Daily Discovery: Nature Among Us – Wildlife/ Descubrimiento en casa: La naturaleza entre nosotros- la vida silvestre

Posted on by Kristin Rush in Ages 6-8, Ages 9-12, Crafts, Daily Discovery, Descubrimiento en casa, Discovery at Home, Español, Life Science

Post written by Bella Harris, Discovery Agent.

Daily Discovery: Nature Among Us – Wildlife

Use your scientific skills to research city critters around Fort Collins! All you need is a camera, a pen or pencil, and a love for exploration to be a wildlife researcher. Below is a table to check off different wildlife sightings around Fort Collins. Try to find as many as you can! You can print this table or simply use it as an online guide. When you finish, share a picture of your table and pictures from your natural place adventures on our social media pages listed below!

Here are some recommendations for natural places to look for wildlife:

  • Cathy Fromme Prairie Natural Area
  • Cottonwood Hollow Natural Area
  • Bobcat Ridge Natural Area
  • Pineridge Natural Area
  • Soapstone Prairie Natural Area
  • Check out here for more natural places to explore!

Before completing this worksheet, we welcome you to fill out a quick survey so we can learn more about your interests and how we can better adapt future programs!

Instructions:

  1. Put a check by every animal you find! Or fill out your own wildlife discovery at the bottom of the table. You can also document your discoveries on a piece of paper.

Please take about a week to fill out this worksheet. When you have completed as much of the table as possible, please take a photo of it! Be sure to photograph your exploration throughout natural places in Fort Collins, too!

You can upload your photos and share your adventures on the museum’s Facebook page. When creating your Nature Among Us post, please include a photo of your wildlife  chart/list, photos of the natural places you visited, and a short description of where you went, what you saw, and how many times you explored. And don’t forget to use the hastag #NatureAmongUs! You can also email your research results to Bella Harris.

Each week, we’ll highlight the work you have done! Stay tuned for next week’s Daily Discovery, where we will explore leaves and other green things in Nature Among Us: Plants.

Want to download these directions? Click here for a handy PDF!

Follow along with our Daily Discovery! Click here for all activities that you can do at home.

Learn more about local wildlife!

Traducido por Károl de Rueda y Laura Vilaret-Tuma.

Descubrimiento en casa: La naturaleza entre nosotros – la vida silvestre

¡Usa tus habilidades científicas para investigar animalitos que viven en tu área o en los alrededores de Fort Collins! Solo necesitas una cámara, algo para escribir, y el entusiasmo para explorar y convertirte en un/a investigador/a de la vida silvestre. Debajo encontrarás una tabla para marcar avistamientos de animalitos salvajes a tus alrededores. ¡Intenta encontrar tantos como puedas! Imprime esta actividad o simplemente úsala como una guía. Cuando termines, ¡comparte fotos de tus aventuras en nuestras redes sociales!

Les recomendamos estos espacios naturales en Fort Collins para buscar fauna silvestre:

  • Área natural de la pradera de Cathy Fromme (Cathy Fromme Prairie Natural Area)
  • Área natural hueca de álamos (Cottonwood Hollow Natural Area)
  • Área natural de Bobcat Ridge (Bobcat Ridge Natural Area)
  • Área natural de Pineridge (Pineridge Natural Area)
  • Pradera de piedra de jabón (Soapstone Prairie Natural Area)
  • Haz clic en el enlace https://www.fcgov.com/naturalareas/ ¡y encuentra más espacios naturales para explorar!

Antes de completar esta actividad, te invitamos a llenar una breve encuesta en tu propio idioma. Con tus respuestas, aprenderemos más sobre tus intereses y sobre las diversas formas en las que podríamos adaptar nuestros programas y actividades en el futuro. ¡Muchas gracias!

Instrucciones:

  1. Marca cada animal que veas. Si te topas con algún otro que no se encuentra en esta lista, puedes nombrarlo en los espacios de “nuevo descubrimiento” al final de la tabla, o también puedes documentar estas aventuras en cualquier hoja de papel o cuaderno.

Podrías completar esta actividad durante el curso de varios días. Cuando hayas terminado la mayor parte de la tabla, tómale una foto. También asegúrate de fotografiar tus exploraciones en los varios espacios naturales que visitaste en Fort Collins. ¡Sobre todo si viste alguno de estos animales!

Puedes subir tus fotos y compartir tus aventuras en nuestra página de Facebook. Cuando estés escribiendo tú publicación, por favor incluye los resultados de la tabla más arriba, una pequeña  descripción sobre los lugares a los que fuiste, lo que observaste, y el número de veces que visitaste un espacio natural. Podrías utilizar la etiqueta #NatureAmongUs. Si quieres, también puedes mandar tus investigaciones por correo electrónico a Bella Harris.

Durante cada semana, estaremos presentando estos trabajos ¡incluyendo el tuyo! a través de las redes sociales.

Mantente sintonizado con nuestro próximo Descubrimiento en casa, titulado “La naturaleza entre nosotros: las plantas,” donde observaremos las hojas y otro follaje verde.

¿Te gustaría descargar esta actividad? Haz clic aquí para obtener un archivo PDF.

Para encontrar actividades, ideas y mucho más descubrimiento en casa, ¡síguenos!

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Daily Discovery: Looking for Life – Ice Orbs

Posted on by Kristin Rush in Ages 6-8, Ages 9-12, Daily Discovery, Discovery at Home, Earth & Space Science, Experiments

Post written by Angela Kettle, School Programs Coordinator. Adapted from the National Informal STEM Educator’s Network (NISE Net) under a Creative Commons Attribution Non- Commercial Share Alike 3.0 United States (CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 US).

Daily Discovery: Looking for Life – Ice Orbs

Ocean worlds may be the most likely places to discover life beyond Earth. To study distant ocean worlds, scientists make observations using a variety of tools and then compare the data to geological processes on Earth. Sometimes scientists can use telescopes based on Earth to observe these far-off places, and sometimes they gather data using spacecraft with special instruments. Explore your own ice orb using tools in the activity below!

