Explore Like a Scientist

Scientists make sense of the world around them. They ask questions and get curious to find the answers.

Some work in a lab.
Others work outside.

They study lots of things like… plants and animals, energy, the Earth, engineering or how things work and even space!

They use their senses to observe... like this scientist diving underwater to learn about these colorful fish.

This scientist observes by using a microscope. He uses a computer to keep track of what he learns.

Kids can be scientists, too! Here are some new friends exploring the park on a rainy day. Let’s find out what they are curious about today.

Kiara, Oliver, Rosie, and Maddie notice puddles forming on the sidewalk in the park. They decide to stop and observe.

Oliver likes the sound of the raindrops splashing in the puddles.

The puddles get bigger and bigger as it rains.

As the rain stops, Kiara wonders if the puddles will change throughout the day. She measures one to find out how wide and deep it is. Maddie helps her with the tape measure. It’s two feet wide and three inches deep! They will check it again later to see if it changes.

The curious kids continue exploring nearby as the Sun comes out.

Later that day, Kiara and Maddie measure the puddle again to see if it changed. It did!

The puddle is smaller, 1 foot wide and only 1 inch deep. But what happened?

What do you think happened to the puddle?

Rosie has an idea. She sees steam above the puddle and notices that the Sun is very warm.

She tells her friends it’s like when her dad dries clothes on the line outside. The Sun dries the clothes. The Sun is drying the water in the puddle too, making it smaller. The steam is the water going into the air.

What a fun day of exploring the park! You can be a scientist just like Rosie and her friends! What are the things you wonder and observe where you live?