Today we offer you a very simple experiment to carry out at home, which will appeal to all children who are passionate about space and which will arouse the curiosity of others.
Before starting the experiment, you can ask your children if they know what the moon is, where it is...
Print photos of the moon and representations of the solar system to illustrate your remarks! Then, you can point out to him that the surface of the moon is different from that of the other planets and in particular from that of the earth.
Indeed, it has many asperities: craters . Where do they come from? From the collision with asteroids, that is to say, piles of rocks and metals circulating in space.
Material of the activity:
- 500 grams of flour
- baby oil
- small pebbles
- a round cake tin
- a salad bowl
Progress of the activity:
1) Ask your child to mix flour and baby oil in a bowl.2) Then he can pour the mixture into the mold.
3) Explain to him that he symbolizes the moon.
4) Give him the small pebbles and explain that these are miniatures of the asteroids circulating in space.
5) Place the mold on the ground, and invite your child to stand above it and drop a pebble on it: a crater will form!
6) You can bring him a chair and ask him if he thinks the crater will look different if he throws it from a higher height. He can then climb on it and test for himself!
7) After dropping several pebbles, invite him to put away and clean the equipment.
Skills developed :
- Scientific reasoning
- Curiosity and scientific culture
- Scientific motricity
- Self-confidence
- Causal link
Explanation :
Generally, meteors do not crash into the earth because they are dissolved in the earth's atmosphere. However, the moon does not have this protective atmosphere and is therefore much more vulnerable.
SOURCES:
-Fumbling Through Homeschooling: Making Moon Craters ( fumblingthroughparenthood.blogspot.com )
- Simple Science Experiment for Kids: Why are there craters on the moon? - I Can Teach My Child!