“I have no special talents. I am just passionately curious”. This is what Albert Einstein, the genius, said. Curiosity is a crucial ingredient to learning, and we know that children have it in no short supplies. They have an innate desire to learn, discover new things, and understand how stuff works.
Our job, as parents, is to encourage and support the little explorers’ curiosity. Allow them to ask a gazillion questions (oh, that dreaded “But why?”), stimulate them to read ( here is a list of 11 Fantastic sites for kids who love reading), and inspire them to explore.
Curiosity can be directed toward many topics. Today we will focus on the best websites for kids who love science and exploring. Who knows, maybe your little pioneer will be the next Newton or Marie Curie.
You may have seen Bob Pflugfelder, the creator of the website Science Bob, on Jimmy Kimmel Live! or on Nickelodeon’s Nicky, Ricky, Dicky, and Dawn where he has regular appearances. Bob is a teacher, an author, and a science enthusiast.
Science Bob is jam-packed with super cool experiments that any kid would love to do. All the experiments have clear step-by-step explanations, and some have videos incorporated as well. Most of the experiments can be done with regular materials, commonly found around the house.
Besides the awesome experiments, kids can also read about interesting topics like space, animals, Earth science, physical science, the human body, and much more. Science Bob is truly a brilliant site for any little scientist.
2. Science Fun
Lava lamps, storm in a glass, erupting volcanoes, water fireworks, balloon speakers, these are just a few of the captivating experiments you will find on ScienceFun. All the experiments come with detailed instructions, materials needed, explanations, a video and comprehension questions.
Not only can little scientists do all these experiments at home, but the ones that live in the North Carolina area can also attend the exciting science camps hosted by the professionals from Science Fun for Everyone (SFFE). For more information about the science camps, head over to their site.
But that’s not all. What blew me away about Science Fun was that you can answer trivia questions in order to win points. You can then redeem those points to get awesome collectible items like fossils, rocks, or seashells.
3. Science Kids
Science Kids has a wealth of educational resources for parents, teachers, and kids with inquisitive minds. The creator of the website believes that “inspiring an interest in science at a young age can help kids grow up with the tools needed to form questions about the world around them and make decisions based on their own reasoning”.
Here, kids who love science will find amazing experiments that they can easily do at home, fun science games, interesting facts, quizzes, printable worksheets, puzzles and word searches, super cool projects, and lesson plans for teachers. There is also a section for free beautiful images. So, for example, if you’re working on a project that requires beautiful photos, you can find them here. Also, you can enjoy a wide range of educational videos.
There are so many high-quality resources to be found on Science Kids that your little explorer will be captivated for a long time. And the best thing is that everything on this site is free.
Makemeagenius was born from a student’s desire to help children do better at school. So she started making Youtube videos which gained popularity quickly. Looking at some of the videos, I can understand why. All the cartoon animated videos are appealing for kids, and the explanations are simple enough to be understood easily.
There are videos for kindergarten kids all the way up to Grade 7 students. Besides videos, you will also find a section for cool facts, educational powerpoints which are free to download, jokes for kids, and science quizzes.
I love that this website is the creation of a little genius who manages to infuse all of his passion for learning into his videos. How cool is that?
When I was a school kid, I used to hate Maths with a passion. It was my nightmare. I can’t help but think that if I had access to websites like CoolMath4Kids, the situation would’ve been different.
The website has lots of fun games that aren’t simply time wasters but have a very specific aim. They will help kids practice their fractions, additions, subtractions, and so on. What a great way of learning!
Kids will also find easy-to-understand explanations of many Mathematical concepts as well as useful tips to make life easier.
In addition (pun intended, hehe) to this, the whole family can have fun with some awesome brain teasers. Your little one can also try to get a good score on one of the many quizzes available in order to earn a certificate that can be printed.
So, if your child wants to get a good mental workout, head over to CoolMath4Kids and let the fun begin.
Yes, I am talking about the museum located in San Francisco, which is well worth a visit if you happen to be in the area. Exploratorium website encourages people of all ages to think for themselves, ask questions, and question the answers.
Exploratorium boasts over 35,000 pages of high-quality content for kids, adults, and educators. For the little explorers, there are stimulating articles on a variety of topics like science, art, the human body, space, etc., thought-provoking videos, and hands-on activities that will plant the seed of a life-long learner into the mind of your little one. The website is best suited for kids aged 8+.
Although you have to pay for full access to the resources on BrainPopJr, the reason why I’ve included it in our list of free sites for kids who love science because it does have a section of nice, free stuff. Here you will find informative and visually appealing videos on several topics like science, English, engineering & tech, arts & music, health, and more. There is also a “Free video of the week” that tackles educational topics like Mindfulness, for example.
BrainPopJr is a great resource for kids who love science as young as five years old. I think it is well worth subscribing for the freebies which are not few.
This is one of the most visually appealing websites on this list. It is colourful, beautifully animated, and user-friendly. It is well organized into five big sections: experiments, printables, videos, literacy, and Maths.
The experiments section is full of awesome things to try with your young scientist. They are well presented and what I liked most is that there is also an explanation of what is going on in each experiment.
MonsterSciences is a fabulous resource for teachers as well and homeschooling parents because there are well-crafted lesson plans with valuable teaching notes. The only thing is that the plans are linked to a TPT (teachers pay teachers) shop, which means that you’ll have to pay for them. The same goes for the resources in the Literacy and Maths sections.
4-H is one of America’s largest youth development organizations that offer life-changing programs through schools, camps, and community clubs.
For those of us outside the USA, 4-H offers many hands-on activities and interesting experiments. You can filter your search by topic ( like Biology, Digital Literacy, Electricity, Environmental Science, and much more) and grade ( from pre-K all the way up to Grade 12).
With an organization that boasts of having a network of 500,000 volunteers, 3,500 4-H professionals, and has provided mentoring for over 6 million youths (yes, you read that correctly), you’ll be sure to find high-quality resources that will help your child grow into a confident, informed adult.
10. Bill Nye
Who hasn’t heard of Bill Nye, the Science Guy? The popular, highly entertaining, and educational TV program was a huge success between 1994 and 1998. Its host, Bill Nye, is famous for his quirky humour and his passion for science.
So, naturally, you can expect his website to be something special. Although you will find many interesting things for adults like documentaries and shows, kids who love science will absolutely adore the experiments under the Home Demos section. Like his humour, the titles of the experiments are quirky and funny: Acid Attack, Penny Droplets, Sock it to me or Coco-Nutty Music, to name just a few.
Kids also have the chance to see the popular episodes of The Science Guy, which are available on the website.
Reading is a magical key that has the power to unlock the world’s greatest secrets. If your little one is an avid reader, be sure to check our list of 11 fantastic free sites for children who love reading.
Interested in free educational websites? Check out our list of 13 Free Learning Websites for Kids.
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Mom of two wonderful children, dedicated teacher and book lover.