I hate experiments/projects!!

[ballardlm]

Okay, guilty mom confession here. I have a preschooler and I am learning that I HATE doing science projects or big projects of any kind. It's not such a big deal now, but I feel like as he gets into "school years" it will be. Basically I want some light at the end of the tunnel because this is making me dread homeschooling which makes me sad. I love teaching him new things and reading to him. But the idea of gathering empty milk jugs and toothpicks and whatnot every week for the next 18 years makes me twitch. So, how often do you do sconce experiments and history projects in the early elementary years? And are there any curriculums that come with all supplies so I don't have to gather anything? I think that would make it easier for me to handle and I wouldn't mink paying a little more for it. Thank you!!

[freeindeed]

You can order supply kits with Sonlight science.

[fairfarmhand]

I hate them too.

 

Especially, since about half the time it doesn't work the way its supposed to.

 

I find books like this excellent, because I usually have the stuff on hand and we can eat the end result.

 

http://www.amazon.com/Culinary-Reactions-Everyday-Chemistry-Cooking/dp/1569767068

 

http://www.amazon.com/The-Science-Cooking-Peter-Barham/dp/3540674667

 

Here's a site that uses ordinary stuff for experiments.

 

http://www.thenakedscientists.com/HTML/content/kitchenscience/

[mrs.m]

You can order complete kits for Apologia. Many science programs have kits to go with them.

 

Or join a coop that offers a science lab. 😉

[Mom22ns]

I would also add that in our local ps, they don't do science at all until 3rd grade, then just twice a week for a quarter I think. It gradually ramps up from there. That school is usually rated in the top 100 nationally, so that isn't what poor quality public schools are doing either.

 

Science labs can be a lot of fun when the kids are old enough to do them with some independence, learn something and clean up afterwards. Until then, feel free to use them sparingly! Kits do help if you hate gathering supplies.

 

I think how important projects are depends a lot on your kids. Mine never learned anything from them. They learned far more by cuddling up with me and reading a book on the subject then discussing it.

[Ellie]

We didn't do projects. My dc still learned. :D

[regentrude]

I hate them, too - and so do my kids.

They always asked "Can't we just read about it in a book?"

We did not do any "hands on" stuff prior to high school science lab.

[Dmmetler]

I sent my DD to the local Mad Science Franchise for the lab part of science until this year (she's run out of units they offer until she gets to middle school...sigh...), and this year, I signed her up for a co-op that's going to do science projects once a week. For the co-op, I'll have to lead a project one week, but I figure one time out of 15 I can manage.

 

The arts/crafts type projects I leave up to her. And we still haven't mummified a chicken (maybe that's why she hasn't been willing to give up on Ancient Egypt yet?)

 

 

 

 

[SilverMoon]

In preschool? Never. Kindy? Same.

 

First grade on up - I still don't find experiments vital for grammar stage science. I've mostly held off on them until my DC can gather supplies and run the experiment themselves. They need to be savvy enough to take needed safety measures and know when to ask Mom for assistance. That's been 4th or 5th grade for my kids.

 

Now random crafts and history projects? My rising fifth grader would say, "Did you say milk jug and toothpicks?? What else do we need? I'll get the table cleared." :p  He is a tinkerer and loves creating things. Milk carton sail boats make his day. I try to schedule one a week on average.

[EKS]

I hate most canned science "experiments" and any project where I have to gather materials.

 

However, over the years I managed to gather lots of supplies for such things.  Now I have an entire cabinet devoted to art/craft supplies and another cabinet and two shelves devoted to science supplies.  So several years into homeschooling, I had most things on hand.

 

At one point I invested in some science equipment from Home Science Tools and that was very helpful.  I also saved all supplies that came with any science kit we ever bought.

 

Also, you'll always want to have 2 liter soda bottles on hand.  Always.

[Jackie]

What I hate are all the preschool "crafts" - all those things that require cardboard tubes, tissue boxes, paper plates, and other so-called "common" household items that I NEVER seem to have on hand. I finally gather stuff up, we spend the time creating it, then we have some generally unattractive craft that I'm just waiting to throw out.