Supplies:

To make ice orbs (see Preparation instructions below):

  • 1 party balloon
  • Small funnel
  • Very small items like confetti, chia seeds, crushed cereal, etc. (use what you have!)
  • Liquid watercolor or food coloring (optional)

To complete activity:

  •  Ice orbs (prepared in advance—see instructions below)
  • Tray, plate, or other surface
  • Towel
  • Magnifying lens (optional)
  • Flashlight (optional)
  • Toothpicks (optional)
  • Paper clips (optional)

Ice Orb Preparation:

Note: This activity is most fun when you have one person prepare the orb, and another person explore it! All steps listed below can be adjusted based on the materials you have at home. The important thing is that you place small items in the orb, fill it with the appropriate amount of water, and leave it to freeze.

  1. Add 2 to 4 drops of liquid watercolor or food coloring to the inside of each balloon.
  2. Use the small funnel to add a tiny pinch (about ¼ teaspoon) of chia seeds, crushed cereal, confetti, and other very small items you’ve collected. Less is more! Do not add too much.
  3. Place the neck of the balloon over a faucet and hold it tightly. Slowly turn on the tap and fill the balloon with water, until it is about 6 to 8 inches in diameter. Be sure you add enough water to get a round shape rather than an elongated (egg) shape. Pinch the neck of the balloon closed and carefully remove it from the faucet.
  4. Release any remaining air from the neck of your balloon or the confetti won’t be encased in ice. Tie off the balloon.
  5. Place the balloon in a freezer, leaving them for two days or until frozen. Tip: You can rest the filled balloon in a small round-bottomed bowl to help them hold a more spherical shape while it freezes. To get the roundest shape, freeze the balloons knot-side down.
  6. Just before you start the activity, cut the neck of the balloons and peel the balloons off the ice orbs.

Instructions:

  1. Look closely at the ball of ice. What do you see on the outside and the inside? Compare what you see to the images of icy moons (Europa and Enceladus) below.
  2. Choose an object hidden under the surface of the ice below. What do you observe? Try using tools like your flashlight, magnifying glass, and toothpicks to get more information!
  3. Can you tell what the hidden object is made of? Is it alive? How could you learn more about the object or the ice?
  4. Explore other ocean worlds here.

Ocean Worlds Beneath

Scientists think that ocean worlds have icy, frozen exteriors and warmer, liquid interiors. Examples of ocean worlds in our solar system include Jupiter’s moons Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto, and Saturn’s moons Enceladus and Titan. The ice orbs you investigated in this activity are different from these ocean worlds, because they’re frozen all the way through.

Astrobiologists are searching ocean worlds for evidence of life. Because water is essential to life on Earth, some scientists think that ocean worlds are the most likely places to find living things in other parts of the universe. NASA missions such as Juno and Cassini are contributing data to astrobiology research. In the future, NASA researchers hope to send scientific missions to these cold and alien worlds to gather more data. Future missions might take better images, analyze the chemical and mineral compositions of the oceans, and probe the surfaces and interiors of these planetary bodies.

Questions to Ponder:

  • On the recent Juno mission to Jupiter, scientists made the decision to deorbit—or crash—the spacecraft into Jupiter to avoid contaminating Jupiter’s moons with microbes from Earth. Was this the right thing to do?
  • What tools should we use to study life on other worlds if we find it? Should we bring samples back to Earth and risk endangering species native to our own planet?

Credits:

Funding: This material is based upon work supported by NASA under cooperative agreement award number NNX16AC67A. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the National Aeronautics and Space
Administration (NASA).

Owning institution: The Science Museum of Minnesota

Permissions: Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial Share Alike 3.0 United States (CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 US).

Image credit: NASA

Want to download these directions? Click here for a handy PDF!

Follow along with our Daily Discovery! Click here for all activities that you can do at home.

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Daily Discovery: Water Week – Clean It Up!/ Descubrimiento en casa: Semana del agua- ¡Fíltrala!

Posted on by Kristin Rush in Any Age, Daily Discovery, Descubrimiento en casa, Discovery at Home, Español, Experiments, Life Science, Poudre River Fest Daily Discovery

Post written by Heidi Fuhrman, Discovery Camp Coordinator.

Daily Discovery: Water Week – Clean It Up!

Water is important to life on Earth but how can we make it safe to use and can we re-use it? Learn about the importance of water and take on a challenge to create your own filtration system and clean up some polluted water!

Supplies:

  • Water
  • Plastic bottle, milk jug, or other clear container
  • Assortment of “filtration” materials:
    • Napkins
    • Paper towels
    • Coffee filters
    • Cotton balls
    • Clay
    • Sand
    • Gravel/small pebbles
  • Assortment of “pollution” materials:
    • Dirt
    • Small objects like paperclips
    • Food scraps like peels
    • Pieces of leaves/grass
    • Food coloring
    • Oil
    • Salt/other spices
  • Tape or rubber bands
  • Scissors

Importance of Water

How have you used water today? Stop and think about it! Make a list!

You probably thought of things like drinking or cooking or taking a shower, but did you think about things like brushing your teeth? Going swimming? Watering your yard? Giving your pets a drink? Flushing the toilet? Water is very important to our life on earth, we need it to survive! In fact, you can survive several weeks without food but only a few days without water! And we use a LOT of water each day. The average American uses 80-100 gallons of water each day. . .that’s 2-3 bathtubs full for just one person! How many people live in your house? How many bathtubs full of water are you using each day?

We use a lot of water each day, but there isn’t a lot of usable water in the world. Even though our planet is covered with water (over 70% of Earth is water!) only about 3% of the water on Earth is not salt water. . . and only about 1% of that 3% freshwater is usable (not locked up in glaciers, ice, the soil, or too polluted)! We have just a tiny amount of water to share with this whole globe, and as population and pollution increase that amount gets smaller and smaller! In dry or arid places (like here in Colorado and other parts of the American West) water is even more valuable!

