Science experiments at home are a fun way to engage the kiddos in easy-to-understand science concepts. They’ll want to do them over, over, and over again! One of the fascinating things about science activities for kids has to be the ease with which you can set up so many fun science experiments, even at home! The one thing that all of these experiments have in common is that they use everyday household supplies. How easy is that?
What Science Experiments Can I Do At Home?
Can you do terrific science experiments at home? You bet! Is it hard? Nope!
What do you need to get started?
Simply get up, walk into the kitchen, and start rummaging through cupboards. You will surely find some or all the supplies you need for all the easy home science experiments below.
These experiments at home work well with multiple age groups from preschool to elementary and beyond. Our activities have also been readily used with special needs groups in high school and young adult programs! More or less adult supervision depends on your kids’ abilities!
Read on to find out our favorite science experiments you can do at home that are do-able and make sense!
Using The Scientific Method With Kids
The scientific method is a process or method of research. A problem is identified, information about the problem is gathered, a hypothesis or question is formulated from the information, and the hypothesis is tested with an experiment to prove or disprove its validity.
Sounds heavy… What in the world does that mean?!? It means you don’t need to try and solve the world’s biggest science questions! The scientific method is all about studying and learning things right around you.
As children develop practices that involve creating, gathering data evaluating, analyzing, and communicating, they can apply these critical thinking skills to any situation.
Learn more here:
Note: The use of the best Science and Engineering Practices is also relevant to the topic of using the scientific method. Read more here and see if it fits your science planning needs.
Helpful Science Resources To Get You Started
Here are a few resources that will help you introduce science more effectively to your kiddos or students and feel confident yourself when presenting materials. You’ll find helpful free printables throughout.
- Best Science Practices (as it relates to the scientific method)
- Science Vocabulary
- 8 Science Books for Kids
- All About Scientists
- Science Supplies List
- Science Tools for Kids
- Join us in the Club
Click here to get your free Home Science Activities Pack
Easy Science Experiments To Do At Home
The following kids’ science activities can work for preschoolers through middle schoolers allowing multiple ages to work together while still learning great science concepts. Older kiddos can easily apply the scientific method, fill out science journal pages, and use science vocabulary to extend their learning.
Blow Up A Balloon
Of course, you know you can blow up balloons with your breath! What do you exhale? Carbon dioxide! But did you know you can also blow up a balloon with two common household ingredients, vinegar and baking soda?
Set up your experiment and test the difference between a balloon blown up with your breath and one blown up with the chemical reaction. Notice any differences?
LOOK: Baking Soda and Vinegar Experiment
Catapult Physics
Explore potential and kinetic energy with a simple to make catapult. Our Popsicle stick catapult tutorial is perfect for testing physics in the living room.
Explore the weights of different objects and how far they fly. Play with the lever arm and fulcrum to test force. Run through Newton’s laws! Why not invent your own catapult? Craft sticks and rubber bands are the base for this project. A bottle cap to hold items helps too!
LOOK: Popsicle Stick Catapult
Erupting Volcano
This is a classic science project the kids will have a blast creating at home. Although it’s a multi-step project which involves homemade salt dough, and decorating a volcano to get started, the eruptions are awesome!
You’ll need a batch of salt dough (or old playdough), paint (optional), baking soda, vinegar, food coloring, and dish soap
LOOK: Volcano Experiment
Goopy Oobleck
Prepare to get a little messy with this science experiment! You might even want to take this one outside. All you need is cornstarch and water and food coloring (optional).
Have you ever heard of a Non-Newtonian fluid? Part solid and part liquid, oobleck is more than just water and cornstarch mixed together! It also demonstrates the properties of Non-Newtonian fluids. Pick it up like a solid and let it ooze back as a liquid.
LOOK: Oobleck Recipe
Grow Crystals
Growing crystals is a great way to explore saturated solutions and crystal formation with kids of all ages. If you don’t want to get into using borax powder to grow crystals (although very cool results), salt is another great option and really gets the kids involved.
Plan for the experiment to take a few days as the water has to evaporate. All you need is table salt, water. and paper!
Magic Milk
DIY milk fireworks! A fun way to explore chemistry and reactions with kitchen ingredients. What happens when the fat in the milk meets the dish soap?
No low-fat, fat-free options here. Full fat milk is the best choice for this home science experiment. You’ll also need food coloring, dish soap. cotton swabs, and a shallow dish.
