Easy Science Projects and Easy Science Experiments

Environmental Sciences
Distilling water with Solar Energy
Experiment: Pour some muddy water (about 2” deep) into a pan (at least 6” diameter and 6” high) and
place an empty glass in the middle of the pan.

Seal the top of pan with Saran wrap.

Place a small weight in the center of the Saran wrap above the center of the glass so that water will collect
on the Saran wrap and drip into the glass.

Biology
Identifying Liquids in which Seeds Grow Best
Experiment: Pour 6-8 ounces of each of the following liquids into 6 plastic cups: plain water, orange juice,
sugared water, vinegar, milk and water with a small amount of dissolved plant fertilizer.
Label each of the plastic cups to describe its contents.
Insert 4-6 bean seeds into each cup.

Observe the seeds daily and record the first day that individual seeds break their shells; also, record the size
of each individual plant after regular time intervals. Record the average number of days for the seeds to
break their shells for each liquid.

Biology
The Moldy Bread Project
Experiment: Print or type the word,“SALT” on the label of a sealable bag; sprinkle salt on a slice of bread;
insert the bread into the bag and seal.
Print or type the words, “No Salt/Light/Dry/Room Temp.” on the label of another sealable bag and
insert a slice of bread into the bag and seal.
Print or type the words, “No Light” on the label of another sealable bag; insert a slice of bread into
the bag and seal: place the sealable bag into a paper bag.

Print or type the word, “Humid” on the label of a fourth bag; insert a dampened cloth and a slice
of bread into the bag and seal.
Print or type the word, “Cold” on the label of a fifth sealable bag; insert a slice of bread into the bag and
seal; and place the bag into the refrigerator.
Inspect each slice of bread after 5, 10, 15, 20, and 25 days and note the percent coverage for each. For
addition information about this experiment, visit: Moldy Bread Experiment.

Physics
Static and Sliding Friction
Experiment: With a slide (approximately 36” x 6”) measure and record the angle that a
small block (approximately 4“ x 3“ x 2“) begins to slide when one side of the slide (inclined plane) is
raised. Repeat after wrapping the block with various materials, e.g., Saran wrap, and tin foil,
newspaper.

Physics
Identifying Which One of Five Materials Insulates Best
Experiment: Pour 6 ounces of water into an 8-ounce Styrofoam cup, an 8-ounce glass
cup, an 8-ounce plastic cup, an 8-ounce metal cup and an 8-ounce ceramic cup.
Label each of the cups to describe the insulating material.

Place a thermometer into each of the 5 cups.

Observe and record the initial temperatures (They should all be apprpximately equal.)
Observe and record temperatures in one-hour intervals.
Identify the cup and material that lost heat the slowest (best insulator) and the
fastest (worst insulator).

Chemistry
Measuring the Thickness of an Oil Slick
Experiment: Practice measuring the diameter of droplets of oil that you have taken up by suction into
a dropper pipette or eyedropper.

Practice dropping the oil droplets onto a paper towel with the dropper pipette. Fill a bathtub with
water after thoroughly cleaning with a detergent.

Drop an oil droplet onto the water and measure the diameter of the oil slick.

Compute the radius of the oil droplet by dividing its diameter by 2.

Compute the radius of the oil slick by dividing its diameter by 2.

Calculate the volume of the oil droplet: V= (3/4) Pi x r3 = (3/4) x 3.14159 x r3.
Calculate the area of the oil slick: A = Pi x r2 = 3.14159 x r2 .

The thickness of the oil slick: T = V/A.

If you repeat this experiment many times, the smallest value that you obtain for T probably will be the
thickness of a single molecule.

Measuring the Thickness of an oil slick, including the computation for measuring the thickness of a
single molecule, is one of the most exciting easy science fair projects on this page.

Chemistry
Copper Plating
Experiment: In a well-ventilated area, pour a small amount of ammonia onto 20-25
copper pennies, making certain that each is wetted by the ammonia. (A green coating will
appear on each of the pennies.)
Pour 1 cup of white vinegar into a glass jar and stir in one-half teaspoon of salt until the
salt completely dissolves.
Drop the 25 copper pennies into the jar of vinegar and wait until the green coating on the
pennies disappears.
Drop an iron nail into the jar, after the nail has been thoroughly cleaned with steel wool.
After 8 to 12 hours, the nail will have a copper coating which is the copper
plating.

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