Robot surgeons allow surgeons to perform complex operations with more precision. Robot surgeons allow surgeons to perform complex operations with more precision. A real surgeon operates the robotic arms from a console.
Want to know more about the robo-revolution? Whizz Pop Bang: Robots Rock is available in our shop now!
SoFi is a soft robotic fish that can swim around coral reefs, taking close-up videos of the real fish without disturbing them as a human diver would.
Watch SoFi swim here:
Want to know more about the robo-revolution? Whizz Pop Bang: Robots Rock is available in our shop now!
Nettles are know mainly for one thing, and it doesn’t make them too popular: their stings! In fact, these much-maligned plants play an important role in our natural world.
They provide a home for insect species, including butterflies and moths, and are a safe place to live as many grazing animals avoid eating them (for one obvious and painful reason!) Over winter, they are a good habitat for aphids, providing an early food source for ladybirds and blue tits. Later in the year, they produce large amounts of seeds which are very useful for seed-eating birds.
They’re also a great source of nutrients for humans, and spring is a great time to go and harvest some nettles. Just remember to wear gloves and pick away from busy roads and above the height of a cocked dog’s leg 😉
Nettle bread
Nettle crisps
Nettle scones
PLUS you can find a recipe for tasty nettle soup in Whizz Pop Bang: ROCK ON!
Did you know that rocks can morph from one type to another? It’s all happening right under your feet! In this rocking edition of Whizz Pop Bang, get busy cooking up a chocolate rock cycle, making your own fossils, starting a rock collection, and cutting out and making a twisty rock cycler toy!
You can also find out about mountain goats, make nettle soup and meet space geologist Katie Joy, who studies rocks from the Moon! Find how pneumatic drills can smash up almost anything, discover ten awesomely amazing rocks with superpowers, meet James Hutton, the first person to realise how the rock cycle works, and chip away at the mystery of the walking stones of Death Valley! Rock on!
Let us know if you give nettles a try! Find out more here
Looking for some simple science activities to keep children busy during the holidays? Here are three fantastic ways to make paper soar through the air.
Discover new twists on paper planes – just download, print, cut, fold and launch! Try out one design, or challenge your children to make all three and compare how they travel.
Whizz Pop Bang is a top-quality, gender-neutral, advert-free science magazine for families everywhere. Each issue is packed with experiments, activities, amazing facts, puzzles, jokes, riddles and more. Find out more here and flick through a space-themed issue here!
The best time to spot the Lyrid meteor in the UK in 2021 is on the night of 21st – 22nd April. This year, it coincides with a gibbous Moon, which means that the night sky will be bright, which makes spotting meteors a little harder – but don’t be deterred! Follow these tips from the Royal Observatory in Greenwich for the best chance of meteor-spotting.
☄️Find a dark site with an unobstructed view of the sky.
☄️The best time to see the shower is in the early morning of the peak day, which this year is the morning of the 22 April (the night of the 21 April).
☄️Fill your view with the sky and wait! Lying on the ground is a great way to see as much as possible.
☄️Look towards the Vega constellation – here’s a handy map showing how to find it at this time of year thanks to Astronomy Now.
☄️Blanket optional but highly recommended. Reclining deckchairs make an even more comfortable way to view the sky.
☄️Remember to wrap up warm!
Image: Shutterstock
Whizz Pop Bang is a top-quality, gender-neutral, advert-free science magazine for families everywhere. Each issue is packed with experiments, activities, amazing facts, puzzles, jokes, riddles and more. Find out more here and flick through a space-themed issue here!
🐰 We’ve got an EGG-citing Easter competition for you! 🐰
We want to treat a whole class of children to some epic Easter science, so we’re giving away 30 copies of our Easter Eggs-periments booklet! Children deserve a cracking treat to celebrate the end of this very unusual term, so here’s a chance for teachers to win a set for their class, or parents to win a set for their child’s class.
Whizz Pop Bang’s Easter Eggs-periment booklet contains 12 pages of awesome science fun to keep children busy this holiday, including…
🐰 8 Easter Activities
🐰 Quiz Questions
🐰 Riddles
🐰 Jokes
🐰 Eggs-traordinary Egg Facts
To enter, simply answer this question in the comments.
Which of the below is NOT part of an egg?
A. Albumen
B. Bitumen
C. Chalaza
🐣 🐣 🐣 🐣 🐣
This booklet is also available with every purchase from our website until 28th March! To claim your free booklet, simply use the code EASTER21 when you purchase any Whizz Pop Bang product or subscription*.
