Science Buddies: "Ask an Expert"

My daughter who is in Kindgergarten is doing an experiment on the effects of salt on corrosion of coins. I am stuck with where to go with the research that is appropriate for her age. Corrosion is such a huge concept and I don't know how to explain it at her level or should we try to research something else that is more appropriate for her grade?

Dear santhony,

I think that this is a great opportunity for your daughter to learn more about science in general, in addition to her corrosion experiment. The following link explains the concept in a pretty straightforward way (though it is a bit repetitive).

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_does_salt ... _corrosion

This explains the effects of salt on corrosion, but leaves a need to explain larger ideas such as atoms and electrons. In my experience, kids don't regret learning something even if they don't completely grasp the concept at the time. Later, when they learn the subject in a formal setting, they are familiar with the material. Here are a few links about atoms and electrons, though the best place to start is probably with a picture.

http://www.chem4kids.com/files/atom_intro.html
http://www.chem4kids.com/files/atom_electron.html
http://www.historyforkids.org/sciencefo ... try/atoms/
http://www.historyforkids.org/sciencefo ... ectron.htm

Here are diagrams of atomic models.

http://wiki.one-school.net/images/thumb ... sModel.png
http://lifesciencereality.files.wordpre ... 00x400.jpg

Good Luck!

Thank you so much for the quick reply and all of the links. They will help us a lot.

santhony