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Science Hamper

Taking Root
(participating on activities with families)

Age suitability: 3-7 years

Effort required: (1=less work - 5=more work)

Pre-activity: 2
During activity: 1
Post-activity: 1


A ‘Science Hamper’ sent home full of simple items to inspire families to ask questions and realise that science is all around them.

  • to explore and wonder
  • to ask questions
  • to make predictions
  1. Create a simple hamper full of household items that can be sent home with a child to inspire science e.g. nappies, straws, cans of coke, elastic bands etc
  2. Provide a short briefing note for parents, encouraging them to involve their children in exploring the items in the hamper – look, touch, smell, listen etc.
  3. Encourage them to talk with their children and to concentrate on listening to the children’s ideas without any ‘rights or wrongs’
  4. Add in a set of question cards or prompt questions to guide the discussion. (What? Where? How? Can? Should? Could? Etc.)
  5. Provide differet avenues for families to share the science they’ve done at home with school and the wider communities e.g. bringing in photos, email, twitter, scrapbook
  • Recruit junior children as School Science Ambassadors/Prefects and ask them to take ownership of the creation of hampers.
  • Encourage them to promote the hampers and talk to the different year groups, and their parents (at parents evening perhaps) about the ahmpers
  • Encoaurge the extended families – grandparents, siblings, to get involved
  • Have a working wall display that the science families can self-publish their science on to celebrate it

Developed by Kathy Thomason and Liane Clegg, St Anne’s R C Primary School