🐣🐣🐣 Find out more about this offer here 🐣🐣🐣
🐰🐰🐰 Visit our shop to browse Whizz Pop Bang goodies 🐰🐰🐰
* Offer valid until midnight on 28th March 2021 on Whizz Pop Bang shop products and new subscriptions only, whilst stocks last. Not valid in conjunction with any other offer.
This competition closes at midnight on 23rd March 2021. The winner will be contacted on 24th March and must provide their details within 24 hours, otherwise another winner will be drawn (we’re really keen to get these booklets to children in time for Easter!) Whizz Pop Bang competition terms and conditions are here.
British Science Week (5th-14th March 2021) was always first in my calendar as a Primary Science Co-ordinator and I usually started with very grand ideas! Whilst a whole week of science is brilliant, this year it might be more realistic to consider just planning one day – it will be just as exciting, but manageable both in school and for any pupils isolating at home. Here are some FREE ideas and resources for creating a super exciting Fly High Friday!
Did you know that Whizz Pop Bang magazine also creates curriculum-linked science resources for primary schools? Scroll to the bottom to find a brilliant offer that’s running throughout March 2021!
Here’s everything you need to make planning your science day as simple as possible:
Theme – Flight, linking with the curriculum topic of Forces with a comparative/fair testing enquiry and for EYFS the characteristics of learning.
Challenge the whole school to work together on a flight investigation!
The mission: who can make paper fly the farthest?
Keep reading to find activities and resources for each year group…
We all love to make a paper aeroplane but is that the only way to make paper fly? Here are some different ways:
How to make these suit all year groups:
For all these ideas you will only need paper, straws, sticky tape, glue and sticky tack – and some space, preferably outdoors! Each year group could have a go at making these different paper flying machines.
EYFS – Allow the children the time to explore how they can make paper fly. The teacher could demonstrate the air-powered rocket, then the children could make either the stunt planes or the straw planes. The children will choose the one they think will fly the farthest, try it and then the class teacher should record the result.
KS1 – Again allow the children the time to explore how they can make paper fly. Then the children should make each of the flying devices and choose the one they think flies the best, then test it. The teacher can collate all the results as a class.
Years 3 and 4 – children can choose their favourite design and then make adaptions to see if they can make it fly farther and record their results.
Years 5 and 6 – children can test each design and then make their own flying machines. They should throw their final design five times and calculate the mean result. This will be their final result.
We also have a reading comprehension about historical scientists the Wright Brothers, the team behind the world’s first powered flight.
At the end of the day all classes should share their results. This might be by email or you could hold a virtual assembly! Don’t forget to ask for photographs so you can make a display or share them on your school’s social media platforms. We would love to see what you’ve been doing so please tag us @whizzpopbangmag
Whizz Pop Bang magazine and teaching resources are brilliant ways to enhance your school’s science teaching:
Prices from as little as £190 per year for whole-school access to our ever-growing library of downloadable teaching resources, with unlimited teacher logins, as well as a copy of Whizz Pop Bang magazine through the post each month. Plus, we have an amazing offer of a 20% discount until 31st March 2021. Just apply the code SCIWEEK21 at the checkout to receive the discount. (Only available on whole-school subscriptions to the magazines and resources.)
We’ve just launched a new individual membership option so teachers and home educators can access all of our amazing resources for just £20 for the whole year.
“Using Whizz Pop Bang school resources has enabled investigations to be an integral part of my science planning. I now have investigations and experiments throughout my planning rather than just at the end. The lessons are easy to resource and the pack has everything I need to teach the lesson so it saves me time as well!”
Louise Hampson, Year 3 teacher
Half term is almost here and families far and wide are wondering how to fill a lockdown holiday with fun and excitement.
Why not take Whizz Pop Bang’s Seven Days of Science challenge? Every day, we’ll give you all the information and resources you need to complete a simple, satisfying and curiosity-awakening challenge from your home. Enter a science pancakes competition and try some kitchen science experiments, science papercraft, science quizzes for kids, nature activities. It’s also a great way to get children well and truly excited about NASA’s Perseverance planned landing on Mars on Thursday 18th February!
Download a full colour printable tick list here:
Download a low-ink, black and white printable tick list here:
Let’s get started!
Discover some home chemistry experiments that involve things you’ve probably already got in your kitchen! Here are some you might like to try:
Make gloopy slime! Slime-obsessed children will love this gooey activity! They will make their own slime, then decide if it is a solid or a liquid.
