February 11th is the International Day of Women and Girls in Science, proclaimed by the United Nations in 2015 to recognize the role that women and girls play in science and technology.
A date that is important for us to remember, since the data reveals that the percentage of women in science is significantly lower than that of men*. Girls are not interested in science from a young age because they encounter gender stereotypes, which are often reinforced by family and school.
We wanted to share some simple experiments you can do at home with your daughters and sons. We don’t know if they’ll be as great as Marie Curie or Isaac Newton, but we do know that they’ll have fun!
Want to try them?
HOMEMADE SUNDIAL
We can’t think of a better way to find out how the Sun rotates, how the light changes, and how the shadows are projected.
Difficulty:
Very easy.
What you need:
A paper plate, glue, scissors, a ruler, cardboard, a pen, and a pencil.
Step by step:
1- Cut the circle out of your cardboard, the same size as the bottom of the plate.
2- Place the plate face down and glue the cardboard.
3- Poke a hole in the centre of the plate and the cardboard, and place a pencil.
4- Take the plate to a place with plenty of sunshine.
5- With a ruler, draw a straight line from the centre of the plate, following the pencil’s shadow.
6- Each hour, look at the plate and draw a line along the pencil’s shadow. Your sundial is now ready to mark the hours!
INVISIBLE INK
When we are children, we always dream of being spies because of the cool tricks they use. With this experiment, they will learn how to create invisible ink, as well as learn about the oxidation process.
Difficulty:
Very easy.
What you need:
A brush, white paper, a lemon, and water.
Step by step:
1- Squeeze the lemon into a bowl and add a tablespoon of water.
2- Mix it together and then use a brush to write a secret message on the paper.
3- Let it dry.
4- Bring a flame close to the paper, making sure it doesn’t burn and discover the message!
VOLCANO
Who hasn’t done this experiment at school at some point? Imagine the faces of the little ones when they see that they can make a volcano at home.
Difficulty:
It takes time, but it’s worth it.
You’ll need a lot of things, but you probably already have everything you need at home:
Cardboard, newspaper, a pair of scissors, scotch tape, a funnel, felt pens, an empty 1-litre plastic bottle, vinegar, food colouring, baking soda, dish soap, a dish, a bowl, a pencil, a tablespoon spoon and a dessert spoon.
Step by step:
1- Wrap the cardboard around the water bottle in the shape of a cone and tape it down. The top of the bottle, where the lava will come out, must be the same size as the narrowest point of your cone.
2- Fill the space between the bottle and the inside of the cone with newspaper. This will be the structure of our volcano.
3- In a separate bowl, mix the baking soda, food colouring, and dish soap. Pour the mixture into the bottle inside the volcano.
4- Then, add a splash of vinegar to the mixture inside the bottle. Ta-dah! You will start seeing lava coming out of your volcano!
We hope that you had fun learning about science today! Don’t forget to remind your children that they can achieve everything they dream of, and that they can be engineers, astronauts, nuclear physicists, biologists, or whatever they want to be.
Do not miss the following articles if you want to know more about some of the women who have helped this field evolve.
Women inventors whose inventions changed our lives
Women who transformed a small dream into a great story
The woman who discovered the DNA
First woman to win a Nobel Prize unshared
A scientist who broke barriers!
