While this book is about beautiful cave crystals, it seems appropriate in December to think about lovely snow crystals instead. Make your own in this fun activity with a few simple supplies!

Reward that good Thanksgiving dinner behavior with this fun science activity that teaches a lesson about friction.

It's a dark December night. Nature is quiet. Bears, rodents, ground squirrels, and many other animals sleep day and night in hibernation. And it’s time for snow (at least in cooler weather, northern hemisphere locations). And snow leads to fun science activities. This month we make “snow” crystals, drawing from an activity in our book from the Fuddlebrook series, In Search of Hidden Treasure. We call it “Herman Tweed’s Crystals.” Check out the activity and video provided.

But before doing so, take a couple of minutes to brush up on your snow trivia.

*The probability that two snow crystals (a single ice crystal) or flakes (a snow crystal or multiple snow crystals stuck together) will be exactly alike in molecular structure and in appearance, is very minute. And to prove otherwise would not be easy. Each winter there are about 1 septillion (1, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000 or a trillion trillion) snow crystals that drop from the sky!

*The beautiful six-sided structure of snowflakes comes from the hexagonal lattice structure of ice. When water freezes, the molecules connect together and always form hexagons.  As more molecules are added, they form branches on each of the six sides.

*Snow is classified as a mineral.

*A man nicknamed Wilson "Snowflake" Bentley photographed 5,000 snowflakes before he died of pneumonia. He literally devoted his entire life to showing us the diversity and beauty of snowflakes (February 9, 1865 – December 23, 1931). He was the first man to capture snow crystals on film. He received international acclaim in the 19^th century for his pioneering work in the field of photomicrography.

* 80% of all the freshwater on Earth is frozen as ice or snow. This accounts for twelve percent of the Earth's surface

*People who are afraid of snow have chionophobia.

*A snow storm becomes a blizzard when winds reach 35 miles per hour and visibility is less than a quarter of a mile. The storm must last at least three hours to be classified as a blizzard.

There you have it. Bundle up and run to the grocery store to grab a box of Borax (for the crystals you are going to make in this month’s activity), before the weather gets bad. Then heat up that pot of your favorite soup, and get ready to enjoy science fun by reading a Quirkles or Fuddlebrook story and doing all the fun science experiments with your kids.

The Thanksgiving meal is something we look forward to all year, but it can be tough on a kid! Wedged between Great Grandma and Aunt Martha, using company manners, and listening to grown-up talk for what seems like hours, can make the best-behaved child squirm. After you clear the dishes, reward that good behavior with this fun science activity that utilizes only some coins and a butter knife to teach a lesson about friction.

What is friction exactly? From matches to machines, friction is one of the most significant phenomena in the physical world. Like gravity, friction is a force. If a car needs to stop at a stop sign, it slows because of the friction between the brakes and the wheels. On the other hand, in some cases we want to prevent friction so it is easier to move. A ball rolls to help reduce friction. Machines and engines use grease and oil to reduce friction so they can last longer. A third way to reduce friction is with less surface area. A thin blade allows for little friction between an ice skate and the ice. In our Fuddlebrook® book The Sled Race, Freddie and Bert learn that friction can have a big impact on the results of their race with Liza!

As part of that book, you can also learn a lesson about Newton’s First Law of Motion and friction by offering this post-Thanksgiving activity. Watch our young scientist Chloe demonstrate The Fuddlebrook Magic Money Stack. It may take a few tries, but will engage children for a very long time!

Then take the activity further. Try The Fuddlebrook Magic Money Stack using different objects like pennies, checkers, or quarters. Next, what happens if you stack more than 12 coins? Try using other tools, such as a playing card or a ruler, to remove the bottom object. Choose one variable to change and predict what you think will happen.

Want more fun ideas? Check out our Quirkles site too.

Happy Thanksgiving!