Since water is so valuable it’s important to use every last drop! But water that flows in our rivers and streams isn’t usable for drinking, cooking, and cleaning right away. . .it contains pollutants and microorganisms that are harmful to humans. Is there a way to clean this water so it is safe to drink and use? We also waste a lot of
water down our sinks, drains, and toilets. . . is there a way to clean and re-use this water too?

There sure is a way to clean and re-use our water! Filtration is one of the best ways to start cleaning up our water so it’s safe to use. Filtration is the process of removing particles and pollutants from a liquid, and it’s how we start cleaning up our water (we also use safe chemicals and other to kill microorganisms an make the water potable which means “safe to drink”). While anyone can build a simple filtration system, Civil Engineers1 help design and build water treatment plants for our cities to help filter our water and make it safe for us to use. Today in our engineering challenge see if you can come up with a filtration system that can filter your polluted water! (Check out the worksheet at the end to help guide you!)

Note: The filtration methods used in this activity are a simple demonstration and the water should not be considered safe for drinking.

Engineering Challenge: Design A Water Filtration System!

Start by thinking about some sources of water pollution. If you turned on your faucet and no water came out, where would you find water near your house to use? What do those places look like? What could be polluting that water? Would you be okay drinking it?

Instructions:

  1. Thinking about the things that can pollute our water, mix up some polluted water of your own! Fill a jar or cup with some water and add pollutants! You could use bits of grass and leaves, dirt, oil, spices, small objects like paperclips, and food coloring. Ew! Gross!
  2. Gather your filtration supplies. You can use a variety of items, but we suggest a combination of napkins, coffee filters, paper towels, cotton balls, clay, sand, and gravel.
  3. Create your filtration system base. Cut the top off a plastic bottle, jug, or carton several inches below the top. A 2 liter soda bottle works best, but you can use a water bottle, juice jug, or even the top of a milk jug or carton. Place the top of your bottle inside the bottom or suspend over a pitcher or jar. Secure the two together with tape.
  4. Now we’re ready to start thinking like an Engineer and designing our filtration system! We’re going to use the Engineering Design Process to help us reach a solution today! (see steps on left). First, let’s think about what is the problem that we’re trying to solve? (Our water is polluted, and we need it clean!) Look at that polluted water you made:
    • What types of pollutants do we need to filter out?
    • Which of the filtration materials we have could help filter them out?
    • What are some possible solutions to our problem? How could you design your filtration system?
    Next, draw your idea for your design.
  5. Build your filtration system! Using the materials create layers in the top half of your filtration system base. At the end you’ll be pouring your polluted water into the top and watching it go through your filters to drip into the bottom. You want the water in the end to be as clean as possible! Think about:
    • Which materials can filter which size pollutants?
    • How can you order the layers to work the best?
    • Predict which layer will filter which pollutants.
  6. Once you’re done designing it’s time to test your filtration systems! Give your polluted water a mix and then pour it in the top! Watch the water move through your filtration
    system. Observe what the water looks like at the end.
    • Does the water look cleaner?
    • Are there any pollutants you weren’t able to filter out?
    • Are there pollutants you can’t see but are probably still there (e.g. oil)?
    • How could you remove the pollutants that you can’t see or couldn’t filter?
    • How would you feel about drinking this water? Do you think you’d get sick? What about microscopic pollutants and organisms?
    NOTE: The filtration methods used in this activity are simple demonstration and the water should not be considered safe for drinking.
  7. Take apart your filter and look at each of the different layers. Can you tell what each material filtered out? Did any of the materials surprise you by doing a better (or worse) job than you expected?

Level Up:

  1. Real engineers learn from their tests and try again to create an even better system! Empty the bottle, throw out your old filter materials, wipe out the bottle and try again! See if you can make the water even cleaner!
  2. Challenge someone! Make a big batch of polluted water and see who can filter it best!

Want to download these directions? Click here for a handy PDF!

Follow along with our Daily Discovery! Click here for all activities that you can do at home.

 

Traducido por Károl de Rueda y Laura Vilaret-Tuma.

Descubrimiento en casa: Semana del agua – ¡Fíltrala!

El agua es básica para sostener la vida, pero ¿cómo podemos hacerla más segura para nuestro uso? ¿Es posible reutilizarla? Aprende más sobre su importancia y además ¡crea tu propio prototipo de un sistema de filtración para purificar agua contaminada!

Artículos necesarios:

  • Un vaso con agua
  • Botella, galón de leche o cualquier otro recipiente transparente de plástico
  • Cinta adhesiva o bandas elásticas (ligas)
  • Tijeras
  • Variedad de materiales para filtrar el agua:
    • Servilletas
    • Toallas de papel
    • Filtros para café
    • Bolitas de algodón
    • Arcilla/barro
    • Arena
    • Grava o piedritas
  • Variedad de materiales para “contaminar el agua”:
    •  Tierra
    • Objetos pequeños como clips para papeles
    •  Desechos de comida como cáscaras
    • Hojas o hierba
    • Colorante vegetal
    • Aceite
    • Sal/otras especias

La importancia del agua

¿En qué formas has usado el agua durante el día de hoy? Haz una lista.

Probablemente escribiste algunas maneras típicas de usarla, como para bañarte o para tomarla. Pero también usamos el agua en maneras menos obvias, como por ejemplo, para lavarte los dientes, al nadar, al regar las plantas, al darles agua a tus mascotas, ¡y hasta descargando el inodoro! Este elemento es muy importante para nuestro planeta, y definitivamente la necesitamos para poder sobrevivir. Es cierto que los humanos podríamos subsistir muchas semanas sin comida, ¡pero solamente unos días sin agua! ¿Y cuánta usamos generalmente? La persona promedio en Estados Unidos usa aproximadamente 80-100 galones de agua ¡en un solo día! Lo que equivale a 2-3 bañeras o tinas llenas de agua por persona. ¿Cuántas personas viven en tu casa? ¿Cuántas bañeras de agua están usando cada día? ¡Vamos a averiguar!

