Fun STEM projects to do at home with stuff you have in your kitchen

For any parent with kids at home, one thing you might find hard to manage is engaging your kids education. When you are at home, its easy to just let them play and do their own thing. But if you want to help them maximise their early learning power, tapping into Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) can be fantastic for their learning. However, finding prime examples of STEM at home can be tough – or is it?

With these common kitchen household goods, you could offer some excellent examples of STEM.

Show off the power of chemistry

A great way to make chemistry stand out for the kids is to show them exactly what it can do. Start off by getting some sugar, some water, and then some food colouring. Find a large glass, and then you simply need to pour in the materials in the right order. This creates a perfectly separated rainbow column that shows the kids the power of mixing together ingredients to make something else – in this case, something beautiful!

Showcasing density

A great experiment to do with the kids is to use the power of density to show them how the world works. This is a fun little challenge, and it will show your child how different weights and materials can handle floating in the water etc.

It’s a good little system, and all you will need is some water, some syrup, and some oil. By mixing them in with each other and creating the right layering, each item – such as some of their favourite toys – should float harmlessly in the mixture.

Crystallisation

Kids need to learn about the power of crystallisation, and we recommend that you do this by showing them how ‘rocky candy’ can grow in a glass. To do this, all you need is some sugar, a pot that you can boil in, and a clothespin. Then you also need to find a few sticks. This will help you to make the rock candy crystals grow in the pot as it boils. You might also want to throw in some food colouring dye to give it a more exciting complexion.

It’s very easy to do, and so long as you are careful as you go through the process with your child it should help them to learn about crystallisation. It’s a fun technique to try out with a nice pay-off at the end in the form of your child being immensely happy.

The power of explosions

Another great solution is to make a little mini-volcano in the kitchen. To do this, all you are going to need is some dough to build a volcano – if you lack dough, you can use an old soda or water bottle. Then, you simply need some water, some vinegar, some detergent and some food colouring. Then, you simply add in some baking soda and this can create a ‘volcanic eruption’ that shows your kid how kitchen chemicals can mimic a volcano exploding.