Easy Preschool Science Activities – You Don’t Need to Be Scared!

Science can be a scary subject for some preschool teachers. It seems like there are so many intimidating concepts! However, science doesn’t have to be difficult and you don’t have to be a science pro to teach it.

I’m going to help you by sharing some easy preschool science activities that are perfect for the classroom. These science activities for preschoolers are fun and engaging, and they will help your students learn about important scientific concepts. Don’t be afraid of teaching science – these activities will make it easy for you!

Try some out. I’m sure you and your kids will have so much fun

Why Should I Teach Science in Early Childhood Education?

Science is an important subject for all students, and it is especially important for young children. Science helps children understand the world around them, and it provides them with critical thinking skills. In addition, science is a lot of fun!

What Does Science Look Like in Preschool?

You DON’T have to be intimidated by science!

People often think of science as difficult, but that doesn’t have to be the case. Kids are natural scientists because they love exploring. The best way for a 3,4, or 5 year-old to learn science is through hands-on FUN. A science center for preschoolers should be all about play and exploration.

What Should Preschoolers Learn in Science?

Here is a nice list of scientific topics that you can teach to preschoolers:

• The five senses – We can constantly talk about what we hear, see, feel, and smell.
• Seasons – The seasons are always changing, and in many places, you can explore these changes with your senses.
• Weather – Along with the seasons, the weather is always changing. Talk about this with your kids.
• Plants – From trees, to lawns, and houseplants, kids can care for or observe changes in the plants in their everyday life.
• Animals – Kids LOVE animals! Talk about life cycles, adaptations, differences, what they need to survive, etc.
• Life cycles – How do animals grow? What about trees and other plants?
• The human body – From the five senses and germs to anatomy and growth & development, there are so many kids can learn about themselves.
• Materials and changes in matter – Don’t get scared about this one. This important concept can include things like talking about the water cycle (melting ice cubes), classifying objects by whether they are made of wood or plastic etc.

Nothing is intimidating there, right? These simple science concepts are all very easy to teach to your young scientists with the right activities.

Easy Preschool Science Activities & Experiments

Now that you know what science looks like in preschool and what topics you should cover, let’s take a look at some easy activities that you can use to teach these concepts. Remember, the key is to make it fun!

Simple Water Experiments

You don’t need fancy tools to do fun and meaningful yet easy science experiments and activities with your kids. All you need is some water and a few common household items. With these materials, you can teach kids aboutsimple science concepts like properties of liquids, density, and chemical solutions.

Check out this blog post for more information on water experiments that you can do with your preschoolers. The simple experiments require simple supplies like a plastic spoon and cup. Don’t forget to get the free printables.

While you’re at it, here’s a cool science experiment. You can examine water in it’s different states. Watch an ice cube melt. You can observe how ice melts differently in cold water, warm water, or even salt water. Then, you can observe the water evaporating over time.

Simple Chemical Reactions

This classic science experiment is a fun way to watch a chemical reaction. Fill a tray with baking soda and provide kids with a very small cup of vinegar and an eyedropper. Let them add vinegar to the baking soda to see what happens.

I like that this activity builds fine motor skills. You can make this simple baking soda and vinegar experiment more exciting by adding different colors of food coloring to the vinegar.

Life Cycle Activities

There are so many ways to teach life cycles using hands-on activities. You can grow plants or flowers with your students, investigate pumpkins or apples, or observe the life cycle of a butterfly.

Animal Activities

There are endless possibilities when it comes to animal activities for preschoolers! Simple science activities in your preschool classroom might include reading books about animals, visiting a farm or petting zoo, or even doing a simple animal sorting activity. You can classify them by whether they live on land or see. You can even classify them by their coverings (fur, feathers, or scales)

Sink or Float Experiment

Some of the best science activities can be done with everyday objects. Fill a large container or tub with water and provide kids with various objects with different densities to test them. Ask them to predict whether each object will sink or float and then let them test their hypothesis.

Learn About the Scientific Method

The scientific method is a process that scientists use to answer questions. It is a great concept to teach kids….even preschoolers, and it can be done with any type of experiment. Check out this blog post for more information on teaching the scientific method to preschoolers and don’t forget to pick up the free printable.

See How Germs Spread

This is a great activity to do during cold and flu season. For this activity, you will need some glitter and a few other supplies. Check out the blog post about teaching kids about germs from Teaching Exceptional Thinkers for all of the details.

Test Objects with Magnets

This is a simple activity that you can do with items that you probably already have in your house like rubber bands, paper clips, bottle caps and more . All you need is a magnet and some metal objects.

Painting with Bubbles

Kids of all ages love bubbles.

This activity is a lot of fun, and it’s a great way to teach kids about the properties of bubbles. Bubbles are thin layers of soapy water that are filled with air and kids can experiment with the amount of air that they blow into the bubble and colored water solution. It’s also fun to disrupt the surface tension of a bubble and what it POP. You will need some dish soap, water, paint, and straw to complete this bubble painting activity.

Let your kids examine their bubble paintings. What happens when the different colors are mixed. For Additional color-mixing fun, you can mix drops of food coloring in shaving cream.

Create a Dramatic Play Weather Station

My favorite way to create opportunities for play-based science activities for preschool children is by setting up a science themed dramatic play center. Setting up a weather station in your dramatic play area will help you teach kids about the weather. It’s also a lot of fun, and it can be used in your dramatic play area.

Observe changes in the Sky During the Day

This is a great activity for teaching kids about the sun and the changes that occur during the day. All you need is a notebook and a pencil for an easy science activity.

Observe Seasonal Changes

As the seasons change, there are all sorts of changes that occur in nature. This is a great opportunity to take your students outside and observe the changes that are happening. You can also do some fun activities inside if it’s too cold or hot to go outside.

You can also do an easy seasonal sorting activity.

Rock Study in the dramatic play area

You can set up a rock study or geology lab in your dramatic play area to learn ALL about rocks.

Water Cycle in a Bag

This water cycle in a bag activity by Playdough to Plato is a really simple activity to help you teach your kids about the water cycle. You will need a plastic bag, markers, and a few other supplies to complete this activity.

Baking & Cooking

Did you know that when you bake, you are doing science? Baking is a great opportunity to teach kids about chemical reactions, heat transfer, and the states of matter. Plus, it’s a lot of fun! As you make things with your kids, point out things like how the cheese melts on a pizza, how sugar dissolves when mixed with water, and how individual simple ingredients like eggs, vegetable oil, and flour become a cake when baked.

Additional Ideas for Studying Basic Science Concepts

Here are some additional simple science experiments to try with your kids:

Capillary Action – Explore this concept with food coloring and flowers with this changing flower science experiment by Little Bins for Little Hands.

Water Absorption – Use piece of paper towel to learn about water absorption with this experiment by Happy Hooligans.

Sound Waves – Make rubberband guitars. Experiment using different boxes and different types of rubberbands to see how the change the sound of the instrument.

Static Electricity – Try out this jumping leaves experiment by Science Sparks to explore static electricity.

There are so many easy science activities that you can do with your preschoolers! These are just a few ideas to get you started. Don’t be scared to try them today.

Purchase Resources for easy Preschool science activities Today

Are you ready to add some fun science activities to your class? Check out the following science resources in the store today.

Purchase Easy Preschool Science Activities on TPT

Do you prefer to shop at Teachers Pay Teachers? You can also purchase the science activities in my TPT Store.