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Re: [Phys-l] Physics demos/"make&take" for kids



Mark,

How about LEDs and hearing-aid batteries? You can get a pack of 20 assorted LEDs from RadioShack for about $3, and a package of 8 1.4V hearing aid batteries from Wal-mart or other stores for about $3 as well. The students then get two batteries and a couple colored LEDs. The kids will find the only way to get the LEDs to light is by having the two batteries in series and in the proper polarity for the diode.

At the Greensboro AAPT meeting, PIRA had big LEDs, 3 V lithium batteries, and a small magnet to make "throwies". I tried pricing it out at Radio Shack and the 3V batteries alone were about $4 each. While the single battery works better, using the two hearing aid batteries is much less expensive, though does not last as long and more skill is needed to make work (keep everything together), but you get to talk about series circuits and voltage addition.

Steven Sahyun
UW-Whitewater

On Oct 6, 2007, at 1:25 PM, Paul M. Rybski wrote:


Message: 2
Date: Fri, 05 Oct 2007 14:08:59 -0400
From: Mark Lucas <lucasm@ohio.edu>
Subject: [Phys-l] Small, Inexpensive Physics Toys?
To: Forum for Physics Educators <phys-l@carnot.physics.buffalo.edu>
Message-ID: <1191607739.17675.0.camel@lucas.phy.ohiou.edu>
Content-Type: text/plain

We are preparing for an open house and are looking for good ideas for
small 'prizes' to give to elementary or middle school aged kids. I'm
aware of the $3-4 bracket of things I can get at Arbor Scientific or
Educational Innovations (Energy Balls, Diffraction gratings, Dropper
Poppers, etc...), and I have the okay to pepper the pot with some of
these, but we were also looking for something more in the $1 (or
slightly less), since we aren't certain how many kids to expect.

We are aware of the Oriental Trading Company. The challenge with this is
to have something physics-oriented. We can purchase the slinkies or
gliders. Do people have other suggestions or vendors or specific little
'prizes' that would be appropriate for this situation?

I'd also be interested in suggestions in the $1-3 range.

Thanks!
Mark Lucas




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Message: 3
Date: Fri, 5 Oct 2007 14:49:47 -0400
From: "Thomas O'Neill" <oneill@svgs.k12.va.us>
Subject: Re: [Phys-l] Small, Inexpensive Physics Toys?
To: "Forum for Physics Educators" <phys-l@carnot.physics.buffalo.edu>
Message-ID:
<6F0B6D4CEF44364BAC2A0C06CA84C893546078@svgs-mail.SVGS.local>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

I typically buy about two gross of the superbounce balls on the
order of 1 inch diameter (multiple color and the sparkle ones). I use
them to demonstrate how a gas molecule rebounds from the wall of a
container to produce pressure.
Along the lines of -> Imagine yourself as that door over there.
What would you feel if I bounced this ball off you? (Throw on ball at
door and catch it). What would happen if I bounced two balls at a time
off you (Throw two balls and catch them). So generalize: as I increase
the number of molecules (all else being equal), what happens to the
force/pressure? Then ask what would happen if I bounced a whole mess of
balls off the door (Reach down and grab a large handful and fling them
at the door). Then tell the students that if they catch one, they can
have it. Suitable for a classroom and probably not a lecture hall. The
effect of all those super bounce balls rebounding around the classroom
produces a suitable picture of gas molecules in flight (at least
momentarily).
They are also useful for asking: what would happen if I threw
the ball at the door faster? What if the ball were bigger? And, of
course, according to our model the molecules should stop bouncing
sometime. Why isn't all of the air in this room at floor level?
Shouldn't you be suffocating about now?


THO

Thomas O'Neill
Physics
Shenandoah Valley Governor's School


------------------------------

Message: 4
Date: Fri, 05 Oct 2007 15:00:54 -0400
From: John Denker <jsd@av8n.com>
Subject: Re: [Phys-l] Small, Inexpensive Physics Toys?
To: Forum for Physics Educators <phys-l@carnot.physics.buffalo.edu>
Message-ID: <470689E6.4000904@av8n.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii

On 10/05/2007 02:08 PM, Mark Lucas wrote:
We are preparing for an open house and are looking for good ideas for
small 'prizes' to give to elementary or middle school aged kids.

Dollar-store lasers.

=======================

Balsa-wood gliders.

There's a ton of physics in those things ... although
with all _things_ the physics is in what you do with
it.

For example, challenge them to put it together /backwards/
so that it flies as a canard-type aircraft. That's doable,
but wicked hard if you don't know what you're doing.

======================

Tops and gyroscopes.

======================

You should be able to get 1000 small magnets for $50.00.

====

You can also get iron powder (much better than iron filings)
to go with the magnet. Ask the chemistry stockroom for a
bottle of Fe. Should be cheap.

=====================

Tiny pulleys. Hit-or-miss availability at dollar stores.

Tons of good physics there ... although maybe not apparent
to the untutored kid.

=====================

Drinking bird.

=====================

Does anybody make a cheap radiometer?



