For a science activity for young children, gather household items for preschoolers to play with car ramps. Making car ramps out of everyday household items provides simple lessons about physical science. When preschool children play with car ramps, they are involved in a science activity but are learning through play. Preschoolers will use problem solving skills and physical science concepts as they build car ramps for play and learning with household items.
To adults and children, playing with cars on ramps may not appear to be a science activity. But preschoolers learn about cause and effect, gravity, motion and plenty about physical science by “playing to learn” . Preschool car ramp play is full of problem solving opportunities which teach children about physical science concepts.
How to Provide Preschoolers with Household Items to Make Ramps
Preschoolers need two things to make a ramp:
1. Thin Flat surfaces that preschoolers can move. Look around for household items to see what will work.
- Kitchen - baking sheets, cookie sheets and cutting boards
- Garage/Workshop – smooth pieces of scrap wood
- Playroom/Children’s Bedrooms – large picture books,
- Elsewhere - coffee table books, pieces of cardboard or tag board taped together for thickness
2. Propping Pieces – household items that preschoolers can use to prop up one end of the flat surfaces
- Kitchen – cooking pots, plastic storage containers, cans of food
- Playroom/Children’s Bedrooms – books, blocks
- Garage/Workshop - smooth pieces of scrap wood
Preschool Car Ramp Play Repair – Learning Activity about Physical Science
The car ramps made by preschoolers eventually fall, but that’s part of the learning activity about physical science. When car ramps fall, preschoolers become engineers and construction workers to repair the ramps. As preschoolers try out their ideas to repair a car ramp, they learn through play about what works and what doesn't in their physical environment. Adults, let preschoolers use problem solving skills to turn car ramp play into a science activity
Setting Up Car Ramp Play So Preschoolers Learn About Physical Science
- Locate several flat surfaces and propping pieces to support ramps.
- Set out the ramp supplies and cars in the area where you’d like your preschooler to play with car ramps.
- Show preschoolers how to set up one car ramp using some of the household items.
- Tell your child that he or she may use the other household items to build their own car ramps.
Parent Tips to Encourage Car Ramp Play and Problem Solving About Physical Science
- Stay within supervision range of your child, but let ypreschoolers make decisions and solve problems about how to play with car ramps.
- Don’t rush in to fix things. Making mistakes is part of the learning through play process. When a ramp falls, let your preschooler decide how to repair it. Ramps may fall, but preschoolers will learn more about physical science, gravity and balance if they are the ones who must do the science problem solving to “make repairs” to their ramp creations.
- If you must speak, ask your child questions that will help them in the problem solving process. Examples: "What could you use to make your ramp taller?", "What might make the ramp stay up better?"
Ramp play is a science activity that preschoolers love to do over and over. Some preschoolers may choose different types of cars or change the play location to adapt ramp play so that it’s a little different each time. Other preschoolers may be happy using the same household items each time. Either approach builds the preschool brain because children usually increase the complexity of their play each time they repeat an activity. Preschool car ramp play can be set up as an indoor or outdoor learning activity and offers opportunities for hours of play full of physical science lessons.