[ballardlm]

Freeindeed have you used sonlight science? I have pretty much fallen in live with sonlight core because we are such a reading family and because I don't like lesson planning but I get mixed reviews on the science. I love the idea of it but I've heard some people say their kids didn't retain any of it. Could you share your experiences? Thanks a ton!

[ballardlm]

Jackie yes!! That is how I feel. And maybe it's just my kid but I don't think he really gets anything from it. It's like a preschool version of busywork. I work part time and I don't have time for busywork lol

[ballardlm]

Jackie yes!! That is how I feel. And maybe it's just my kid but I don't think he really gets anything from it. It's like a preschool version of busywork. I work part time and I don't have time for busywork lol

[boscopup]

We hardly did any projects the last few years. This year, my 4th grader is doing some science "experiments", but he can mostly do them himself. It's not me doing the project for him anymore.

 

My preschooler? No projects. K? No projects. My kids have learned and done well. My oldest learns more from reading than from projects.

 

You don't have to do projects and crafts just because other homeschoolers do. ;)

[airforcefamily]

We don't do many craft projects either and only necessary science experiments. The kids don't mind, when I bring out craft supplies they're not into it so we stick with art projects. You tube videos of science experiments can work to explain the concept without the hassle and mess - I know my kids would never know what happens when mentos are put in diet coke if we had to do it ourselves!

[strange_girl]

 

I think how important projects are depends a lot on your kids. Mine never learned anything from them. They learned far more by cuddling up with me and reading a book on the subject then discussing it.

I love this! Thank you!

 

  

We didn't do projects. My dc still learned. :D

  

 

I love this too! Thank you!

 

We hardly did any projects the last few years. This year, my 4th grader is doing some science "experiments", but he can mostly do them himself. It's not me doing the project for him anymore.

My preschooler? No projects. K? No projects. My kids have learned and done well. My oldest learns more from reading than from projects.

You don't have to do projects and crafts just because other homeschoolers do. ;)

*Phew*.

 

I hate projects. I'm glad to know that my kids won't grow up bored and ignorant if we never do them. :)

[Farrar]

I hear this complaint a lot here and I admit I don't fully get it.  It's hard for me to envision having my kids sit reading and writing for all their learning in early elementary school.  I feel like there has to be some level of art and hands-on learning for pretty much all kids at that age.  I mean, teaching early elementary is just messy.

[regentrude]

I hear this complaint a lot here and I admit I don't fully get it.  It's hard for me to envision having my kids sit reading and writing for all their learning in early elementary school.  I feel like there has to be some level of art and hands-on learning for pretty much all kids at that age.  I mean, teaching early elementary is just messy.

 

But what do you do with kids who HATE anything artsy-craftsy? Once mine were able to read, they always preferred books to demonstrations, experiments, crafts. (I was the same way; even as a child I had absolutely no interest in making stuff. I ended up becoming a theoretical physicist: a scientist who does not do experiments and does NOT work in a lab, but with pencil and paper.)

 

Not doing "projects" does not mean that all learning is "sitting still and reading": even while they were still in public school, we had field trips every weekend to museums, nature centers, state parks, national parks, theatres, live performances, reenactments... THAT they loved. Plus several hours of outdoor time every day - that is hands-on nature study, without being a contrived project or science experiment. This they loved as well.

 

I also believe that in the elementary years a lot of learning happens through unstructured play. The many hours my children played with playmobil figures, constructing buildings, inventing worlds complete with mythology, laws, rituals were definitely educational.

[airforcefamily]

Art can be done without each lesson turning into a major project and hands on science can be accomplished without involved experiments.

 

For example, an art 'project' can be as simple as a sheet of paper and a drawing pencil. No need to always involve paste and popsicle sticks (or other craft supplies). Seeing science in action can be as easy as putting some baking soda in a dish while cooking and inviting the kids to watch while a little vinegar is sprinkled on it then talking about what happened or just explaining what is going in when a log is burning in the fireplace or why that apple that was left in the fridge too long is now soft. Lots of interesting learning can take place without kits, special supplies, or messes - particularly at a preschool level.