Usamos bastante agua todos los días, pero ¿puedes creer que en el mundo hay muchas fuentes de agua que no se pueden utilizar? Aunque nuestro planeta está cubierto con agua (más del 70% de la Tierra está compuesto de ella) solamente 3% es agua dulce. . . y solo 1% es utilizable (o sea, no es salada, no está en glaciares, congelada, en la tierra, o contaminada), así que tenemos un suministro finito de agua para compartir con el globo entero. Mientras la población y la polución ascienden, la cantidad de agua disminuye. En lugares secos o áridos (como aquí en Colorado) ¡el agua es todavía más valiosa!

Como el agua es un recurso tan precioso, es importante aprovecharla bien. Cuando este elemento fluye en ríos y arroyos no se puede usar inmediatamente para tomar, cocinar o limpiar, porque contiene contaminantes y microbios que son dañinos para los humanos. ¿Conoces alguna manera de purificarla y hacerla segura para su consumo? Además, también gastamos mucha agua potable a través del fregadero, en los drenajes y en el inodoro. . . ¿Habrá alguna manera para purificar y reutilizar esta agua?

¡Afortunadamente, la respuesta es sí! La filtración es una de las mejores maneras para limpiar nuestra agua y hacerla segura para su uso, ya que es el proceso utilizado para remover partículas y contaminantes de un líquido, siendo este el paso básico para empezar a purificar el agua (también se usan químicos seguros para eliminar microorganismos, lo que hace que el agua sea potable, o segura para consumir.)

Mientras que cualquier persona puede construir un sistema de filtración básica, los ingenieros civiles diseñan y construyen plantas purificadoras de agua para nuestras ciudades.

El reto de esta actividad incluye el que te conviertas en un ingeniero al diseñar tu propio prototipo de sistema de filtración para purificar el agua de tu casa. (Puedes utilizar la guía de abajo para facilitar esta actividad).

Aviso: Los métodos de filtración usados en esta actividad son únicamente para propósitos de demonstración y el agua resultante no debería ser considerada segura para consumir.

Reto de ingeniería: Diseña un filtro purificador de agua

Inicia pensando en las diferentes maneras en que se contamina el agua. Si no hubiera agua en tu casa, ¿a dónde irías para encontrarla? ¿Cómo sería ese lugar? ¿Aceptarías tomarla?

Instrucciones:

  1. Vamos a hacer nuestra propia “agua contaminada.” A tu vaso con agua, agrégale unos “contaminantes.” Puedes usar hierba, hojas, tierra, aceite, especias, objetos pequeños, colorante para alimentos, etc. ¡Ahora sí quedó muy sucia!
  2. Reúne los artículos que vas a usar para filtrar tu agua contaminada. Puedes utilizar una variedad de cosas, pero sugerimos una combinación de servilletas, filtros para café, toallas de papel, bolitas de algodón, arcilla, arena, o piedritas.
  3. Crea la base para tu sistema de filtración. Usando las tijeras, corta 10-15 centímetros de la parte superior de algún recipiente transparente. Una botella de 2 litros sirve mejor, pero también podrías usar cualquier otra o hasta un galón de leche. Pon la parte cortada de tu botella bocabajo dentro de la otra parte, y pégalas con cinta adhesiva o únelas con una liga.
  4. ¡Estamos listos para pensar como un ingeniero y diseñar nuestro propio sistema de filtración! Vamos a usar el proceso del diseño de ingeniería (el gráfico a tu izquierda) para
    llegar a una solución. ¿Cuál es el problema que estamos tratando de resolver? El que nuestra agua está contaminada y necesitamos purificarla. Pensando en el agua contaminada que creaste, pregúntate lo siguiente:
    • ¿Cuáles contaminantes tenemos que filtrar?
    • ¿Cuáles de los materiales de filtración que tienes disponibles crees que puedan ser más eficientes para purificar el agua?
    • ¿Cuáles son algunas soluciones posibles, y cómo podrías diseñar tu sistema para mejor resolver el problema?
    Después, dibuja tu diseño.
  5. Construye tu propio prototipo de sistema de filtración. Pon los materiales (descritos en el paso #2) en forma de capas dentro de la base. Luego vierte el agua por encima de ellas y observa cómo se van filtrando los contaminantes. ¡El agua filtrada debe de aparecer lo más clara posible!
    • ¿Qué materiales pueden filtrar eficientemente contaminantes según su tamaño?
    • ¿En qué orden podrías reorganizar los materiales para que filtren mejor?
    • Predice las capas que podrían filtrar a ciertos contaminantes.
  6. Después de fabricar tu filtro purificador, ¡es hora de ponerlo a prueba! Mezcla tu agua contaminada otra vez para incorporar todos los ingredientes y viértela por encima de tu sistema. Observa al agua pasando a través de las capas y también al agua que sale al fondo.
    • ¿El agua filtrada parece más limpia?
    • ¿Hay algún contaminante que no se pudo filtrar?
    • ¿Crees que todavía hay contaminantes en el agua filtrada que no se pueden ver a simple vista, como por ejemplo, el aceite?
    • ¿Cómo podrías eliminar los contaminantes que todavía existen o no se ven en el agua filtrada?
    • ¿Cómo te sentirías si tuvieras que tomar esta agua? ¿Crees que te enfermarías?
    ¿Crees que quedan contaminantes y microbios microscópicos?
    Aviso: Recuerda que los métodos de filtración usados en esta actividad son únicamente para propósitos de demonstración y el agua resultante no debería ser considerada segura para consumir.
  7. Empieza a desarmar tu filtro y observa cada una de las capas. ¿Puedes decir cuál de ellas filtró cada material? ¿Cuál funcionó mejor (o peor) de lo que esperabas?

Al siguiente nivel:

  1. ¿Sabías que los ingenieros verdaderamente utilizan este tipo de pruebas mientras continúan investigando para mejorar los sistemas que están diseñando? Ahora, vacía tus recipientes, límpialos bien, ¡y prueba otra vez! ¿Puedes lograr que el agua sea aún más limpia?
  2. ¡Convierte este experimento en un juego divertido y educativo para todos! Reta a tus familiares para averiguar quién puede crear el prototipo de filtración más eficiente. Y ahora que ya sabes más sobre el agua, ¡a seguirla cuidado!

