Set up an experiment to introduce your child to heart health and exercise. Begin by taking the pulse of several people, kids and adults, while they are at rest. Record that information. Next have those individuals do an easy exercise for five minutes such as walking, and then take and record their pulse. Finally, have the individuals do a more active exercise for five minutes, such as running or jumping jacks. Take and record each person’s pulse. You can now chart the pulse rates and see how exercise affects the heart rate. For a more in-depth evaluation, research how and why exercises are good for the heart.
Determine which foods in your home have fat in them. Choose several food items (at least five) found in your kitchen. Choose at least one vegetable or fruit to test. On a blank piece of paper (use one for each food item) write the name of the food at the top. Rub the food on the paper so that a mark is left. You may need to crush drier foods (such as cookies or crackers) and mix it with a small amount of water to make it leave a mark. Check the papers when they are dry. Notice which ones leave behind a grease stain; these foods contain fat. Display the papers and foods at the fair to show your results.
Making ice cream is a tasty experiment that demonstrates how matter can change from a liquid into a solid and vice versa, using a chemical reaction. Items you will need: milk, cream (or half-and-half), vanilla extract, sugar, ice, rock salt, and sealable plastic baggies. Mix into one bag: 1 cup milk, 1/3 cup cream and ½ tsp. vanilla. Seal the bag and squish everything around to mix it up. Fill another bag with ice and some rock salt—no need to use any specific measurements. Put the previously made bag of ice cream into this bag of ice and salt, and seal the bag. Shake the bags vigorously for about 10 minutes. The salt creates a reaction that melts the ice, which then pulls heat out of the milk and cream mixture, making it colder and more solid. Now you have ice cream to share at the fair.