08/26/2026
Tossing kitty figurines down the slide and seeing if we can get them to land in our hospital!
—> Cause & effect + early physics: Testing how a BIG push versus a little push changes how fast and far our kitty travels
—> Problem-solving: Moving our target, making it bigger or smaller, and changing its height to figure out what makes a successful landing pad
—> Trial & error: Trying something, seeing what happens, making a change, and trying AGAIN!
—> Prediction: “Do you think it’ll make it this time?” Building ideas about what might happen before we test them
—> Spatial awareness: Figuring out where the kitty is likely to land and how the position of the slide and target affect its path
—> Collaboration: Watching what works for other kids, sharing ideas, giving pointers, and cheering each other on
—> Turn-taking + patience: With 3–4 kids involved, they’re also practicing waiting, observing someone else’s attempt, and then using what they noticed on their own turn
And one of my FAVORITEEE parts of this setup is that the kids are essentially running their own little experiment without being told they’re doing science! They have a goal, test an idea, observe the result, make an adjustment, and test it again. That’s the scientific process happening naturally through play. And it happens every day through play with a little bit of fostering, excitement, and encouragement!