¿Te gustaría descargar esta actividad? Haz clic aquí para obtener un archivo PDF.

Para encontrar actividades, ideas y mucho más descubrimiento en casa, ¡síguenos!

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Daily Discovery: Hydro Power!

Posted on by Kristin Rush in Ages 6-8, Ages 9-12, Daily Discovery, Discovery at Home, Experiments, Physical Science, Poudre River Fest Daily Discovery

Post written by Hannah Curtis, Education Assistant.

Daily Discovery: Hydro Power!

From waterwheel mills, paddle wheel boats, to modern day hydroelectricity, our water resources have assisted humankind in meaningful ways. Come back in time to take a peek at historical Fort Collins and see how the Poudre River influenced the local flour mill. Then, check out how engineers have utilized the power of water to create electricity, and discover more by creating your own paddle boat!

Hydro Power Explained

Hydro power, or hydroelectricity, is the conversion of energy from flowing water to electricity. Similar to wind turbines, hydropower plants use the force of flowing water to turn propellers in a turbine to spin a generator, which creates electricity. Hydropower plants are often large dams, and utilize natural bodies of water like rivers or lakes, like the Crystal Dam in Gunnison, CO. They can also be part of man-made reservoirs or storage systems. Almost all U.S. States generate electricity via hydropower. Colorado hydroelectric plants produce 1,000-5,000 billion kilowatt-hours! Discover more here!

Before the invention of hydroelectricity, hydropower was simply the ability to harness the power of flowing water to move machinery. Ranch-Way Feeds, the livestock feed manufacturing company in Fort Collins, began as the Lindell flour mill built in 1868, built by “Auntie” Stone and Henry Peterson. The mill sits on the bank of the Cache la Poudre River, a perfect spot to draw water from the river to power the mill.

A water wheel was a popular tool used in flour and lumber mills as well as mining. There are three types of waterwheels, and they depend on the location of the river compared to the mill and how fast the water is moving.

Elastic Band Paddle Boat!

It may not be a hydroelectric powered boat, but you can still utilize water resources for innovation, transportation and play-time. This DIY boat reflects the design and function of a water wheel, but real paddleboats are coupled with steam engines to turn the paddle wheel to propel the boat forward.

Supplies:

  • Rubber Band(s)
  • Bathtub, sink, pool or large bucket
  • Water
  • Paper
  • Pencil

Additional Supplies:

These are suggestions, feel free to use what you have at your home

  • Popsicle sticks
  • Glue
  • Tape
  • Styrofoam
  • Plastic utensils
  • Plastic bottles
  • Aluminum cans
  • Scissors
  • Straws
  • Chopsticks

Instructions:

Brainstorm & Evaluate:

Take some time to think up, design, and sketch the basic shape and components of your boat. Think of the materials you have in your home that you could use and re-purpose. How large is your body of water, will your boat fit?

Prototype Development:

Gather your materials, and begin building. Where is the best spot to add your paddle wheel? Will all your materials float?

Testing:

Wind up your rubber band, place the boat in the water and observe what happens.

Evaluate:

Was your boat a success, or does it need a few touch ups? Continue to develop and test until your boat meets all your requirements.

Bonus:

What alterations can you make to your boat to make it move faster and more efficiently without weighing it down?

Remember, water is a valuable resource. Once finished, consider reusing your body of water to give your dog a bath, to water your plants, or simply wash your hands

Want to download these directions? Click here for a handy PDF!

Follow along with our Daily Discovery! Click here for all activities that you can do at home.

Educational opportunities like this are supported in part by Fort Fund.

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Daily Discovery: Storytime in the Home – What’s This Tail Saying? Peacock Craft

Posted on by Kristin Rush in Ages 3-5, Crafts, Daily Discovery, Discovery at Home, Life Science

Post written by Lea Mikkelsen, Early Childhood Coordinator.

Daily Discovery: Storytime in the Home – What’s This Tail Saying? Peacock Craft

Follow along with FCMoD’s live stream Storytime in the Home: What’s this Tail Saying? Then create your very own beautiful peacock with a stunning tail of feathers.

Supplies:

  • 2 sheets of green construction paper
  • 1 sheet of blue construction paper
  • 1 small triangle of orange construction paper
  • Glue (glue stick and craft glue will be helpful)
  • Tape
  • Googly eyes or some black craft paper to cut out eyes
  • A small cardboard tube
  • Crayons
  • Optional: pencil, 1 blue pipe cleaner.

Instructions:

  1. Place all your supplies on a clear surface with plenty of room to create.
  2. Glue together the short ends of the two sheets of green construction paper making a longer piece of green paper and then decorate with crayons! Peacocks generally have green, blue, orange, teal, and yellow in their feathers. But you can be creative!
  3. Fold the entire long green paper accordion style (along the short end). Then tape the bottom together creating a point. It should look like a fan when you are done.
  4. Measure the size of the paper towel tube on the blue paper making sure the paper will wrap all the way around it. Use a pencil to trace it if that helps you. Then add a little bump around the middle top of the tube to make your peacocks head and cut the whole thing out.
  5. Wrap the tube in the blue paper and glue it down.
  6. Glue the small orange triangle beak and eyes onto your peacock’s head.
  7. Cut the optional pipe cleaner head feathers, curl them to create a feather shape, and then tape them to the inside of the cardboard tube.
  8. Glue the tube with the head facing out to the center of your accordion folded feathers.

BONUS: Here are some activities including a mix & match that relate to What’s This Tail Saying? Here are some coloring pages!

Want to download these directions? Click here for a handy PDF!

Follow along with our Daily Discovery! Click here for all activities that you can do at home.

Educational opportunities like this are supported in part by Buell Foundation. Their support helps make access to early childhood education at FCMoD possible for everyone in our community.

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Daily Discovery: Ghost Signs of Fort Collins!

