This activity invites K–5 students, in both English and Spanish, to explore the phenomena of rolling objects down a ramp and investigate the question, “What happens to a roller when you change the ...

One of our light sources in action during a Light Play experience. I think it’s great to think so deeply about the things that we use in our tinkering activities however, the specificity of what we ...

Tinkering Library of Exemplars. This library categorizes over one hundred video clips according to our Learning and Facilitation frameworks.We studied 50 learners at the Exploratorium divided across ...

Make a simple mini-motor. A coil of wire becomes an electromagnet when current passes through it. The electromagnet interacts with a permanent magnet, causing the coil to spin. Voilà! You’ve created ...

A rotating black-and-white disk produces the illusion of color. Rotate this black-and-white pattern at the right speed, and the pattern appears to contain colored rings. You see color because ...

Polarizing sunglasses cut road glare better in some positions than in others. When light reflects from water, asphalt, or other nonmetallic surfaces, it becomes polarized—that is, the reflected light ...

Make the turntable: Slide the pencil through the center hole of the record so the tip extends an inch or so (a few cm) beyond the other side. A ngle the pencil so it is perpendicular to the record, ...

Your experience of the world influences what you see. At first glance, this activity might look like a bunch of boxes. But there are no boxes at all. A closer look reveals that what you're actually ...

Dark-colored materials both absorb and emit energy more readily than light-colored materials. Using a card or strip made of temperature-sensitive liquid crystal material, you can monitor temperature ...

When we think about objects that respond to magnets, fruit usually doesn't come to mind. Watch a rare-earth magnet repel a grape and discover different kinds of magnetism. A note on magnets: Only ...

Gelatin can do much more than just wiggle and jiggle. Gelatin can be used for much more than a sweet treat. It can also act as a smoked lens—which allows you to view total internal reflection—or as a ...

The magnetic-field lines from the magnet pass through the cardboard, the air, and other materials like the craft stick and straw. Materials that allow magnetic lines of force to pass through them are ...