30 Days
of Science
Challenge yourself to do a scientific activity every day for 30 days. Download and print our 30 Days
of Science Calendar to record which activity you complete each day.
To get you started, we’ve included full instructions for some popular and fun science activities in
this booklet.
Remember to always discuss the activity you have chosen with an adult first and ask for
their help or supervision.
1. Build a model digestive system.
17. Make your own bath bombs.
2. Make pH indicator using red cabbage.
18. Build a model to explain how
convection currents work.
3. Investigate to find the best design
for a paper aeroplane.
19. Investigate decomposition in food.
4. Create a model of a cell using jelly.
20. Build your own anemometer.
5. Design the strongest bridge.
21. Build a model to explain how your
lungs work.
6. Make ice cream using salt and ice.
7. Investigate changes of state.
22. Send a secret message using invisible
ink.
8. Explore air pressure.
23. Build the highest tower.
9. Make some slime.
24. Study adaptations of birds.
10. Study capillary action using celery.
25. Investigate pressure.
11. Find the iron in your breakfast cereal.
26. Build a periscope to study
the reflection of light.
12. Build your own instruments
to investigate pitch.
13. Inflate a balloon without touching it.
14. Amaze your family with light
refraction.
15. Survey the insects living in your
garden.
27. Discover plant tropisms by
growing beans in a jar.
28. Bake some bread and watch
fermentation in action.
29. Build a ramp to investigate speed.
30. Make and erupt your own volcano.
16. Carry out electrolysis of water in
your kitchen.
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30 Days of Science
1. Build a model digestive system. Use bowls, bags and kitchen utensils to make the different
organs of the digestive system. Mash real food with the ‘teeth’ and model the journey from
mouth to toilet!
2. Make pH indicator using red cabbage.
Equipment (to prepare the indicator):
• safety goggles
• red cabbage
Safety Information
Acids and alkalis can cause irritation to
skin, eyes and respiratory organs. Harmful if
inhaled or swallowed.
• grater or knife
Wear goggles at all times.
• boiled water (kettle)
Broken glassware/grater/knife
sharp; risk of cuts.
• filter paper
• funnel
• 2 x 500ml glass beakers
Equipment (to use the indicator):
• 5 x 250ml beakers
• 5 substances to test (choose from):
can
be
Apply pressure to wounds and inform an
adult immediately.
Boiled water poses a risk of scalds or burns.
Rinse all burns with cold running water for 10
minutes and inform an adult immediately.
• washing-up liquid
• toothpaste
• lemon juice
• vinegar
• milk
• fizzy pop
• water
• shampoo
Method:
1. Grate or chop the red cabbage into small pieces.
2. Fill the 500ml beaker with the chopped cabbage to about the 400ml mark.
3. Pour boiled water over the cabbage up to the 500ml mark.
4. Leave to stand for a few minutes until the water has changed colour.
5. Carefully filter the solution into a clean 500ml beaker.
6. Add a small amount of indicator to each substance to find its pH.
How Does It Work?
Red cabbage contains a pigment molecule which changes colour depending on the pH of a
solution.
Very acidic solutions cause the pigment to turn red.
Neutral solutions cause the pigment to turn purple.
Alkaline solutions cause the pigment to turn green/yellow.
3. Investigate the best design for a paper aeroplane.
How does the size of wings affect how far it flies? How
could you make it more streamlined?
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4. Create a model of a cell using jelly.
This activity will take just over an hour to complete because the jelly needs to set properly.
Equipment:
• jelly cubes (as lightly coloured as possible)
• water
• kettle or microwave
• measuring jug
• clear storage container
• a range of suitable sweets, fruits or nuts that can be used to
represent the organelles (for example, midget gems, liquorice
laces, etc.)
• fridge (to set the jelly)
Method:
1. Read the instructions on the packet of jelly.
2. Dissolve the jelly in boiling water in a bowl and stir thoroughly as directed.
3. Once all the cubes have dissolved, add the required amount of cold water and pour into
the storage container.
4. Place the jelly in the fridge for about 45 minutes (the jelly needs to be solid enough for the
organelles to be placed in it without them moving around).
5. Carefully place the organelles into the jelly, then return to the fridge until fully set.
5. Design the strongest bridge. Design and build a bridge to span a 15cm gap, holding the
heaviest weight. What materials will you use? What shapes or structure will be the strongest?
6. Make ice cream using salt and ice. Mix double cream, sugar and vanilla essence into a
small sealable bag. Push out the excess air and seal. Into a larger sealable bag, place ice and
salt and the smaller bag. Now shake for 5 to 10 minutes. Investigate with different ratios of
ingredients and toppings or flavourings to find the tastiest combination.