Posted on by Kristin Rush in Ages 6-8, Ages 9-12, Archive & Collections, Crafts, Daily Discovery, Discovery at Home, Local History, Social Studies, Visual Arts

Post written by Lesley Struc, Curator of the Archive.

Daily Discovery: Ghost Signs of Fort Collins!

A “ghost sign” sounds spooky, but it’s not! It is an old, painted sign on the outside of a building that once advertised things like grocery stores, hotels, and food and drink. They are called “ghosts” because they reflect life in the past; sometimes they are easier to see when the lighting is just right on brick buildings, or when rain brings out their faded colors.

Old Town in Fort Collins features many of these magical old ghost signs. Take a virtual tour of local ghost signs by visiting here!

Then, step into the past by making your own historically inspired ghost sign!

Supplies:

  • Small sponge rectangle (we used the edge of a “magic eraser” but any sponge will work)
  • White paper that takes paint well
  • Red paint (we used washable finger paint)
  • Paper plate for holding paint
  • Pencil and Crayons (bright, contrasting colors work best)
  • Glue stick
  • Newspaper or other scrap paper to protect your work surface
  • Construction paper that is larger than your white paper for mounting the final picture

Instructions:

  1. Lay out a few pieces of scrap paper beneath your white paper to protect your work surface from paint.
  2. Cut the edge of a sponge into a small rectangle (about 1” x 2”) for dipping into the red paint.
  3. Pour some red paint onto the paper plate and dip the sponge, saturating it in the paint.
  4. Start stamping the paper in a brick pattern as shown below.
  5. Let the paint dry completely. The paper may wrinkle a bit while drying, and that is okay!
  6. Sketch out your ghost sign on the bricks lightly in pencil first, then go over your design in crayon. Brighter, contrasting colors show up best on the bricks. Your designs can be inspired by actual signs in Fort Collins, like the Nedley Hotel sign in this example, or you can come up with your own idea, product, or business! (Fun fact: the Nedley Hotel ghost sign can be seen at 130 S. College in Ft. Collins and was painted about 110 years ago! It also had a light above it so it could be seen at night.)
  7. Using a glue stick, adhere your finished sign on a larger piece of construction paper to flatten and frame your art.

Want to download these directions? Click here for a handy PDF!

Follow along with our Daily Discovery! Click here for all activities that you can do at home.

Educational opportunities like this are supported in part by Fort Fund.

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Daily Discovery: Life Cycle of a Star Mobile/Descubrimiento en casa: Móvil del ciclo vital de una estrella

Posted on by Kristin Rush in Ages 6-8, Ages 9-12, Crafts, Daily Discovery, Descubrimiento en casa, Discovery at Home, Earth & Space Science, Español

Post written by Sierra Tamkun, Learning Experiences Manager.

Daily Discovery: Life Cycle of a Star Mobile

One star, two star, red star, white dwarf star! Throughout it’s billion-year life, a low-density star, just like our Sun, goes through many changes. Learn about the different stages in a star’s life cycle, and make your own star mobile!

The Life of a Star

A star’s life cycle is determined by how big it is, or how much mass it has! The greater the mass of the star, the shorter its life. Depending on the amount of matter in the nebula where the star is born, it will either be a high-mass star, or a low-mass star, like our Sun. We’ll use this life cycle for our mobile.

But how are stars formed, anyway? As clouds of gas and dust move around in a nebula, hydrogen gas is pulled together by gravity and begins to spin faster and faster, heating up to become a protostar. When hot enough (about 15,000,000 degrees Fahrenheit!), a reaction called nuclear fusion occurs at the star’s core, pulling in more gas and dust and causing the star to stabilize and glow bright! It will continue shining in this phase as a main sequence star for millions to billions of years. Our closest star, the Sun, is currently at this stage.

Over time, hydrogen at the star’s core is converted to helium through nuclear fusion. Once the hydrogen runs out, the star isn’t able to generate enough heat to maintain its size. The core contracts, while the outer shell expands and cools, glowing red. This is known as the red giant phase. As the core continues to cool, the helium begins to fuse into carbon. Once all the helium is gone, the core collapses, and the outer layer is expelled into gases and dust, creating a planetary nebula! The collapsed core remains as a white dwarf, slowly cooling to become a black dwarf.

A high-mass star undergoes a supernova explosion after its red giant phase. If the explosion is small, it become a neutron star. But if the explosion is large, the core of the star is swallowed by its own gravity, becoming a black hole!

Supplies:

  • Paper Plate
  • Colorful beads, pom-poms, sequins, colored paper, cotton balls, pillow stuffing, etc.
  • Paints, markers, or crayons
  • Scissors
  • Glue
  • String

Instructions:

  1. Decorate your paper plate like outer space! This will be the backdrop for your star’s life cycle.
  2. Carefully use the scissors to cut your paper plate into a spiral. Ask an adult to help you if needed! Leave a small circle at the center of your spiraled plate.
  3. At the top of your spiral, attach your sting so you can hang your mobile when you’re done! You can use glue or tape, or poke a hole through the plate and tie your string to attached it.
  4. Select different objects to represent each stage in the life of your star. Pick any materials you like, or follow these suggestions:
    a. Star-forming nebula: cotton balls or pillow stuffing
    b. Protostar: small light-colored bead or sequin
    c. Main Sequence Star (like our Sun): yellow bead or pom-pom
    d. Red Giant: large red pom-pom or red paper circle
    e. Planetary Nebula: small bead and cotton balls or pillow stuffing
    f. White Dwarf: white bead or pom-pom
    g. Black Dwarf: small black bead or pom-pom
  5. Start by gluing your nebula materials at the very top of your spiral plate, around the string. Next, glue your black dwarf to the end. Evenly space out the rest of your representative objects and glue them to your spiral plate in the appropriate order.
  6. Use the string to hang up your mobile! As it spins, follow along with the different life stages of a star just like our very own Sun!

Want to download these directions? Click here for a handy PDF!

Follow along with our Daily Discovery! Click here for all activities that you can do at home.

 

Traducido por Károl de Rueda y Laura Vilaret-Tuma.

