July was a fun and busy month at the Kiddie Science Lab, with our young scientists diving into a hands-on science exploration that included botany, biology, chemistry, and more! We cared for the garden and harvested yummy food. We observed the Lab turtle, Spaghetti, to learn more about her needs and behavior. We spent time with the backyard chickens, Sweet and Sour, and made lots of observations about their behavior and vocalizations.

We learned scientific vocabulary associated with our topic of exploration, and made relevant connections to art which allowed our young scientists to get creative while learning important scientific facts. We got messy, laughed a lot, and explored serious questions such as 'what happens when our water gets polluted?'.

We recycled newspaper and turned it into new paper, we learned about the water cycle and created simple filters. We learned the characteristics of invertebrates and the role they pay in our garden. We conducted chemistry experiments using grocery store ingredients and at one point harvested so many cucumbers each young scientist in the program got to take one home.

The first half of our science summer was incredibly fun and we can't wait to continue the scientific exploration. See you soon at the Kiddie Science Lab! More pictures can be found on our Facebook page. #summerscience2019 #kiddiescience

Our growing season has been going really well, though some more rain could come in handy.

We have enjoyed a bounty of cucumbers, with our tomatoes ripening a slow bit at a time. Our garden herbs include only basil and thyme after the caterpillars ate through the dill and parsley. The good news is we've been able to harvest hundreds of dill seeds, which will be used for the next growing season.

As of August 13th, we have harvested a total of:
3lbs of mixed herbs
14.6lbs cucumbers
6.5lb tomatoes

All this was grown right here in Brooklyn, and cared for by young scientists age 2 to 12. 

One of the highlights of having the Lab space has been the chickens. It wasn't that long ago that we reached out to our local community (and beyond) for support in implementing The Chicken Project. Our goal was simple: expose young children to the care and keeping of chickens and give them time and access to observe their behaviors and characteristics first-hand. You answered our call for support and the results have been far beyond what we could have expected!

First and foremost, everyone loves the chickens! Children and adults of all ages have been smitten by Sweet and Sour and have learned a lot in the process. As we learn about the classification of living things, we've been able to spend extra time exploring birds, chickens in particular. We have learned about chicken diet and made salad mix using Lab garden ingredients, while making direct observations about bird characteristics. We're always impressed by their diverse sounds and behaviors!

Living in Brooklyn, our connection with nature and living things is oftentimes limited. This is why providing city kids with access to chickens is of particular importance. Although extremely friendly, our hens still require the humans around them to be gentle and cautious in their presence. This has provided opportunity for young scientists to explore how our bodies/actions may affect the living things around us. We have learned what it means to be gentle and careful with our bodies (and voices) as we spend time in the backyard with the chickens. 

Our young scientists greatly enjoy feeding treats to the chickens which, as omnivores, could be anything from watermelon to meal worms. We've learned about the needs of living things and chicken physiology. Once the chickens reached egg-laying age, we explored how exactly an egg is created and learned it's basic parts. This has opened up a whole new world of discovery and it's a particular treat when a late egg is laid and we're able to hold it while it's still warm.

You can never go wrong with exposing young children to the care and keeping of living things. At the Lab, we prefer to expose young children to nontraditional animals in the hopes of instilling a love and appreciation of all living things, not just the cute and cuddly ones. 

After several very hot days, we got way too much rain before settling into a comfortable stretch leading up to another warm-up. Our garden plants have required a lot of love and attention, which our young scientists gladly provided. Their dedicated care has paid off in the form of a delicious harvest. Although very few tomatoes have been ready, we've enjoyed munching on freshly picked cucumbers during our workshops. Scientists of all ages have given the Lab cucumbers the thumbs up! We've also harvested Lab herbs to use in plant sprays against flying and crawling garden insects. As of 7/22/19, we have harvested a little over 8 pounds of cucumbers and almost 3 pounds of tomatoes. Kid-grown food, right here in Brooklyn.

We've also harvested several thousand dill seeds, and a few hundred green pepper seeds to be used in next year's garden.

With a massive heatwave affecting millions this weekend, we hope you're staying cool and hydrated! One question we've been getting is 'how do the chickens keep cool in extreme heat?'. Great question! This is something we wondered as well before committing to the care of the hens we have now. Although perfectly adapted for extreme northeastern winters, very hot summer days are not what these chickens are made for.

As of 8am today, the temperature was 88 degrees F, with a feel of temp of 100. It will get hotter as the day, and the weekend, goes on. Despite it being very hot, the hens were hanging out together inside the coop this morning, looking quite unbothered by the heat and humidity. Their human caretaker, on the other hand, was very much bothered.

Our hens have two water sources, one of which holds a gallon of water, which get refreshed daily. To both I added large amounts of ice to maintain a cool water temperature throughout the day. Over half the backyard are is shaded and the chickens have a favorite tree to hang out under, where it's even shadier. To disperse body heat, chickens dig deep holes in the ground then lay in them, the fresh soil below being much cooler. In the summer, the coop is in a fully shaded area, making it surprisingly cool inside, especially overnight (and probably why the gals were hanging in this morning). As a special treat, we freeze fruits in a block of ice and let the chickens peck at it while cooling off. For this morning's treat, we froze watermelon, strawberries, and tomatoes.