7. Investigate changes of state. What factors affect how quickly an ice cube melts? Measure
the time taken for an ice cube to melt in different places, for example, hot water vs cold water,
or outside vs inside.
8. Explore air pressure. Blow up two balloons to the same size. Put one into a bowl of hot water
and another into a bowl of ice water and see what happens.
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30 Days of Science
9. Make some slime.
Equipment:
• laundry starch (powder)
• gloves
• white glue
• 2 plastic cups/bowls
• wooden lolly sticks (for stirring)
• ready-mixed poster paint/food colouring
(optional)
• water
• teaspoon
Safety Information
Borax, the active chemical in the laundry
starch, is a mild irritant.
Wear gloves while mixing or kneading the
slime and make sure you wash your hands
thoroughly to avoid burns. Because the
laundry starch is a powder, stir gently to
avoid breathing in the powder which may
irritate the airways if inhaled.
• tablespoon
Method:
1. Add about 100ml of white glue to the first plastic cup/bowl.
2. Stir in about 1 teaspoon of poster paint/food colouring of your choice.
3. Add 2 tablespoons of water and 4 teaspoons of laundry starch to the second cup/bowl
and mix well.
4. Add 6 teaspoons of the starch liquid to the glue in the first container and mix well using
the lolly stick.
5. Stir until your mixture begins to resemble slime. Scoop it from the container into your
hands and knead for a further 2 minutes.
If your slime is too sticky, add another teaspoon of the starchy water mixture and knead.
If your slime is too firm, add more white glue and knead.
10. Study capillary action using celery. Ask an adult to help you trim the ends of some celery
sticks and stand each in a glass of water mixed with a little food colouring. After a day or two,
remove the celery stick and cut through it to see how far the water has travelled.
11. Find the iron in your breakfast cereal. Choose a cereal that is fortified with iron (look at
the label on the packet to find out). Crush it up into tiny crumbs inside a clear food bag. Use a
strong magnet to try and attract the iron.
12. Build your own instruments to investigate pitch. You could wrap elastic bands of different
thicknesses around an empty tissue box and see how the size of the elastic band affects the
sound, or fill glasses with different amounts of water and rub your finger along the rim to
make the glass vibrate.
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13. Inflate a balloon without touching it. Put 50ml of vinegar into an empty plastic bottle. Put a
teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda into a balloon. Carefully stretch the neck of the balloon over
the top of the bottle without mixing the contents. When you’re ready, tip the bicarbonate of
soda into the vinegar and watch what happens!
14. Amaze your family with light refraction. Draw two horizontal arrows, one above the other,
onto a sheet of white paper. Stand an empty glass in front of the sheet of paper and slowly
fill with water just above the bottom arrow to create a fun illusion. Experiment with different
pictures.
15. Survey the insects living in your garden. Grab a magnifying glass and a notebook. Draw a
scientific table to record all the insects you find. Present your results in a graph.
16. Carry out electrolysis of water in your kitchen. Sharpen both ends of two pencils.
Pencils contain graphite, which conducts electricity. Put one end of each pencil into a glass
of water, using a sheet of card to hold them in place. Touch the terminals of a 9V battery to
the other ends of the pencils. Create a poster to explain what is happening and how it works.
17. Make your own bath bombs.
Equipment:
• sodium bicarbonate
• citric acid powder
• food colouring (optional)
• gloves (to prevent your skin from staining)
• essential oils, such as lavender, for fragrance
How Does It Work?
Sodium bicarbonate (a base) reacts
with citric acid in a neutralisation
reaction when water is added. This
produces bubbles of carbon dioxide
gas, which causes the fizzing you can
see in your bath!
• water or witch hazel (ideally in a spray bottle)
• scales
• bowl
• whisk or a spoon for mixing
• ice cube moulds or cookie cutters
• greaseproof paper
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30 Days of Science
Method:
1. Use scales to measure out 30g of sodium bicarbonate into a mixing bowl.
2. Measure 15g of citric acid and add to the sodium bicarbonate.
3. Carefully mix the two powders with a whisk or spoon, making sure you get rid of any
lumps!
4. Add 3 - 4 small drops of food colouring and mix well.
5. Add 3 - 4 drops of essential oil and mix well.
6. Spray your mixture with 2 - 3 sprays of water or witch hazel and continue to mix. Add small
amounts of water until your mixture looks like wet sand.
