Who knew observing bubbles could offer essential lessons about the world of science? Lower schoolers in Dr. Frassinelli's science class, of course!
Through our fourth-graders' first lab of the school year, "Speed of Bubbles," the students are developing observational skills, learning the basics of data collection and dabbling in a little bit of math with addition and averaging.
Using tubes filled with different colored fluids and an air bubble in each, students explored what happens when the object turns upside down.
"The fluid is drawn down by gravity, and the air bubble gets pushed up," said Dr. Frassinelli. "As the air bubble travels upward, we notice that some bubbles are fast and some are slow. We used timers to find out how many seconds this took."
The students tested each tube three times and added the data from each trial to discover which had the fastest-traveling bubble, the slowest and the fluid's consistency.
"I've never seen kids not enjoy this lab, and for this reason, it seems to be a good one to start our year with," shared Dr. Frasinelli. "I love being able to create an environment that makes learning science fun."