The summer science activities for my children that I remember as working best (that is, holding their interest and not requiring an enormous amount of time to set-up or clean up) include mixing baking soda and vinegar and watching the resulting bubbles foam (get the big box and at least a gallon), playing “Pooh Sticks” (watching bits of sticks float under a creek bridge and out the other side), digging a (relatively) deep hole over a period of days, and making a rainbow with the sprinkler. Being able to work outside opens up many possibilities. On hot afternoons, the public library was the perfect place to regain our energy for dinner by reading and resting.
How about activities such as mixing colors, floating eggs, testing magnetic strength, making bubbles, or generating static electricity? Science NetLinks offers detailed directions for those hands-on activities for summer fun.   Join other teachers in sharing your ideas for summer break science activities by clicking on the word “Comments” below. Don’t be discouraged if the CAPTCHA device takes two tries before accepting your comment. It is really good at stopping automatic spam so it’s worth the difficulty it causes.
Peggy