Cooking with your children can be a great learning experience for them. When you think about it, both cooking and baking involve math (measuring), science (combining ingredients), reading (recipes), social studies (diversity and culture), health (nutrition), and even art (presentation). Put some music on, and you have many different learning experiences rolled into one.
What does cooking have to do with water? Well, the whole water cycle can be seen if you have a covered pot and a stove. As I mentioned yesterday, if you boil a pot of water, you will see water evaporating as the steam comes up and becomes invisible. If you go a step further, and place a cover over the pot, you'll see drops of water collecting on it. This condensation is like a mini version of a cloud. When the drops build up, and you pick up the cover, the water droplets drip, just like precipitation.
There's another experiment you can do at home relating to condensation, and it's quicker and even easier than the evaporation experiment. All you need is a small jar, filled with ice, and a lid. Let it sit there for about 20 minutes, until there is moisture on the outside of the jar.
Ask your child if he or she knows why this moisture is on the outside of the jar. In case you need a refresher, the water vapor in the room finds the cool jar, and turns back into liquid water. That's why there's dew on the grass in the morning. More importantly, that's why there are clouds. When water vapor travels up into colder air, it condenses on tiny specks of dust, and forms a
cloud. When a lot of water builds up, clouds release precipitation, and the cycle begins again.
If you'd like to learn more about water, or would like to do some more
experiments, I highly recommend the book, A Drop of Water: A Book of Science and Wonder, by Walter Wick. This book covers a wide range of information and has stunning photographs. It's perfect for students in grades 3 through 8. You can also find more information online at Treehugger and at Kidzone.
A wonderful picture book about the water cycle is A Drop Around the World, by Barbara McKinney. There's also a YouTube video you might be interested in.
I will save another essential picture book resource for this topic to conclude this series later in the week. It's such a special book, that it deserves to be mentioned in a post that stands alone.
In the meantime, don't forget to look out for teachable moments when you cook!
Here it is: A World of Water, Part 4.
