Preschool Science: Roly Poly Hotel
by Rachel Paxton

If you have a preschool-aged child running around your home,
chances are he or she has brought in a roly poly or two from your
garden. Because children are fascinated by these little
creatures, they make great subjects for science experiments.

Before you and your child begin this experiment, you will need to
round up a few items from around your home and garden:

Small rubbermaid container
Dirt
Moist dead leaves
Sticks and twigs
Medium-sized flat rock

Have your child fill the plastic container about halfway full of
dirt from your garden. Explain to your child that you are trying
to re-create a roly poly's natural habitat. Where are roly
poly's found? They are found under rocks and piles of
decomposing leaves. After the dirt is in the container, have
your child place the rock in the container on top of the dirt and
arrange the leaves and twigs around the rock.

Next give your child a jar and have he or she collect some roly
poly's for the roly poly hotel. This will be their favorite part
of the experiment. After the roly poly's have been collected,
have them place them in the container.

Help your child create a "sign" with their name on it for their
roly poly hotel. They can create it by hand or on the computer.
Tape the sign to the front of the plastic container.

Now that the roly poly hotel is complete let your child sit and
observe the roly poly's and let he or she hold them and play with
them a bit. Help them make observations about the roly poly's by
asking them questions. Ask them what the roly poly's look like
and what they notice about them. Ask them what color they are and
how many antennae the roly poly's have. You'll be surprised at
the answers they come up with. My boys told me that the roly
poly's roll up like armadillos!

If your child is going to keep their roly poly's for further
observation, have them keep the soil moist and keep the container
out of direct sunlight.

If your children are older you can tailor this activity to their
learning level. You could check out a book from the library
about roly poly's or search for information about them online and
do a number of science activities with them. With preschoolers,
however, you'll find that their attention span won't last much
longer than the observation part of the activity. After about
five minutes of watching their roly poly's my boys informed me
they were done and were ready to go swimming!

Rachel Paxton is a freelance writer and mom of five. For
resources for the Christian family, including parenting, toddler
and preschool activities, homeschooling, family traditions, and
more, visit http://clicks.aweber.com/y/ct/?l=CRBnh&m=1agbTzF9Q1taln&b=9ZbCtV8lpRs7u2ZdoIzrsg