How many of these items do you already have? We’ve tried to keep it simple for you by making the majority of the items things most people have within reach (both physically and budget-wise).
Here’s how to use this shopping list: First, look over the list and circle the items you already have on hand. Browse the experiments and note which ones use the materials you already have. Those are the experiments you can start with. After working through the experiments, your child might want to expand and do more activities. Make a note of the materials and put them on your next shopping trip OR order them online using the links provided below.
We’ve tried to keep it simple for you by making the majority of the items things most people have within reach (both physically and budget-wise). Are you ready?
Shopping List for Unit 19: Click here for Shopping List for Unit 19 Online Experiments.
Material List:
Note: These materials listed here are only for the experiments listed in Unit 19 online. (There are different experiments listed in the downloadable Lesson Plan.) If you’d like to do the additional experiments within the Lesson Plan, download the Unit 19 Lesson Plan document and you’ll find the materials list inside.
Robotic Hand
five flexible straws
scrap of cardboard (at least as big as your hand)
five rubber bands
5 feet of string or thin rope
Tasty Tastebuds
1 partner
1 blindfold
1 cup of water
1 plate
1 lemon
2 toothpicks
1 sugar cube
1 salty cracker
1 piece of dark chocolate
1 pencil
Chemical Fingerprinting
1 oz. bottle of baking soda
water
1 sheet of goldenrod paper
1 paper towel
1 magnifying lens
Nerve Tester
1 large paper clip
1 metric ruler
1 partner
Mapping your Tongue
4 cotton swabs
5 wax cups
1 bag of black tea
1 bottle of red vinegar
2 packages of sugar
2 packages of salt
1 microwave
water
1 spoon
1 partner
Detective Boxes
4 shoeboxes with lids
1 soup can
1 pair of scissors
1 sheet of sandpaper
1 sheet of wax paper
1 sheet of flannel fabric
1 plastic bag
1 glue gun
1 pair of gloves
Partners
Finger Thermometers
3 glasses
1 Celsius/Fahrenheit thermometer
1 clock with second hand
hot water
cold water
ice cubes (optional)
room-temperature water
Diffusion
1 onion
1 lemon
1 bottle of ground cinnamon
1 clove of fresh garlic
1 garlic press
1 pile of fresh coffee grounds
1 kitchen knife
1 cutting board
1 variable-speed fan
1 clock with a second hand
Foggy Hands
1 gallon baggie
1 string, 12 inches long
1 assistant
1 clock
Scent Matching
10 small containers with lids
10 cotton balls
1 bottle of lemon juice
1 cup of black coffee
1 bottle of vanilla extract
1 bottle of cinnamon oil
1 bottle of soy sauce
1 black felt marker
1 assistant
Sound Whackers
1 desk
1 metric ruler
Sound Speed
3 baggies, resealable
sand
water
air
1 desktop
1 spoon
1 partner
Big Ears
2 styrofoam cups, 12 oz.
2 styrofoam cups, 32 oz.
1 pair of scissors
1 kitchen timer
Sound Matching
10 film canisters (for 53 mm film rolls)
beans
rice
sawdust (or pencil shavings)
paperclips
pennies
1 black, felt marker
assistant
Water Lens
1 washer, 3/8 inch inside diameter
1 microscope slide
1 container of petroleum jelly
1 piece of newsprint with a lot of type
1 pipette or dropper
water
Camera Eyes
1 dark room
1 light switch
1 partner
1 pencil
Disappearing Frog Experiment
1 frog and dot printout
1 meter stick
1 scrap piece of cardboard
Eyeballoon
1 biconvex lens
1 round balloon, white, 9 inches
1 assistant
1 votive candle
1 black marker
1 book of matches
1 metric ruler
Detecting Temperature Changes
1 measuring cup
1 bottle of calcium chloride
1 bottle of ammonium nitrate
2 resealable baggies
water
Rubber Eggs
4 fresh chicken wing bones, meat removed
1-16 oz. bottle of distilled white vinegar
2-12 oz. plastic cups
1 fresh egg
1 spoon
Cooling and Heating
1 bottle of rubbing alcohol
1 cotton ball
1 liquid crystal thermometer strip
1 cotton glove
Inside Bones
1 toilet paper tube
50-100 straws
1 roll of tape
1 book
Tricking your Muscles
1 partner
1 clock with second hand
Testing Muscle Strength
1 bathroom scale
1 pencil
1 partner
Visual Reflex
1 metric ruler
5 volunteers
Tendon Reflex
1 knee
1 partner
Detecting Plaque
1 4-pack of red disclosing tablets (ask for dentist for a sample pack)
1 clear plastic cup
1 mirror
1 red crayon
water
Testing Spit Samples
1 package of soda crackers
1 5” pie tin
1 craft stick
1 0.5 oz bottle of iodine
1 pre-form tube
plastic pipette or dropper
water
Seeing Your Pulse
1 lump of modeling clay or plastic putty
1 stopwatch
1 coffee stirrer straw
1 partner
Swallowing
1 tennis ball
1 pair of old nylons
1 pair of scissors
Working Lung Model
1 2-liter soda bottle, emptied and cleaned
1 pair of scissors
1 Y valve hose connector
3 round, 9-inch balloons
1 #3 one-hole stopper
1 length of rubber hose, 8-inch
2 rubber bands
1 jar of petroleum jelly
PTC Testing
1 vial of PTC paper
family members
Human Levers
1 body
What’s Your Lung Capacity?
1 2-liter soda bottle
1 black marker, permanent
1 12” length of rubber hose
1 large plastic bowl
1 cup measure
Consuming Oxygen
1 aluminum tart pan
1 votive candle
1 book of matches
1 clear drinking glass, 12 or 16 oz.
1 dime
water
1 pair of goggles
Detecting Carbon Dioxide
1 1 oz. bottle of bromothymol blue
1 straw
1 reasealable baggie
1 bottle of ammonia
1 pipette
water
Heart Rate Monitoring
1 clock with a second hand
1 pencil
Stethoscope
3 12-inch lengths of rubber hose
1 “T” or “Y” connector
1 funnel