Our afternoon after the library's story time was dedicated to science. We watched the video as usual and copied the experiments in our kitchen. It was all about evaporation. Andrew and Saara are very familiar with this process because we almost lost our pond due to the water evaporating. So, it was already months ago that we had to answer their question "where is the water disappearing?"
First, we soaked two dish cloths. We laid one out on a plate and the other one we folded into a plastic bag. In the evening, the cloth in the bag was still damp while the cloth on the plate was bone dry, of course.
Second, we added some salt to some water and covered the bowl with plastic. We let it sit in a warm place (in the sun) and in the evening checked the plastic. Water that had evaporated had condensed on the plastic and tasted like distilled water should. How on earth did the 'scientist' in the video taste saltiness in the condensed water, is beyond me. He himself said the salt stays in behind in the water ...
Explaining why the ocean water was salty, was part of the lesson here. I drew a simple picture of the water cycle adding the elements the rivers carry to the ocean.
Explaining why the ocean water was salty, was part of the lesson here. I drew a simple picture of the water cycle adding the elements the rivers carry to the ocean.
And third, we are still waiting for the outcome of the 'rainbow sugar' experiment. We added food coloring to the sugar water we mixed and now the colorful spoonfuls are waiting for the evaporation to take place.
It was fun. Let us see, what tomorrow brings.
