What can you do with lemons? Well, we all know we can make great lemonade, but that’s definitely not all. Lemon science experiments can create some very interesting reactions. Today we’re partnering with Green Works to try out Stem Box science kits. Each monthly kit has a unique science experiment for kids to try at home. Our challenge was to create a lemon battery. Although I’ve seen this experiment done a few times, we’ve never tried it on our own, mostly because I wasn’t sure where to get all the materials. I love that Stem Box gathers everything up for you and sends it right to your doorstep in a nice little box. Yes, please!
Here’s a peak at what came inside our Stem Box. It included all the nonperishable materials we’d need to complete the science experiment. Inside we also found a fruit clock, gloves, safety goggles, and Green Works Cleaning Wipes for quick clean up.
The directions were simple and easy to follow. They also included a description of the science behind the experiment, so we learned about the “why” behind the exciting reactions we could visibly see. After seeing some of the power of lemons we had an interesting conversation about why my daughter thinks lemon is used as a key ingredient in Green Works cleaning products. The ability to transfer her understanding over to a real world application is so beneficial for young scientists.
Although kids are naturally curious about science through early childhood, this seems to wane as they get older. Personally after conversations with my daughter about her own school experience, she feels they don’t get to “do” enough science in class, they just read about it. So by incorporating more hands-on science investigations at home I hope to continue to nurture that natural curiosity.
Working with challenges like this is also wonderful for helping kids learn about problem-solving and developing self-confidence. Although her lemon battery didn’t work at first, my daughter reread the instructions and was able to get the LED bulb on. She was so proud that she figured it out!
Another great thing about science experiments is that they always tend to lead to more experimenting. The Stem Box instructions suggested adding or removing lemons or trying different fruits, so my daughter went through our pantry testing out different combinations. Each time she was just as proud to see that LED bulb turn on.
We were both really wowed by the fruit clock. Have you ever seen one? You stick it in fruit and you have your own little alarm clock. Pretty neat, right!?
More Lemon Science Experiments
You won’t want to eat those lemons after you’re done, but you can continue on with other fun science experiments. Babble Dabble Do shows how the citric acid in lemons creates eruptions like mini volcanoes. Or kids can create their own invisible ink with lemon juice using these instructions from Coffee Cups and Crayons.
More About Stem Box Science Kits
Green Works is the first official sponsor of Stem Box. Their goal is to inspire the next generation of female scientists. Stem Box is a monthly subscription service aimed at young girls, providing different hands on science experiments and concepts each month to explore STEM (Science, technology, engineering, and math.) Each and every one of the boxes look like so much fun! On the Stem Box website you can see videos about kits for strawberry DNA extraction, owl pellet dissection and more. I know my girls would love to receive one of these kits in the mail every month. A subscription would make a great gift idea for birthdays and holidays, too!
And a portion of the proceeds from each March Stem Box subscription will be donated to The American Association of University Women. As a former recipient of an AAUW scholarship in college, I personally know how helpful that organization can be, and I’m thrilled to see this partnership.
A big thank you to Green Works for working with us and helping to inspire young girls to pursue careers in science. For more information on Green works and its continued support of Girls in STEM visit GreenWorksCleaners.com.
This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Green Works . The opinions and text are all mine.