You will need: cornflour, water, mixing bowl, food colouring.
Watch a video tutorial of this activity…
Make your own plastic
Explore making casein plastic from milk in this exciting activity.
You will need: milk, white vinegar, sieve, paper towels.
Make a volcano
Print out a volcano template and create your very own miniature volcano using the harmless chemicals you find in your kitchen cupboards!
You will need: the volcano printout below, a small container (e.g. a spice jar), bicarbonate of soda or baking powder, sticky tape, vinegar, red and yellow food colouring, uncoloured soap or washing up liquid, a tray.
Bubbling magma experiment
Explore the difference between runny magma and viscous magma.
You will need: two glasses, water, a viscous substance (like honey or golden syrup), two paper straws, safety goggles or sunglasses
Celebrate Valentine’s Day by making a card featuring a human heart!
You will need: the heart card printout below, scissors, glue stick, pen.
Give one of our Whizz Pop Bang science quizzes a try!
Already done them both? Why not make up your own!
Add a sprinkle of science to Shrove Tuesday to be in with a chance of winning a Stay-at-home science bundle! Find out more about this competition here.
We love this pancake recipe:
BBC Good Food’s perfect pancakes
but your science pancakes can be American style, vegan, savoury… whatever takes your fancy.
Next, decorate your pancakes with something inspired by space, nature, engineering or anything else linked to science! Here are a few ideas to get you started:
Today’s the day to get outside and do something to help nature! You could refill bird feeders and bird baths, plant some wildflower seeds or go on a litter pick.
To make an upcycled bird feeder, you will need: An empty, clean and dry plastic bottle (e.g. milk bottle), a sharp knife, some sticks, strong glue or glue gun, 30 cm twine
If you want to do something inside instead, give these seed dispersal activities a go – it’s a great way to understand how plants and animals work together.
To make a super-speed peashooter, you will need: Biro or gel pen, dried pea
To make a model dandelion seed, you will need: A sheet of A4 paper, ruler, scissors, pencil, sticky tape
Today’s an exciting day – NASA’s Perseverance rover is due to land on Mars! You can watch the landing at 8.55pm here (but you might have to wait until tomorrow morning – that’s pretty late!)
Meanwhile, take the 7 Minutes of Terror Challenge to discover the hair-raising journey a spacecraft takes as it travels through Mars’s atmosphere. Download the activity here:
Have you done lots of science activities and experiments this week? Or have you got a burning science question for our all-knowing robot, Y? Send messages, questions and pictures to y@whizzpopbang.co.uk and let us know all about your week of science!
Whizz Pop Bang is a top-quality, gender-neutral, advert-free science magazine for families everywhere. Each issue is packed with experiments, activities, amazing facts, puzzles, jokes, riddles and more. Find out more here!
Are you wondering how on earth to manage home education now that schools are closed again? We want to help you to bring science to life on your kitchen table and have made loads of resources available for you right here. They include:
🧪 Activities from Whizz Pop Bang’s Awesomely Amazing Science Club These simple, fun, home science ideas using household objects were designed for school science clubs and youth groups, but work brilliantly for home school too!
🧪 Curriculum-linked science activities and reading comprehensions
These hands-on science experiments and science reading comprehensions are linked to the National Curriculum for children in years 2 to 6. They’re ideal for use at home and each one includes a straightforward explanation of the science involved.
🧪 Virtual science quiz for kids
More quizzes coming soon!
🧪 Collectible science badges to earn
Your child can earn their Wildlife Watcher, Eco Hero and Super Scientist awards!
🧪 Super science-themed colouring pages and posters!
Keep reading to find out how our experts make home educating work…
The first attempt at home-educating was a culture shock for our editor Tammy back in March 2020. Tammy had a picture in her head of how home-schooling would be – a structured daily routine with children sitting neatly at the kitchen table, completing the work she’d set them, whilst she herself was working away on her laptop beside them. Needless to say, it didn’t work out that way! It didn’t help that Tammy had builders in repairing her roof that week, resulting in a ceiling collapsing! The whole family was in tears before the first morning was out.
