We finally got the first set of the Young Scientist Club kits (thanks Gammy) and the kids were gnawing at the bit to get started on the projects inside. So today we pulled it out and started with the Recycling Kit. We did experiment #2 – recycling a paper bag into paper. The kits aren’t amazing but we had a lot of fun and it was nice having the ‘not normal household’ stuff right there. In this case, two pieces of screen and a sponge. We had to supply a paper bag and a blender (although the directions did say you could skip the blender if you really cut the pieces up small and soaked the paper well).
You can easily do this at home without the kit. First tear up the paper into tiny pieces. Then soak 1 cup of paper in 4 cups warm water (they recommend a 1 cup paper to 1 cup warm water for lighter papers like newspaper) for five minutes.
If you have a blender, blend until it is a fine pulp. (Ear plugs are optional 😉 )
Place a piece of screen over a bowl or cup and pour or spoon out some of the paper pulp into an even layer. Press the back of the spoon on the pulp to squeeze out excess water.
Place a second piece of screen over the pulp, flip the paper over onto a towel and use the sponge to flatten the paper more between the screens (you can use a rolling pin for a smoother paper). We set ours to dry on a cookie sheet.
To correspond with our lesson this week on Veggies, we made Salt Dough Veggies to use on our Nature Table. Once dried, the kids immediately took them to the Farm Mat. They have spent a lot of time bringing in the harvest and feeding the bounty to the family of snails Bug made.
Basic Salt Dough Recipe
1 Cup Salt
2 Cups Flour
3/4 Cup Room Temp Water
1 TBSP Vegtable Oil
Bake at 200 F for several hours until dried through. Paint when dry.
For a realistic touch, we used small twigs for stems. We also used toothpicks for adding details. I was surprised how well the Salt Dough retained its modeled shape.
Note: Both puppies and almost 2 year olds like to eat the finished veggies! Keep a close eye on the little ones if you have ’em.