7. Wearing gloves, spoon small amounts of your mixture into your ice cube mould or cookie
cutter (with greaseproof paper underneath) and pack tightly until it is filled.
8. Leave to set for at least 15 minutes.
9. Place some greaseproof paper on the table and carefully take out your bath bombs onto
the paper.
10. Leave your bath bombs somewhere cool and dry, ideally overnight.
11. Store your bath bombs in an airtight container until they are ready to be used.
Make sure you use a skin-safe food colouring if you want to use your bath bombs in the bath!
Alternatively, you can simply place your bath bombs in a bowl of water to marvel at your scientific
skills!
18. Build a model to explain how convection currents work. Make your own lava lamp using
an empty plastic bottle. Pour oil into the bottle until it is ¾ full, then add water coloured with
food colouring to the top of the bottle. Add an effervescent tablet and watch it go! Research
convection currents and use your model to explain them.
19. Investigate decomposition in food. Find out which conditions cause different foods to
decompose fastest. You could test different conditions by placing a small piece of bread in
different places around the house, for example, in the fridge, on a windowsill and in the
bathroom, and see how long it takes for the bread to go mouldy! Think about food preservation
methods (e.g. canning, adding salt or freezing) and explain how each of these methods works.
20. Build your own anemometer. An anemometer measures wind speed. Build one using
disposable cups and straws. Put it in your garden and count the number of times one cup
makes one full turn per minute. This will allow you to compare wind speed in revolutions per
minute (rpm) on different days.
21. Build a model to explain how your lungs work. Use balloons and straws to build a model
of the lungs. You might need to do a little research first about their structure and function!
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22. Send a secret message using invisible ink. Write a message using freshly squeezed lemon
juice. Allow it to dry and then carefully heat your piece of paper using a hairdryer. Your
message will appear when heated!
23. Build the highest tower. Use dried spaghetti and marshmallows to see how tall you can
make your tower. Think about what shapes are best for supporting the layers of the tower.
24. Study adaptations of birds. Sprinkle some mixed seeds outside and use binoculars to
observe the beaks and the types of seeds different birds eat.
25. Investigate pressure. Make a tower using rows of plastic cups and sheets of card to stand
on. How many layers can you create?
26. Build a periscope to study the reflection of light. Design and build a simple periscope
using a cardboard cereal box. Stick small mirrors at angles inside the box and see if you can
use your periscope to peek around corners.
27. Discover plant tropisms by growing beans in a jar. Collect three empty jars and roll up
some damp kitchen towel to place inside. Place the bean seeds between the paper towel and
the wall of the jar. Place each jar in a different position and watch how the roots and shoot
respond to gravity and light.
28. Bake some bread and watch fermentation in action. Bread rises because of fermentation
of yeast, which produces bubbles of carbon dioxide. Mix the yeast with a little sugar and warm
water, then mix with flour to create a dough. Leave your dough in a warm place and watch it
expand.
29. Build a ramp to investigate speed. See how the height of a ramp affects the speed at which
a toy car travels. You could measure the distance travelled from the bottom of the ramp and
time how long it takes for the car to come to a complete stop. What other factors affect how
quickly the car slows down?
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30 Days of Science
30. Make and erupt your own volcano.
This activity will take about two hours to complete, with a
gap of at least 24 hours between each stage.
Equipment (to make the volcano):
• small plastic bottle
• newspaper
• white glue
How Does It Work?
A chemical reaction occurs: the
vinegar (an acid) reacts with the
bicarbonate of soda, producing
lots of carbon dioxide gas.
This makes the liquid bubble
and rise out of the volcano.
• water
• paints (various colours, but mainly browns and reds)
• glue brushes and paint brushes
• scissors
Equipment (to make the eruption):
• goggles
• bicarbonate of soda
• teaspoon
• vinegar
• red food colouring
Method:
1. Cut your newspaper up into long strips.
2. Mix white glue with water to create a paste.
3. Soak the newspaper strips in the glue mixture, then, working from the bottom up, apply
the newspaper strips to your bottle.
4. Build up the layers to create a volcano shape – you’ll need to add more strips to the bottom
to make it wider. Do not cover the hole in the top of the bottle.
5. Allow to dry completely for at least 24 hours.
6. Paint your volcano to give it a realistic look.
7. When you are ready to erupt your volcano, add 4 teaspoons of bicarbonate of soda to the
bottle.
8. Pour 100ml of white vinegar into a beaker and add a small amount of red food dye.
9. Quickly pour the vinegar into the bottle and watch the volcano erupt.
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