Simple Rocket Experiments You Can Share With Your Homeschool Kids

For every action, there is equal and opposite reaction. If you blow up a balloon and let it go (without tying the end), the air in the balloon goes in one direction and the balloon itself goes the opposite way. Rockets use this same principle. The thrust going out the back end pushes the rocket forward.

Simple Rocket Experiments You Can Share With Your Homeschool Kids

The rockets we're about to build rely on generating enough pressure and releasing that pressure very quickly. You will generate pressure by pumping in air or through chemical reactions (which generate gaseous products).

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Simple Rocket Experiments You Can Share With Your Homeschool Kids

Let's get started!

Simple Rocket Experiments You Can Share With Your Homeschool Kids

Simple Rocket Experiments You Can Share With Your Homeschool Kids

Seltzer Rockets: Place an Alka-Seltzer tablet in a white Fuji film canister (black Kodak canisters won't work) and fill one-third with water. Working quickly, cap it and invert it on the sidewalk. Stand back... POP! You'll find there's an optimal water level for maximum height. If you work fast, you can get about four launches from one tablet. What happens if you try two tablets at once?

Paper Blow-Gun Rockets: Make a very long straw by joining two straws with tape. Roll an 8½x11" sheet of paper into a long tube and tape shut (younger kids can roll the paper around a dowel to help). Cut triangle fins out of index cards and hot glue onto one end of the rocket. To make the nosecone, cut a circle out of paper. You can trace the inner diameter of masking tape roll to get a good circle. To make a flat circle into a 3D cone, begin to cut the circle in half, but stop cutting when you get to the center. Slide one flap over the other to form a (nose)cone and tape shut. Pile a lot of glue inside the cone and add the long straw and wait to dry. Slip the straw inside the tube and seal the nosecone to the rocket body. When dry, blow into your straw to check for leaks. It should be impossible to blow through. If you have a leak, go back and fix it now. Otherwise, slip over the metal tube and blow hard. If you have one, apply a nozzle from an air tank or compressor to blast these rockets hundred of feet in the air! If your straws come loose, simply cut the rocket body just below the nosecone and rebuild the straw-cone assembly, fastening in place when ready.

Slingshot Rockets Punch a small hole in the bottom of a black Kodak film canister. Chain 5 rubber bands together and push one end of the rubber band chain through the hole from the outside, catching it with a paper clip inside so it can't slip back through the opening (like a cotter pin). Hot glue the canister into one end of a 6" piece of ¾" foam pipe insulation and tape the circumference with a few wraps of duct tape. The rubber bands should be hanging out of the foam pipe. Attach triangular foam fins with hot glue to the opposite end. To launch, hook the rubber band over your thumb, pull back, and release!

Puff Rockets: Grab a clean, empty shampoo or lotion bottle. Make sure the bottle you choose gives you a good puff of air out the top cap when you squeeze it. You'll also need two straws, one slightly smaller than the other. And a small piece of foam. Insert the smaller straw into the hole in the cap. If you have trouble, ream out the hole or just take off the cap and seal the connection with a lump of clay or a lot of hot glue. Insert a small bit of foam into one end of the larger straw. Slide the larger straw (your rocket) onto the smaller straw (your launcher). Squeeze the bottle hard! POOF! Which bottles work best? Does straw length matter? (We had one rocket that cleared 25 feet.)

Micro Paper Rockets: Spiral-wrap a thin strip of paper around and along the length of a wood pencil and tape to secure (You can alternately use a naked straw instead of making your own rocket body from paper, but then you'll need a slightly smaller launch tube straw.) Hot glue triangular fins made from an index card to one end. Fold the opposite end over twice and secure with a ring of tape to make a nose. Insert straw into the rocket body and blow hard!

Simple Rocket Experiments You Can Share With Your Homeschool Kids

Kodak

Is A Granny Cam A Good Way To Monitor My Elderly Parents?

As our parents, siblings, and relatives get older, we have to make sure they are being cared for. No matter if they are being taken care of in their home, your home, or in an assisted living facility, you need to make sure they are not being abused. Rest easy with a hidden Granny Cam that will be your eyes while you are not there.