------------------------------

Message: 5
Date: Fri, 5 Oct 2007 15:04:32 -0400 (EDT)
From: mrmeyer@mtu.edu
Subject: Re: [Phys-l] Small, Inexpensive Physics Toys?
To: "Forum for Physics Educators" <phys-l@carnot.physics.buffalo.edu>
Message-ID:
<1620.141.219.155.98.1191611072.squirrel@huskymail.mtu.edu>
Content-Type: text/plain;charset=iso-8859-1

Mark -

Here's a suggestion that's a little work, but very cool and very cheap.
Find clear 20 oz plastic bottles with caps (pop bottles work better than
water bottles) and remove the labels. (That's easy here in Michigan since
we all save bottles for deposit.) Use some modelling clay to seal the top
of a pen cap (if necessary) and put a small ball of clay on the "pocket
clip" extension. (We buy cheap pens for the department in bulk and steal
the caps.) Use just enough clay so that the pen cap floats upright when
placed in water. Now fill the bottle to the brim with water, put the
modified pen cap in, and cap tightly.

You've just made a Cartesian Diver that kids can take home cheaply and can
play with for hours. We actually have the kids make their own, and do
several accompanying demos that help explain how it works. (For example -
put a kleenex in the bottom of an inverted cup, submerge it, and note that
the kleenex comes out dry. Or shake/invert the diver, and note that he
sinks permanently....then show them how to "fix" it by pulling out the cap
and reintroducing the air bubble.)

Hope this helps. Good luck with your open house!

Mike Meyer
Lecturer and Lab/Demo Coordinator
Michigan Tech Univ.
mrmeyer@mtu.edu

------------------------------

Message: 6
Date: Fri, 05 Oct 2007 15:41:41 -0400
From: "Anthony Lapinski" <Anthony_Lapinski@pds.org>
Subject: Re: [Phys-l] Small, Inexpensive Physics Toys?
To: "Forum for Physics Educators" <phys-l@carnot.physics.buffalo.edu>
Message-ID: <fc.000f54740189a8ae3b9aca00bfd907ae.189a917@pds.org>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1

Our Open House is in four weeks. I typically so some demos and give
everyone a ziplock bag of science toys:

blow ball pipe
tippy top
dragonfly
popper
clackers
fortune fish
kazoo
flute
bird whistle
kaleidoscope

These can be purchased in bulk from

www.orientaltrading.com
www.ustoy.com
www.kipptoys.com

I also give out diffraction goggles (100 for $35) and eclipse goggles (100
for $75) from www.rainbowsymphony.com.

Kids love this stuff, and everything is cheap! Good luck!
------------------------------
------------------------------

Message: 8
Date: Fri, 05 Oct 2007 19:04:51 -0700
From: Bernard Cleyet <bernardcleyet@redshift.com>
Subject: Re: [Phys-l] Small, Inexpensive Physics Toys?
To: Forum for Physics Educators <phys-l@carnot.physics.buffalo.edu>
Message-ID: <4706ED43.3010908@redshift.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8; format=flowed

For those in the Sacramento and Santa Clara Valley environs much is
available at RAFT; check their site:


http://www.raft.net/

They have kits for a few $s w/ enuff for 20 students -- telescope kit,
stenopaeic viewer (pin hole camera), electrostatic merry go round, etc. etc.

bc, would consider purchasing and mailing.

Mark Lucas wrote:

------------------------------

Message: 9
Date: Sat, 06 Oct 2007 10:27:10 -0500
From: Brian Whatcott <betwys1@sbcglobal.net>
Subject: Re: [Phys-l] Small, Inexpensive Physics Toys?
To: Forum for Physics Educators <phys-l@carnot.physics.buffalo.edu>
Message-ID: <20071006152926.38F0C2BDB8@carnot.physics.buffalo.edu>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed

At 01:08 PM 10/5/2007, you wrote:
We are preparing for an open house and are looking for good ideas for
small 'prizes' to give to elementary or middle school aged kids. ...
Do people have other suggestions or vendors or specific little
'prizes' that would be appropriate for this situation?

I'd also be interested in suggestions in the $1-3 range.

Thanks!
Mark Lucas


Some worthy responses already. Here are one or two more...

Plastic cups (drug dispensers) with nylon fishing line fixed in
the base of each of two cups, for a string telephone.

A few inches of fiber light guide to demonstrate a light ray
turning a corner.

A few wooden toothpicks and a tube of cement for making
structures like pyramids, cubes etc.

A sycamore seed (or other winged seed)

A dandelion seed (or other parachute seed)

A rubber balloon and sample of paper confetti.

A sewing needle (to float on water.)

A disposable petri dish and chunk of jello
(hmmm...not exactly physics?)

A plastic lens

A few strips of blotting paper (with instructions
for chromatograph separations)

A corked test tube filled with oil and colored water.

A corked test tube with dye-water expressed from a
high lighter pen (which is a UV excited fluorescer)

A small paper bag (to boil water in)


Brian Whatcott Altus OK Eureka!



------------------------------

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Forum for Physics Educators
Phys-l@carnot.physics.buffalo.edu
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End of Phys-l Digest, Vol 33, Issue 6
*************************************
--
Paul M. Rybski, Ph.D., Associate Professor
Chair, Department of Physics, and
Director, Whitewater Observatory
University of WI-Whitewater
800 West Main Street
Whitewater, WI 53190-1790

email: rybskip@yahoo.com
office: (262) 472-5633


"The first principle [for doing good physics] is that you must not fool yourself, and you are the easiest person to fool." -- Richard Feynman

====================================
Dr. Steven Sahyun
Physics Department
University of Wisconsin - Whitewater
Whitewater, WI 53190

Phone: (262) 472-5113

E-mail: sahyuns@uww.edu

Web: http://academics.uww.edu/physics/scs/
====================================