Descubrimiento en casa: Móvil del ciclo vital de una estrella

Durante los billones de años que podría durar su existencia, una estrella de densidad baja (al igual que nuestro Sol), experimenta muchos cambios. Aprende más sobre las diferentes etapas de la existencia de una estrella, y crea tu propio móvil.

El ciclo de vida de una estrella

El ciclo de vida de una estrella se determina por su tamaño o por su masa. Mientras más contenido tenga de esta, más corta resulta su vida. La cantidad de sustancia retenida por una nebulosa determina si va a nacer una estrella de masa alta o baja, como el Sol. Vamos a representar estas etapas de vida en nuestro móvil.

Pero, ¿y cómo se forman las estrellas? Mientras nubes de gas y polvo trastean en una nebulosa, hidrógeno molecular empieza a unirse por la fuerza de la gravedad. Girando más rápido, el hidrógeno se calienta y se vuelve una protoestrella. Cuando está suficientemente caliente, (¡8,333,315 grados Celsius, o 15,000,000 grados Fahrenheit!), comienza una reacción llamada fusión nuclear en el centro, atrayendo más gas y  polvo. En un corto tiempo, la estrella se estabilizará y emitirá un resplandor brillante. Esta continuará a emitir su luz por millones o hasta por billones de años. La estrella más cerca de la Tierra, el Sol, está actualmente viviendo esta etapa.

Cuando pasa el tiempo, el hidrógeno presente en el centro de la estrella se convertirá en helio a través de la fusión nuclear. Cuando el hidrógeno se haya agotado, la estrella no tendrá la capacidad de conservar la temperatura que necesita para mantener su tamaño. El centro de la estrella se contractará mientras que su capa exterior se expandirá y enfriará, brillando en un color rojo. Esta etapa de su vida se llama “la gigante roja.” Mientras se enfría el centro de la estrella, el helio se convierte en carbón. Cuando se extingue el helio, el centro se derrumba y su capa exterior expulsa gases y polvo, formando una nebulosa. El centro de la estrella sigue desprendiendo capas y enfriándose, existiendo como una “enana blanca.” Eventualmente se convertirá en una “enana negra.”

Una estrella de masa alta experimenta una explosión supernova después de ser una gigante roja. Si la explosión es pequeña, la estrella colapsa a un tamaño compacto, una “estrella neutrónica.” Si la explosión es grande, la gravedad puede comerse el centro de la estrella y convertirse en un “agujero negro.” Después de esta información tan interesante, ¿estamos listos para nuestra actividad?

Artículos necesarios:

  • Plato desechable de papel
  • Abalorios, cuentas o chaquiras, pompones, lentejuelas, papel de varios colores, bolas de algodón, relleno de almohada, etc.
  • Pinturas, marcadores y lápices de colores
  • Tijeras
  • Pegamento
  • Cordel/cuerda/hilo

Instrucciones:

  1. Decora tu plato de papel como el espacio. Este será el telón de fondo para el ciclo de vida de tu estrella.
  2. Con cuidado, usa las tijeras para cortar tu plato de papel como un espiral. Si es necesario, pídele ayuda a un adulto, dejando un centro redondo y bien pronunciado.
  3. Usa pegamento, cinta adhesiva, o haz un agujero en el centro del plato para atar un cordel.
  4. Selecciona varios objetos para representar las diferentes etapas de la vida de tu estrella. Escoge los materiales que prefieres o que tengas disponibles. Si quieres, sigue estas sugerencias:
    a. Nebulosa de vivero estelar: bolas de algodón o relleno de almohada
    b. Protoestrella: chaquira o lentejuela pequeña y de color claro
    c. Estrella de secuencia principal (como el Sol): abalorio o pompón amarillo
    d. La gigante roja: pompón grande o recorte de círculo de color rojo
    e. Nebulosa planetaria: bola de algodón, abalorio pequeño, o relleno de almohada
    f. Enana blanca: abalorio o pompón blanco
    g. Enana negra: abalorio o pompón negro pequeño
    Pega los materiales a tu espiral empezando de arriba hacia abajo y en orden. Asegúrate que estén uniformes y bien espaciados.
  5. Cuando termines de armar tu móvil, cuélgalo. Mientras gira, ¡observa las diferentes etapas de la vida de una estrella!

¿Te gustaría descargar esta actividad? Haz clic aquí para obtener un archivo PDF.

Para encontrar actividades, ideas y mucho más descubrimiento en casa, ¡síguenos!

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Daily Discovery: “If You Love Honey” Bee Headband Craft

Posted on by Kristin Rush in Ages 3-5, Animal Encounters, Crafts, Daily Discovery, Discovery at Home, Life Science

Post written by Lea Mikkelsen, Early Childhood Coordinator.

Daily Discovery: Storytime in the Home – If You Love Honey  Bee Headband Craft

Follow along with FCMoD’s live stream Storytime in the Home: If You Love Honey: Nature’s Connections. Then gather all your supplies to create this adorable honeybee headband. Buzz Buzz!

Supplies:

  • Yellow and Black craft paper
  • Pipe cleaners
  • Glue
  • Tape
  • Scissors
  • Yarn
  • Hole punch

Instructions:

  1. Place all your supplies on a clear surface with plenty of room to create.
  2. Cut a long strip of yellow craft paper.
  3. Cut a second strip of black craft paper and cut that into small bee stripes.
  4. Glue the black bee stripes to the yellow strip of craft paper leaving some yellow bits in between.
  5. Punch a hole in the ends of the strip and thread the yarn through to use as a tie.
  6. Curl one end of each pipe cleaner to make a small ball.
  7. Tape the pipe cleaners to the inside of the headband where you want each antenna to go.
  8. Tie your headband on and do a honeybee dance! BUZZZZZzzzz!

Want to download these directions? Click here for a handy PDF!

Follow along with our Daily Discovery! Click here for all activities that you can do at home.

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Daily Discovery: Bending Light and Eyesight

Posted on by Kristin Rush in Ages 6-8, Ages 9-12, Daily Discovery, Discovery at Home, Experiments, Physical Science

Post written by Angela Kettle, School Programs Coordinator.