Is A Granny Cam A Good Way To Monitor My Elderly Parents?

You see a lot of horror stories about the people who are suppose to be taking care of our elderly parents, and are caught on video either stealing money or pills, physically abusing them, or just not taking good enough care of them. The question of if you should have a Granny Cam is not necessary, you owe it to your loved ones to have one. The real question will be which one should you choose? Granny Cams or Nanny Cams are just tiny video surveillance cameras that are hidden inside an everyday item to catch someone doing something they should, or should not be doing. Then, it transmits the video over several different methods so it can be viewed.

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Is A Granny Cam A Good Way To Monitor My Elderly Parents?

You can choose hidden cameras that are Color, Black/White, or Color that turns to B/W when it gets dark. You can add a low lux feature that helps you see in the dark, and some of the wireless cameras have a high-power addition that can increase the broadcast distance from 700 to 3,000 feet.

Is A Granny Cam A Good Way To Monitor My Elderly Parents?

Is A Granny Cam A Good Way To Monitor My Elderly Parents?

There are four basic types of hidden cameras that use different ways to transmit the video.

Wired Cameras Wireless Cameras SD Card DVR Cameras Secure IP Internet Accessible Cameras

Wired Cameras: The wired hidden cameras have been around the longest, are the most cost efficient, and offer very good quality. They are tiny wired board cameras put in an everyday item that requires electricity, so a cord won't look out of place. Usually the item will work as planned, like a pencil sharper, can opener, air purifier, or fan.

They also have a male video cable adaptor, so you can plug in a video cable to run the video feed to a Quad, PC, or DVR. A PC can be set up with software to monitor the feed on the computer, or over the internet for additional costs. These work best when your parent is staying at their house or your house, as the video cable might get detected in an assisted living facility.

Wireless Cameras: A wireless hidden camera has an internal 2.4GHz transmitter that sends the video silently across the air to a receiver, which is set up in another room. No hidden cables that could be found, and these make for some of the best hidden cameras, as they can be put inside a Pringles can, tissue dispenser, wall clock, etc. They also have internal battery packs to supply the power to the camera. Since there are no wires or cables sticking out, it is very hard to know it is recording your every move, unless you use a hidden camera detector.

The video could have interference if you use other 2.4GHz devices, or other receivers might tap, or conflict with your signal. You can also feed the video into a PC with surveillance software and monitor them from the PC, or install software that will allow you to monitor the camera from the Internet. This is a good choice for home use, though if you use it at an assisted care facility, you will need to change the battery packs frequently (8-12 hours).

SD Card DVR Cameras: These are the next generation in hidden camera surveillance systems. They use a tiny internal DVR that records the video directly to a hidden SD card for playback later. No wires or signals to be discovered, they are 100% self contained. The advantage of this set up is that you can just set down an item like a desk clock, boom box, or even hang up a wall clock, arm it with the keychain remote, and come back later to remove the SD Card for viewing on a computer or T.V. This is the best camera to use in an assisted living or hospital situation, as there would be no way anyone would know the device is recording their every move.

Secure IP Cameras: If you are looking for a way to monitor your parents without having to buy extra software or hardware, the Secure IP cameras offer a very easy way to monitor them over the Internet. They use the electrical wires in the house to transmit the video directly to your computer, which can be accessed anywhere in the world with an Internet connection.

The camera is hidden in an ever day item like a desk clock or air purifier that plugs into an adaptor, that plugs into the wall socket. The video is carried over the electrical lines to another adaptor that plugs into your computer. Using the installed software, you can see what the camera is doing at any time, and you can hook up to six cameras and monitor them all in real time.

They are best for your home or their home, as the camera will have to be plugged into the wall, into a small adaptor that could be noticed. Not recommended for assisted care living as it only works in the building where the camera is.

These are the four ways you can monitor your parents or loved ones who need assistance with their living. A hidden Granny cam will give you peace of mind and a good nights sleep.

Is A Granny Cam A Good Way To Monitor My Elderly Parents?