[Farrar]

But what do you do with kids who HATE anything artsy-craftsy? Once mine were able to read, they always preferred books to demonstrations, experiments, crafts. (I was the same way; even as a child I had absolutely no interest in making stuff. I ended up becoming a theoretical physicist: a scientist who does not do experiments and does NOT work in a lab, but with pencil and paper.)

 

Not doing "projects" does not mean that all learning is "sitting still and reading": even while they were still in public school, we had field trips every weekend to museums, nature centers, state parks, national parks, theatres, live performances, reenactments... THAT they loved. Plus several hours of outdoor time every day - that is hands-on nature study, without being a contrived project or science experiment. This they loved as well.

 

I also believe that in the elementary years a lot of learning happens through unstructured play. The many hours my children played with playmobil figures, constructing buildings, inventing worlds complete with mythology, laws, rituals were definitely educational.

 

Yeah, I get that.  And we do those things too - nature, field trips, lots of free time, etc.  It's still just...  I don't know.  I mean, "project" is such a huge term to me.  There's so many sorts of projects that kids do. And I don't actually know any kids who don't really love projects of some kind and aren't constantly engaged in making.  We know a lot of kids and every single one of them makes - they draw or build or sew or experiment.  So I struggle when I see parents here complaining about having to facilitate that when it seems like such an essential characteristic of childhood to me.

 

But I am a crafty person.  So while it seems like a no brainer to me that seizing on that desire to try things and touch things is a natural way to blend life and school, I guess it doesn't have to be a big part of the formal "school" time.  It can be something kids do on their own for the most part.  At least at my house, half of "facilitating" projects is providing an endless supply of tape and being willing to find the scissors all over the house.

[regentrude]

. And I don't actually know any kids who don't really love projects of some kind and aren't constantly engaged in making.  We know a lot of kids and every single one of them makes - they draw or build or sew or experiment. ....  At least at my house, half of "facilitating" projects is providing an endless supply of tape and being willing to find the scissors all over the house.

 

LOL. You must not have met my kids.

I always kept a well stocked craft closet: crayons, tape, beads, felt, scissors, glue, markers, colored pencils, stickers, watercolors, playdough, construction paper, was saving cardboard, tubes, jars. I did not want my shortcomings in the arts/crafts department to be an obstacle. DD got crafts supplies for every birthday: origami sets, cross stitch sets, beads. The kids had free access to everything. At elementary age, they were using this type of stuff maybe once a month for maybe half an hour (even though I was offering, encouraging, suggesting) The only drawing my son ever did was making elaborate maps for his fantasy novels. OK, and a short phase of geometric patterns once he discovered the use of the compass.

Building? We have blocks, erector set, building sets of various types, legos - combined they got a handful of hours of play time over the years. Past toddlerhood, my kids never had the slightest inclination to build something that was not part of their playmobil fantasy play world.

 

OTOH, they are extremely verbal and talked for hours while playing the most elaborate role playing games inside and outdoors, invented myths and sagas, created dialog between the playmobil figures or played the characters themselves - for several hours every day. And both started creative writing in elementary.

 

I can only conclude that my children are completely atypical. But I promise you they exist ;-)

 

ETA: I also never had the slightest inclination towards scientific experimentation as a child. I did ONE single experiment ever, growing mold on potatoes. Yet I became a scientist nonetheless.

[Guest infamousmare]

I'm so glad to hear someone else say this!   When it comes to "craftsy" stuff, my oldest daughter (8.5) loves to sew, so we do hand and machine sewing.  My son (6.5), who also has serious sensory issues, loves his Legos and both love building kits/block sets.   These are what we consider "projects" at our house and I try to tie them into our lessons.   My toddler (2) is a walking mess anyway, so no need to introduce a project fraught with paste and macaroni noodles.  *LOL*

 

I have a friend who homeschools and she loves nothing more than to put a sand or water table in the kitchen or to make huge batches of oobleck for her kids to toss all over the mudroom.   She swears my kids are suffering because they aren't getting their hands dirty - but that's just not me or my kids.   So glad to know I'm not doing them a disservice (at least not yet!) by nurturing their non-crafty, anti-messy personalities.   :)

[regentrude]

 She swears my kids are suffering because they aren't getting their hands dirty - but that's just not me or my kids.