Daily Discovery: Bending Light and Eyesight

Have you ever noticed that your legs look out of place when you dangle them in the pool, or that the straw in a glass of water looks bent? This is called refraction. Refraction occurs when light bends as it passes from one medium to another – for example, from the front of a glass, to the water inside, to the back of a glass. Experiment with refraction for yourself in the activity below!

Supplies:

  • Paper
  • Pencil
  • Crayons, colored pencils, or markers (optional)
  • 2+ different kinds of drinking glasses, filled with water – make sure the glasses are transparent
  • Your Observation Journal (find out how to make one here), or use another sheet of paper to record your findings

Instructions:

Part 1

  1. Draw an arrow on a sheet of paper. Note which way the arrow is facing (right, left, up, or down).
  2. Fill up a glass of water.
  3. Put your glass of water down, and put yourself at eye level with the water in the glass. Hold your drawing at arm’s length, so that you can see it through the glass. What do you notice about the way your drawing looks now? What about if you look at the image through the glass from a different angle?
  4. Repeat the experiment, this time with a different kind of glass. Does the image stay the same as the last glass, or does it change?
  5. Write or draw your findings in your Observation Journal.

Part 2

  1. Draw something new – whatever you like! Make sure that whatever you draw has certain parts facing one way or another (for example, you could draw a face with the eyes looking left, or a cat with its tail on the right side of the paper and its head on the left side).
  2. Look at your drawing through your glass of water, like you did with the arrows. What do you notice?
  3. Play around with your drawing and your glass. Try looking at the image from lots of different angles, through as many different kinds of drinking glasses as you can. How many different images can you create from your original image, just by experimenting with refraction?
  4. Record your findings in your Observation Journal. Share what you find by tagging us on social media and using #DailyDiscovery.

From Drinking Glasses to Eyeglasses

Refraction might seem like a fun magic trick, but did you know that refraction is what makes it possible for humans to see? Light is refracted as it passes through the cornea and the lens of the eye. This allows the light to come into focus on the retina, where it is converted into a message that the brain can understand.

Sometimes, though, refraction can go wrong, causing what’s called nearsightedness or farsightedness. When people are nearsighted, it means they can see things that are close to them, but not far away. Usually, this is caused by the eye being too long, causing light to focus in front of the retina. When people are farsighted, it means they can see things that are far away, but not things that are close. Usually, this is caused by the eye being too short, causing light to focus behind the retina. Both nearsightedness and farsightedness can also be caused by problems with the shape of the eye’s lens.

Thankfully, errors in refraction can be corrected with eyeglasses. First, an eye doctor (an optometrist) tests a patient’s vision to figure out her prescription (a way of measuring a person’s vision). From there, an engineer uses this prescription to make unique lenses. This lens is engineered to refract light so that it focuses in just the right spot on the retina, allowing the patient to see clearly.

Eyeglasses through the Ages

Eyeglasses have undergone many changes as engineers have figured out more efficient ways to craft them… and as fashion has changed, too! Here are a few historical photos from our Archive and a piece from our Collection at the museum! You can learn more about eyeglasses and fashion from our recent blog post, parts of which are adapted below:

The museum’s artifact collections offer a retrospective look (which is 20/20, of course) at the history of innovation in eyewear. Pince-nez spectacles, which had no earpieces and stayed in place with a nose clip were quite popular early in the 20th century but fell out of fashion as they became associated with older generations.

Want to download these directions? Click here for a handy PDF!

Follow along with our Daily Discovery! Click here for all activities that you can do at home.

References & Additional Resources

Educational opportunities like this are supported in part by Fort Fund.

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Daily Discovery: Agriculture in Action!

Posted on by Kristin Rush in Ages 6-8, Ages 9-12, Daily Discovery, Discovery at Home, Experiments, Life Science

Post written by Hannah Curtis, Education Assistant.

Daily Discovery: Agriculture in Action!

Agriculture and farming have a long history in Fort Collins and all over the globe. Most of the time we only see the end product, the fruits and vegetables at the grocery store. With this activity, see what happens under the dirt through experimentation with the scientific method!

Follow along through Facebook and Instagram with museum educator Hannah as she demonstrates this experiment in her own home. Happy Farming!

Supplies:

General:

  • Water
  • Indoor space with sunlight
  • Sharpie or marker
  • Paper and pencil to record daily observations
  • Potting soil and planter (optional)

Growing Produce from seeds:

  • Seeds (dried beans, flower seeds, other fruit or vegetable seeds)
  • Baking tray or cutting board
  • Paper towels
  • Spray bottle (optional)
  • Ziploc bags

Re-Growing Produce from Kitchen Scraps:

  • Kitchen scraps (celery base, lettuce heart, green onion base, yellow onion top)
  • Small bowls or containers
  • Sharp kitchen knife and adult supervision

Instructions:

For ages 3-5:

  1. Review what plants and flowers need to grow and walk through the stages of plant growth.
  2. The Ziploc bag method can be easily monitored and observed, but we recommend setting up a method together that works best for your household. See procedures below.
  3. Ask your young scientist what they think will happen to the produce or seeds? Talk about different plants they have seen and discuss how they grow or where their favorite fruits and vegetables come from.
  4. Observe and talk about what is happening to your produce or seeds every day.

For ages 6 and up:

  1. Review what plants and flowers need to grow and walk through the stages of plant growth.
  2. Work through the scientific process before proceeding with the experiment. Decide on an experiment you want to test.
  3. Write down your answers for the scientific process and create your method for observation.
  4. Depending on your growing method, follow the procedures below.
  5. Record your observations every day in an observational chart, farming journal or a photo archive. As your produce grows you can look back on previous days, predict what will happen next and share with family and friends!
  6.  Follow along with Hannah as she tests her experiment in her home.

Want to download these directions? Click here for a handy PDF!

Follow along with our Daily Discovery! Click here for all activities that you can do at home.

Educational opportunities like this are supported in part by Fort Fund.

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