And here we are again – schools have suddenly closed and many parents’ brains are exploding at the prospect of keeping their children engaged in education while juggling their own jobs and responsibilities. While many of us have already had one stint of homeschooling, things are different this time around – schools’ expectations have changed, and many of us haven’t quite shaken off the lazy Christmas holiday routine yet – so, we thought we’d ask for some advice from our lovely home-educating Whizz Pop Bang readers and gather some top tips. We hope you find them useful…
1. Learn through everyday activities
Don’t underestimate the amount of learning there is in just being. As you chat, children will learn from the language you use. Look at the clock and notice which hands move faster. Get busy in the kitchen – cooking is an exciting new subject when children reach secondary school but can be done from a very young age at home and includes lots of learning potential of the maths of weights, measures, volumes and ratios, and also the science of chemistry and reactions. Do the laundry and feed animals together, and discuss what you’re doing. It’s all useful learning.
2. You don’t need to sit at the kitchen table for hours
Practically none of the school day is 1-on-1 attention. Lots of it is crowd management, such as dealing with undesirable behaviour, changing for PE, queuing to leave the classroom, going to assemblies, etc. If you manage four half hour 1-on-1 bursts, that’s probably more than they do in primary school, so don’t stress. You really don’t need to sit them down at a desk for hours on end.
3. Let them build their own schedule
In school all children follow the whole class timetable. Take this rare opportunity to let them set one or two things they would like to achieve for themselves in their day (tidy a shelf, read something, make something). And then see how they scheduled their day to achieve it. Failing is a useful learning experience. Was it too ambitious or did it need better time management?
4. Try not asking them to do anything
Just leave interesting, educational things about and wait for your child to be inspired to want to learn more about something that interests them. Instead of setting work that you choose for them, experiment with exploring something that they find interesting that day, whether that’s a ladybird they’ve found on the windowsill or something they saw on TV that morning, and ask them to investigate that some more. They can find information from the internet, books or magazines and create a project by drawing, clay modelling, writing, acting or however they want to present their findings.
5. Go easy on yourselves
It’s going to take time to find a system that works for you and your kids. The whole family will need lots of time to adapt, so try to ease yourselves into a style that works for you all. You might find it easier to wait a few days until they get bored of having nothing to do and are feeling more receptive to learning. Whatever you do, go easy on yourselves. Avoid setting yourselves up for failure. Go with the flow and remember not to worry if you feel you haven’t achieved anything that day – there’s learning in just playing in the garden!
After their disastrous first morning, our editor Tammy’s 8-year-old son said, “It’s a bit like the first pancake that never works very well.” And we think that’s a lovely philosophy that can get you through almost any less-than-ideal start. Keep flipping pancakes and you’ll soon be rewarded with success!
Here are some more tips for juggling home-schooling with home-working and you’ll find lots of really useful home-educating resources here.
If you’re looking for a more structured approach, Whizz Pop Bang’s in-house teacher recommends getting some CGP books. Simply select your child’s year group and perhaps start with a maths, a reading and a SPAG book.
These free websites are also worth exploring:
Primary Resources
ICT Games
BBC Bitesize
Finally, the home educating community would like to point out that self-isolating is not how they normally do things! The adults in the household aren’t working full-time jobs on top of attempting to teach. They play in the park, in the woods, at the beach, have other home ed kids over, and go to all kinds of clubs and activities. Being cooped up in the house is hard for them too.
And at the end of the day, if all else fails, take heart in the proposed schedule that’s currently doing the rounds on social media…
It’s DAY EIGHT of WHIZZ POP BANG’S 12 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS PRIZES!
Every day until 12th Dec, we’ll launch a competition to give you and your budding scientists a chance to win awesome prizes. Don’t forget to come back tomorrow for another chance to win!
Today THREE lucky winners will each win A Y’S WONDER CLUB BADGE! Y’s Wonder Club is the kids’ club that encourages Whizz Pop Bang readers to get stuck into experimenting and to share their adventures in science.
This top-quality 25mm enamel pin badge makes a lovely gift that your child can wear on their clothes, attach to their school bag or use to decorate their lab coat!
To be in with a chance of winning this perfect prize, just answer this question in the comments:
What is the closest star to Earth called?
A Proxima Centauri
B Andromeda
C The Moon
To be in with a chance of winning this collectible treat, just answer this question in the comments:
What is an echidna?
A A spiny animal
B A spiky tree
C A type of bean
This #competition closes at 7am on Wednesday 9th December 2020. Whizz Pop Bang competition terms and conditions are here: https://www.whizzpopbang.com/terms-and-conditions/
Whizz Pop Bang is a top-quality, gender-neutral, advert-free science magazine for families everywhere. Each issue is packed with experiments, activities, amazing facts, puzzles, jokes, riddles and more. Find out more here!