 

Oh, mine got their hands dirty just fine without projects. We spent several hours outside every afternoon: sandbox, mud, puddles, rocks... I swear mine were the dirtiest kids on the playground. But that's not a "project", that's just free play.

And I actually do believe there is a large benefit in kids getting dirty, because it is great for building up the immune system.

[Hunter]

If a child loves them, their enthusiasm and help will carry you through. If they don't love them and help, don't do many of them.

 

I don't believe it's necessary to spend any more time on training students to be scientists, than I do training them to be firefighters.

 

I had one student who loved science experiments. The type that needed to be measured and graphed. I really liked the Mr Q labs for her. I haven't really done any of them since with other students. I'm planning on a lot of Yesterday's Classics and the AO schedules for geography ad the Handbook of Nature Study this year. I may not get to a single experiment this year, unless I get a student who thrives on them, and has no interest in nature study.

[boscopup]

I hear this complaint a lot here and I admit I don't fully get it.  It's hard for me to envision having my kids sit reading and writing for all their learning in early elementary school.  I feel like there has to be some level of art and hands-on learning for pretty much all kids at that age.  I mean, teaching early elementary is just messy.

 

My oldest has always been a fairly abstract thinker. He literally learns NOTHING from hands on stuff. He learns much more by reading about it. He also was an early independent reader, so that helps. I know he's learning, because in his pretend play, he incorporates everything he's read. It's quite amazing what he remembers. He remembers more than I do. :tongue_smilie:

 

My middle son is more hands on, but besides the math manipulatives, he's learned fine without doing projects. He's in 1st grade. School is very short for him (about an hour), so there isn't that much time sitting and reading for learning. He spends most of his day playing and especially getting dirty! In fact, he's the dirtiest kid in the house, usually. :D

 

My kids have constant access to paper, color pencils, crayons, scissors, tape, glue. They just don't use them much. Their idea of "art" is drawing a stick figure light saber fight. They'd rather build with Legos than do craft type stuff.

 

So I guess they are doing some "hands on", but not for learning (we don't use Legos for science or history or reading), and they are getting dirty... just not for school. I haven't felt any need to get messy in early elementary in order for my kids to learn. My 3rd kid is 4 years old, and he is learning to read and write and add just fine without gluing anything. :) Again, they can do that stuff in their free time, but I haven't found it necessary for educational purposes. What HAS to be taught with messy crafts?

 

[dragonflyer]

I showed the duck pond I had my PreK make to EVERYONE who stood still.  When DH finally realized that we had made it at home he said: "Oh, I thought you had done that at the library."  Shows how often crafts get done around here.

I have a box with odds & ends (coffee cans, toilet paper tubes, orange juice can lids, yarn) that can be pulled out and played with at his own motivation.  Just as happy that my kid is happiest if I blow him up a balloon.

[ballardlm]

I guess I need to clarify that my kid has acess to play dough, crayons, paper, Etc. He has blocks and things like that. It's just that *I* don't want to facilitate it. And if it is such a natural part of childhood why do I have to make it artificially?

[happymomofboys]

I hate projects too.  I hated them when I was in school and I hate them now.  I loved Sonlight science because everything came in a box and if we didn't do the experiment (which was really a demonstration anyway), I could just pop in the DVD and we could watch it.  The science I'm using now requires me to gather supplies and do some prep work, but luckily ds11 is old enough to do most of it on his own and I'm just there to supervise.

[Mommy22alyns]

Science kits are my favorite.  My girls thrive on experiments/projects, so I suck it up and do them as much as I can.

