Mad Science Camp: Farm Camp

The local Boy Scout Council is planning Cub Scout Day Camp with Down on the Farm camp theme in June, Covid-19 permitting.  My husband and I like to volunteer for camp.  My job is crafts—with some added science. Usually, we do Cub Scout crafts, such as making leather neckerchief slides along with farm activities.  Sometimes the planners assign crafts to make.  I don’t mind.  I do plan extra activities.   We always need a few.  Once I was stranded with 30 Cub Scouts during a storm for two hours.  We were ready.

How do you stick with the theme and add a bit of science?  Obvious ideas include a mini-terrarium in a jar (with farm animals made with polymer clay and an LED tea candle), and water bottle filtration system.  Farmers often have a background in soil science and conservation.  Here are soil science experiments.  I like the Bernese Funnel to extract insects from leaf litter.  I want to make the ‘I SPY bottle in the Down on the Farm packet, just for fun.  Here is an example with dyed rice.  (The kids can add polymer food such as an egg, pumpkin, ear of corn, berries, etc.) You can add a bit of science to Funny Face Grass in a Cup by having kids plant both grass seed cups and radish seed cups to determine which seeds sprout first.

Here is one more idea—set up a microscope. Use a digital microscope with a USB plug to attach to a laptop.  Ideally, I set up three computers with digital microscopes for groups of eight or more kids.  Have the soil samples out and let them collect other interesting items to observe.  My kids focus the item with the microscope and take screen shots.  Here is where you get creative.  Use the microscope screen shots as inspiration to paint Canvas Art with Plastic Animals.  The day the kids make polymer animals, make some with Sculpey Clay to bake and paint.  I recommend making the polymer clay animals for the terrarium, I Spy, and Canvas Art projects early in the week to allow enough time to bake or air dry and paint the animals and farm products.  (Buy a bag of plastic animals for younger kids or children with disabilities to use instead of  making polymer animals.). Look at you making the science creative!