LOOK: Magic Milk Science Experiment
Melting Ice
This science activity features three different challenges that will keep the kiddos busy for hours and use items from around the house. Explore how ice melts, try to prevent ice from melting, and more. Simple science information included!
LOOK: What makes ice melt faster?
Naked Egg
Can you really make an egg bounce or a rubber egg? What happens to egg shell when you have an egg in vinegar? So many fun ideas to test out with a few simple supplies. All you need is some uncooked eggs and vinegar.
LOOK: Rubber Egg Experiment
Slime Science
We love making and playing with all types of cool slime. From super fluffy slime, galaxy slime, butter slime, glow-in-the-dark slime, and more. But did you know that slime can also be a fun science experiment?
Explore what happens when you vary the key ingredients in one of our most popular slime recipes. You only need PVA glue, slime activators, and baking soda for tons of slimy fun.
Walking Water
Explore capillary action, the process that moves water up through the stem of a plant in order for photosynthesis to work!
You can demonstrate this in several ways, including a walking water rainbow, color-changing flowers, and even with celery and lettuce leaves. All you need is food coloring, water, and something to move the water!
Balloon Rocket
How far can your balloon rocket fly? There’s an equal and opposite reaction for every action—exciting physics with straws, a balloon, and two anchor points.
LOOK: Balloon Rocket Experiment
More Fun Science Experiments To Try
Are you looking for more cool science experiments to do at home? Here’s even more to try- kid approved! Little scientists, through big scientists, will love the selection of mixtures, models, and mess!
Colorful Candy Experiments
Fantastic candy science experiments that you can actually do with all of your favorite candy! Of course, you might have to allow for taste testing too!
Chemical Reactions
Who doesn’t love fizzing, erupting and even exploding chemical reaction experiments? Even better you can do these science experiments at home safely with everyday ingredients.
Grow Your Science
Experiment with plants with one or more of these hands-on activities for kids. Set up a seed germination jar, mini-greenhouse, learn how plants breath, make food and more.
Science You Can Eat
Can you eat science? You bet! Kids love tasty food science experiments and adults love inexpensive and easy to set up science experiments at home!
Science In A Jar
Simple science jar experiments you can actually do in a single Mason jar! Totally doable and fun for kids to work on science at-home!
What’s The Weather Like
Dive into fun and easy weather science with simple weather STEM activities, demonstrations, engineering projects, and free weather worksheets.
Water Experiments
Water has to the easiest thing you can use to do science at home! You wouldn’t believe how many different water experiments you can do with the kids.
Science Experiments By Age Group
We’ve put together a few separate resources for different age groups, but remember that many experiments will cross over and can be re-tried at several different age levels. Younger kiddos can enjoy the simplicity and hands-on fun. At the same time, you can talk back and forth about what is happening.
As kiddos get older, they can bring more complexity to the experiments, including using the scientific method, developing hypotheses, exploring variables, creating different tests, and writing conclusions from analyzing data.
- Science for Toddlers
- Science for Preschoolers
- Science for Kindergarten
- Science for Early Elementary Grades
- Science for 3rd Grade
- Science for Middle School
More Fun Things To Do At Home
- 25 Things To Do Outside
- 100 Indoor Activities For Kids
- Distance Learning Activities For Preschoolers rs
- Virtual Field Trip Ideas To Go On An Adventure
- Fantastic Math Worksheets For Kids
- Fun Printable Activities For Kids
Printable Science Projects For Kids
If you’re looking to grab all of our printable science projects in one convenient place plus exclusive worksheets and bonuses like a STEAM Project pack, our Science Project Pack is what you need! Over 300+ Pages!
- 90+ classic science activities with journal pages, supply lists, set up and process, and science information. NEW! Activity-specific observation pages!
- Best science practices posters and our original science method process folders for extra alternatives!
- Be a Collector activities pack introduces kids to the world of making collections through the eyes of a scientist. What will they collect first?
- Know the Words Science vocabulary pack includes flashcards, crosswords, and word searches that illuminate keywords in the experiments!
- My science journal writing prompts explore what it means to be a scientist!!
- Bonus STEAM Project Pack: Art meets science with doable projects!
- Bonus Quick Grab Packs for Biology, Earth Science, Chemistry, and Physics