[Hunter]

I guess I need to clarify that my kid has acess to play dough, crayons, paper, Etc. He has blocks and things like that. It's just that *I* don't want to facilitate it. And if it is such a natural part of childhood why do I have to make it artificially?

You don't have to!

 

Just because something is useful, doesn't make it essential.

[strange_girl]

I guess for me this is a two-fold issue. I was also homeschooled. As a kid, I remember thinking (about science experiments), "I get the concept, so why do I have to jump through all these hoops for no reason?" Science was just not something I enjoyed (and that's okay). I am very much a book learner, not hands-on.

 

Now, I have three little kids. They are walking messes and I spend pretty much all day either teaching them math and English or picking up said messes. I have no desire to add to the mountain of mess.

 

I like the idea that when they get older, it will be easier to do experiments. They'll get more out of it too.

 

That being said, my kids are walking projects. They paint, draw, create mountains of paper/tape/glue/glitter projects, and they love to play with play-doh and make mud. If I had a nickel for every popsicle stick and cut up cardboard box I pick up....I just don't feel like adding that to our school day as well.

[Soror]

WEll, most projects and science experiments and such are not really great learning experiences, maybe fun but not really for learning. We do some projects here and there just because the kids like them. For my dds I have a whole cabinet full of supplies and they are always creating something. Ds is more of a builder type and I keep things on hand for him to build. For the most part now he can do his own experiments. He was making pickle and olive atom models the other day. Of course this doesn't mean that our school is just horridly boring all the time, we actually have a good bit of fun. We learn in various different ways, utilize games and such.

[RoundAbout]

I totally agree with regentrude, we manage to do tons of hands on learning without doing many crafty projects or science demos. DS could name almost every bird and plant in yard and many of the insects too. Yesterday we watched a spider spin a web and DS talked with grandma about all the different ways spiders can capture prey (thanks to ZooNooz magazine and other sources). We also noticed the spider was building its web from the outside in, and theorized why the spider did things that way. Do they always, do they all? We also discussed why all the spiders were building webs on that side of the yard. More insects, sure, but why? Is it because of the fruit trees or its shady or something else? I think these kinds of discussions have way more to do with real science than most canned experiments. It's not all nature studies either - we have the same kind of discussions about gravity, earth science, etc.

 

DS also does Playmobil and Lego scenes based on what we are learning spontaneously. Or he draws something. Throw in trips to museums, science centers, nature centers, campgrounds, and Netflix, and I don't see much reason to ever break out the glue and scissors. Occasionally a demo is elegant and easy enough to be worthwhile ( I remember drawing dots on a balloon and blowing it up to simulate the expanding universe) and sometimes he starts projects on his own (hatching ladybug pupa from the yard) but lots of cutting and pasting or baking soda and vinegar type science is just not our thing and I think it's ok to skip any guilt about it.

[Hunter]

I guess for me this is a two-fold issue. I was also homeschooled. As a kid, I remember thinking (about science experiments), "I get the concept, so why do I have to jump through all these hoops for no reason?" Science was just not something I enjoyed (and that's okay). I am very much a book learner, not hands-on.

 

Now, I have three little kids. They are walking messes and I spend pretty much all day either teaching them math and English or picking up said messes. I have no desire to add to the mountain of mess.

 

I like the idea that when they get older, it will be easier to do experiments. They'll get more out of it too.

 

That being said, my kids are walking projects. They paint, draw, create mountains of paper/tape/glue/glitter projects, and they love to play with play-doh and make mud. If I had a nickel for every popsicle stick and cut up cardboard box I pick up....I just don't feel like adding that to our school day as well.

You sound like you are doing just fine!

 

If you really think you need to do SOMETHING to appease your guilt, then I would do some focused nature study where you are teaching actual observations and documentation skills, OUTSIDE where they cannot make any more inside messes for you to clean up. I found that preventing messes by scheduling an activity was often a timesaver.

 

But that can all wait. It really can, unless you WANT to do more, and you find that scheduling outside activities reduces indoor mess.