Science on the Loose by Helaine Becker
Amazing Activities and Science Facts You’ll Never Believe
Nov 28, 2008
Science never needs to be another boring subject in school. There are so many crazy things kids can learn about, all in the name of science! In Science on the Loose: Amazing Activities and Science Facts You’ll Never Believe by Helaine Becker (Maple Tree Press, ISBN: 978-1-897349-19-9), kids will get to explore crazy facts and conduct their own experiments using the scientific method of starting with a question, forming a hypothesis, testing the hypothesis, and recording the findings of the test to draw a conclusion.
All About “You”
In Science on the Loose, the facts, experiments, and fun begins with kids exploring themselves. First, kids will conduct experiments on their sense of self, proprioception. They will learn how to trick their brains, test their sense of touch, and how conditioning works. There are also quirky facts about navels, navel lint, and the mystery of innies and outies.
In the search to learn more about who they are, kids will take a look at dominant and recessive genes and perform simple tests to discover if they have free hanging earlobes, a widow’s peaks, and if they have a flexible tongue. Kids will also perform the dominant eye test as well as discover their dominant foot.
When it comes to eyes, Science on the Loose is a fabulous resource of discovery. There are activities involving eyes and light, visual triggers, and optical illusions.
Moving Beyond the Self
After kids explore what makes them unique, they move on to the world around them. Keeping kids interest can be tricky, but when kids learn that plants pass wind, a hamster in an exercise wheel can charge a cell phone, and that fruit flies were they first non-human critter to be sent into space, they’ll want to find out more and the amazing discoveries of science and how they can use science to create amazing things.
Spaced Out
The final section of this book is about the wonders of space. In just a few pages, kids will get to explore space dimples and black holes. This section is a great accompaniment to most science books because it makes complex ideas easily understood.
Educational Fun
Parents and teachers will get the most out of Science on the Loose by using it with classic science textbooks and traditional educational books. It’s not a stand-alone book that teaches all there is to know about science. Instead, Science on the Loose acts as a motivator by providing parents and teachers with great activities and experiments that will get kids, ages 8 to 12, giggling and interested in the mechanics of science. This is also a great book for kids who haven’t yet discovered the joy of science and discovery.
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