how the activities can be extended, so parents do not have to prepare in advance. This would also allow non-science-related parents to introduce science to their little ones.
In our book, there are three colored-coded sections of science activities: paper activities, art activities, and water activities.
At the beginning of each section, there is a graphical content page with pictures of the available activities in that category. For example, for art activities, we have shaving cream marbled art, bubble art, string art, and milk art. Having a graphical content page, allows the child to make the choice of the desired activity. This encourages young kids to make decisions and motivates them to follow through and play with the activities.
Once the decision is made and the activity is chosen, the child can find the corresponding page (by matching the numbers in the stars) and follow the simple, graphical instructions to set up and play!
Here is an example of the shaving cream marble art activity pages.
All activity pages start by listing the required items. The first step is to gather these items with parental support. Then, the child can follow graphical instructions to set up and play with the activities. Playing with my recommended science activities requires minimal parental involvement, promoting independence and self-confidence. To make sure everything is clearly explained, there is brief written instruction at the top of each picture.
Each activity comes also with a QR Code that leads to a Youtube video.
The video complements the activity and encourages children to use a variety of media, gather information, and achieve their goals.
The next steps
With this book, I aim to encourage parents and kids to play with science activities at home with little to no preparation and inexpensive household items. I aim to promote activities that are fun and easy to replicate. I aim to empower young kids to make their own decisions. I aim to encourage kids to gather information through a variety of media and have a stronger experience. I aim to give busy parents the confidence, to teach kids science spontaneously, even without a scientific background themselves.
I hope I can make science accessible to the youngest kids of all family backgrounds.
Get the book
If you are in the US, you can buy the book here.
If you are outside the US, you can find the book on your local Amazon website with the ASIN : B08NWQZQRB
If you want to see the full content, a PDF version of the book is available here.
If you enjoyed this story, please clap & if you really want to, please buy me a coffee through the button below!
Thank you so much for reading my blog. Please let me know your thoughts and stay connected! For any feedback or suggestions/corrections, please get in touch with me over Medium, OR an email (pauseandplayalong@gmail.com), OR via my Facebook/ Instagram!
