So you think molecular science is intimidating? Well, than you never held hands with Oxygen and Hydrogen or looked at Legos like molecules of multi-colored atoms. I mean really, ATOMS and MOLECULES are about the coolest things You will Never actually see.
Just invite some kids on a blanket who have no idea that the way you learned about atoms was PAINFUL due to how dryly it was presented or the impending threat of a pop quiz. And instead of boring them, ask these kids (and parents) to play games, do experiments, maybe read them a fun book, dance around a bit and pepper it all with cool science terms and wacky facts. Your budding scientists will not only absorb some of the basics of molecular science, but I guarantee they will want more!
So on Sept 25, 2009 after alot of free play and goofing about at our Village parkday called~ MudPies & Butterflies, this is how my husband & I explored Amazing Atoms & Mighty Molecules with kids from age 2-12.
“Everyone go and get the BIGGEST leaf you can find!” Boom! They are off. And FLASH they are back on the blanket. Okay, now tear your leaf in half. And throw one half as far as you can. Now tear that in half and zing the other piece. And half and half and half and half until you think you are down to a piece you can not split any further (and if you are doing this at home, substitute something edible like cheese and let them eat the half they don’t need. Use a knife if you’d like to let them cut their objects evenly in half).
Now that is small, right? Well not even close to how small an atom is. Your piece is close to the size of a grain of sand. Did you know that there are more ATOMS in one grain of sand, than there are grains of sand on all the beaches of the world? Really! (Watch out parents, I can feel you stressing out over this concept. Getting a painful highschool flashback. Relax. Have fun. As soon as you start stressing out – that’s your signal that you are missing out on fun and fun increases absorbtion.) Remember -
*Fun increases Absorption.*
Okay, back to the kids. Atoms are just building blocks. There are only a hundred different atoms and everything is built with these building blocks. We dumped a bucket of giant legos out and told them to build anything they wanted. They went crazy with fun. Who doesn’t like Legos? No rules. Great colors. And all ages can build with these. And how satisfying is it when they snap together?
So while you all build, Imagine each different colored lego is a different kind of atom. And any structure built with atoms would be called a MOLECULE. And even though there are 100 atoms, almost everything, including yourself, is comprised of about 6 types of those atoms (99% of the mass of the human body is made up of six elements: oxygen, carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, calcium, and phosphorus.) Aran and his shirt with a neon Periodic Table of Elements surely came in handy. This Chart lays all the atoms out based on their properties or characteristics like: how high they can jump, how light they are, and the color of their hair?
There is even a great song in You Tube listing the entire Table of Elements for those of you experiencing this online.
So kids, do you know the names of any atoms? How about Helium? Whose heard of that one? Yup, balloons are filled with helium. If it was just air it wouldn’t float. What’s air made of? Oxygen. Ooooh, that is another atom. And Copper. That is its own atom. And there is even one named after our state - Californium. What about Hydrogen? Ever heard of that one. Want to see something great that Hydrogen can do with two more atomic friends? Okay, you over there; you will be a Hydrogen atom. And you and you and you. And parent One – you are an Oxygen. Parent Two and Three – you are Oxygen atoms too.
Now, we need two Hydrogens to find one Oxygen and hold hands in a circle. On your mark, get set, find your buddies. And they are off. That group has one too many hydrogens. Quick they need one. I knight you as an honorary Hydrogen, get in that circle. Okay. Everyone found the right mix? Do you know what you are? It’s really common. You drink it every day! WATER. You have all made a Water molecule. Really you have. One molecule of water is comprised of Two Hydrogen atoms holding hands with One Oxygen atom. It’s that simple.
Now I want you to all imagine that the ground is getting hotter and hotter. It’s turned into lava. Ahhh, what do you do? But keep holding hands.
They all start to hop and jump, still holding hands. You guys are highly- activated water molecules. You are BOILING water. That is why water in a pot on the stove bubbles and bumps up.
Now. Imagine that it is getting very cold and yes, you have to keep holding hands – because you are just an Oxygen or Hydrogen atom if you don’t hold hands. Only together do you make water. I see some shivering. Now I see some huddling. Can anyone guess what you are? An ice crystal. You could be on the window pane, on the lid of your icecream container or in an ice cube. You water molecules are AMAZING!
Let’s go investigate just how amazing water is at the tables under the arbor. Run! Okay, phew. First, I need to show you that Oxygen and Hydrogen don’t just hold hands like regular friends. They are much closer than that. It isn’t so easy to break their handshake if they hold wrists instead of hands like this.
………..The bond between Hydrogen and Oxygen atoms is strong. But so is the bond between water molecule and water molecule. One way we can tell how powerful of a bond those molecules share is in their surface tension. Water likes water so much, they just don’t want to separate. I’m going to add water to this already full glass ~ Drop by drop. Why isn’t it spilling over. See how much higher the water is than the glass? Now, everyone take a penny and lay it on a flat surface. Now count how many drops of water you can get on the top of the penny before the bubble of water spills over. 5, 9, 12, 15 drops. Wow. Look at it. That bubble should spill. But it doesn’t. Why? Water has Powerful Surface Tension!
In the absence of a dropper, any straw or q-tip dipped in water will work great!
Has anyone here ever walked on water? No. Has anyone ever seen an animal walk on water? How about an insect? Yes, water bugs can walk on water. And it is not because they are magic. The magic is in the water. Now the weight of the bugs is distributed out evenly so each leg weighs less, but even so, it is the great surface tension of the water that prevents the weight of the bug from popping the skin of the water and falling in. The bug is not heavy enough to separate the hand holds of all of the hundreds and thousand water molecules.
Now, as scientists let’s test the surface tension in our water here. Who can float a paperclip on the surface of your bowl of water? It is tricky, but doable. (Aran tried over a dozen times and couldn’t get his to float! How great for the kids to see an Adult that can’t succeed at everything. Aran’s enthusiasm showed how fun it is to just try! Experiments are not meant to be contests.)
..
..Lilianna was the first child to got her paperclip to rest on the surface of her water. And now I could show them how water’s surface tension could be changed. With one drop of dish detergent, the paperclip fell. Why?
Well, dish detergent slipped it’s molecules between water molecules. So it broke the handshake. With out such a tight handshake a bowl of water molecules couldn’t hold a paperclip up any more. This is why the pollution from some factories expelled into our rivers or into land that runs into our rivers and lakes can harmfully change the life cycle of animals. Can you think of any other ways animals benefit from water’s amazing surface tension? Or how their lives might be disrupted if it was changed?
Earlier, Aran showed us all how molecules diffuse in water with some food coloring. 
…………..There were more experiments that the kids participated in. We also read a great book… What’s Smaller than a Pygmy Shrew? by Robert E. Wells.
This book went from an Elephant, to a pygmy shrew (3 inches), to a ladybug, to bacteria, to molecules, to atoms, atomic nucleus and quarks. And by exploring what an atom was comprised of…Protons, Neutrons and Electrons, we set the ground work for Atom Fun Part II. Because the handshake is really about one atom sharing electrons with another. But that will come later.
But it was time for a related craft for each of them to tap into what they had experienced, by experiencing more. Each child got a disc – a simple wooden circle – blank holiday ornament from the craftstore. They could have an extra two wooden discs if they wanted to turn it into a water molecule. or just decorate theirs as one of the 117 atoms listed on Aran’s Shirt.
“Asking questions leads to answers, but figuring it out on your own ~ well that leads to learning.”
by Jessica Deltac