Here are lots more fun science and technology activities to try at home.  

Go ahead and give the activities a go!

Science Activities and Links

Pulse rate

Take your pulse rate at your wrist, before, during and after exercise. 

1. Find your pulse in your wrist.
2. Count it for 15 seconds and write it down.
3. Now do 30 jumping jacks.
4. Count your pulse again.
5. Did you notice any difference? What does this tell you about what happens to your body when you exercise?
6. Can you research what the heart does when we exercise?

You could also - 

1. Do an activity each day and time how long it takes you.
2. Keep a record of this on a spread sheet.
3. Work our your average time.
4. Sort the data by how quickly you can do it.
5. Which day was your fastest?

If you want more support in taking your pulse, take a look at this clip from the British Heart Foundation - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qaZrzoH8Jvk

BBC Teach - The Great British Year

A series of spectacular clips exploring British plants, animals and landscapes throughout the four seasons of the year. 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/teach/class-clips-video/science-ks1-ks2-the-great-british-year/zmcqf4j 

Lockdown advice

Design a poster for other children to help them stay safe during lockdown – get creative. 

Here is just one idea, but we think you can do better.

Maybe you could do a poster to help them think of things to do, so they don't feel bored.

Alternatively, write a leaflet for adults.  There are lots of different shapes for leaflets.  Here are some ideas - 

Make your own one minute timer

Here is the link for a video showing you how you could make a timer out of plastic bottles - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YtVyvv1jmFc

The activity below is taken from https://sciencing.com/make-simple-minute-timer-5026941.html.  

This activity requires a sharp object to make a hole - seek adult support before starting.

You might also want to consider using sugar, if you do not have sand.  However, this will limit the lifespan of your timer.

Making a one-minute timer is a great project for you to put together with your children. Using a few household items, you can easily make this simple one-minute sand timer in no time. You can use it to teach young children the concept of time management and what the length of one minute is, or use it to time turns in family games. These instructions can easily be adapted to create a sand timer of longer durations by adjusting the amount of sand used in Step 3. Why buy expensive kitchen timers when you can make one in five minutes?

1. Take one plastic cup and place it upside down on a table. The other cup will be placed on top of the first one so that the bottoms of the two cups are touching. The two cups will form a rough hourglass shape. Place tape around the cups where the bottoms meet so they are securely fastened.
2. Using a pin or other sharp object, poke a tiny hole through the bottoms of the cups. Be careful not to make the hole too large, and make sure the hole goes through the bottoms of both of the cups. If the cups are made of stiff plastic, it may help to carefully heat up the pin using a lighter or candle right before poking the hole. Parents should not let children perform this step and should be very careful when heating up the pin.
3. Measure out some sand and place it in the top cup of the cup timer. Make sure the sand can pass through the hole you made in Step 2. If no sand is passing through, slightly enlarge the hole. Place the cup timer on top of a plate or bowl to catch the sand passing through it, and use the stopwatch to time how long it takes the sand to pass through to the bottom of the timer. Adjust the amount of sand until it takes exactly one minute (or your desired duration) for all of the sand to pass from the top to the bottom of the timer.
4. Cut two circles out of your cardboard or plastic. These circles will be used as lids for the open mouths of the cups. To get the proper size, place the cup timer on the cardboard or plastic and trace around the circumference of the cup with a pencil or marker. First, attach one of the lids to the open mouth of one cup using tape or glue. Make sure it is firmly attached. Next, place your sand in the timer's other open mouth and affix the second lid in the same manner. You should now have a sealed and contained one minute sand timer.

15 very simple science activities

The simplest things in life are the best.

Why not take a look at some simple science investigations at home with your child to get them exploring and thinking outside of the box?

https://www.noguiltmom.com/very-simple-science-experiments/ 

 Science Kids

If you’re looking for some fun and plenty of learning opportunities why not visit 

http://www.sciencekids.co.nz/experiments.html 

BBC Teach - little stargazing

Techniquest at Home- Daily Demos

Why not head over to the Techniquest website where there are lots of fun demonstrations to watch and enjoy!

https://www.techniquest.org/daily-demos/

65 super easy and fun experiments to try at home

63 Super easy and fun experiments for your little scientist to try at home and explore with, not only will they have fun but also it’s a great way to spend quality time exploring together whilst learning. 

BBC Teach - Supermovers Science Collection

BBC Teach – Supermovers Science Collection 

Get up and moving with active learning direct from the TARDIS.  Covering the Solar System and Light. 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/teach/supermovers/science-collection/zdtymfr 

Design and Technology Activities and Links

 Simple STEM challenges

(Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths)

This website says - 

Stave off the dreaded “I’m bored” syndrome that hits partway into any vacation or downtime with a few of the BEST simple STEM activities that cost almost next to nothing. We have a bunch of easy STEM challenges to get the juices flowing, keep the kids thinking, and best of all learning. As always we have plenty of science experiments and STEM activities to get through a whole year. Shhh, don’t tell them!

https://littlebinsforlittlehands.com/easy-simple-stem-activities-challenges/ 

Beginners coding

Computers are taking over the world and we need to know how they communicate. 

This activity requires at least two people, some rectangles and small objects.

Lay out cards (these can be cut up boxes, playing cards, or pieces of paper) to create a grid, where they are not going to be blown around.

You can use toys or small objects to act as the ‘computer’ and ‘obstacles’.   

Now it’s up to the ‘programmer’ to help get the computer through the maze to a chosen item.  

Someone will need to give simple instructions in ‘code talk’ to be successful (e.g. go forward 3, turn left, forward 2, ...)

Alternative ideas

- use chalk or masking tape to create a grid on an appropriate floor and one player is the computer that moves around.

- feeling adventurous? no delicate/dangerous objects nearby? someone available to watch out for you?  Blindfold the 'computer' and see if you can direct them to a set place.  Remember, you are their safety warden.

Be safe and enjoy

25 Simple Activities for Little Engineers

This one’s for all the budding engineers, endless activities that will inspire, engage and let your child develop their resilience through exploration and play. 

https://mylifeandkids.com/25-simple-activities-for-little-engineers/#_a5y_p=3914653 

Scratch

Coding is the new literacy! Scratch is a free programming website for kids 8+ who can program and share interactive media such as stories, games and animations.  With Scratch they learn to think creatively, work collaboratively, and reason systematically.

https://scratch.mit.edu/parents 

Scratch Jr

Scratch Jr is a more simplified version of scratch and is for young kids aged 5 to 7.  They can program their own interactive stories and games.  In the process, they learn to solve problems, design projects, and express themselves creatively on the computer.

https://scratchjr.org