Open-and-go lessons that inspire kids to love science.

Science curriculum for K—5th grades.

90 sec
  • Hands-on — lead students in the doing of science and engineering.
  • Standards-aligned science lessons — Cover core standards in 1-2 hours of science per week.
  • Less prep, more learning — prep in minutes not hours. Captivate your students with short videos and discussion questions.

Sign up now to try Mystery Science for free.

Sign up

Learn more

Open-and-go lessons that inspire kids to love science.

Sign up now for tons of free lessons like this one!

Back

Mini-lessons

Video Bonus Vote
Full Screen
Controls Icon Exit Full Screen
Video trouble?
Slide Image
Full Screen
Controls Icon Exit Full Screen
Full Screen
Controls Icon Exit Full Screen
Video trouble?
Full Screen
Controls Icon Exit Full Screen
Slide Image
Full Screen
Controls Icon Exit Full Screen
Full Screen
Controls Icon Exit Full Screen
Video trouble?
These artists are carving hard blocks of salt! Think like an inventor. What’s something useful that you could make from blocks of salt?
5
Full Screen
Controls Icon Exit Full Screen
Video trouble?
This hotel is built entirely from blocks of salt! The hotel has a rule: Do not lick the walls!
5
Full Screen
Controls Icon Exit Full Screen
Video trouble?
Full Screen
Controls Icon Exit Full Screen
Video trouble?
Suppose you spilled some salt. You could clean it up...or think like an artist. How could you use that salt to make a work of art?
4
Full Screen
Controls Icon Exit Full Screen
Video trouble?
People can “draw” with salt by moving it with their fingers or by squirting it out of bottles. Do you see any problems with this art?
4
Full Screen
Controls Icon Exit Full Screen
Video trouble?
This beautiful salt painting can be wiped out by a wave of a hand or a puff of wind. Even though the art lasts for just a little while...
4
Full Screen
Controls Icon Exit Full Screen
Video trouble?
...artists keep making amazing salt art—like these pictures of food made with colored salt. It looks real…until it slides off the plate!
4
Full Screen
Controls Icon Exit Full Screen
Video trouble?
Full Screen
Controls Icon Exit Full Screen
Video trouble?
In some underground mines, the salt is pink. Artists carve blocks of this salt into shapes: a turtle, a horse head, a human head...
3
Full Screen
Controls Icon Exit Full Screen
Video trouble?
Slide Image
This is the same turtle…but the salt can look pink or green or blue. What is going on here? Do you have any ideas?
3
Full Screen
Controls Icon Exit Full Screen
Artists can hollow out the salt and put light bulbs inside. A blue light bulb makes the pink salt look blue; a green one turns it green!
3
Full Screen
Controls Icon Exit Full Screen
Video trouble?
Full Screen
Controls Icon Exit Full Screen
Video trouble?
People dig deep underground to get salt. When they take out the salt, an enormous cave is left. What could you do with this cave?
2
Full Screen
Controls Icon Exit Full Screen
Video trouble?
People made this enormous salt mine special. As they dug out salt, they carved statues from the salt and made elegant rooms.
2
Full Screen
Controls Icon Exit Full Screen
Video trouble?
Full Screen
Controls Icon Exit Full Screen
Video trouble?
This is the saltiest sea on earth. What do you think would happen if you dunked a dress into this sea and left it there for a long time?
1
Full Screen
Controls Icon Exit Full Screen
Video trouble?
An Israeli artist tried this experiment. Salt formed sparkling crystals on the cloth! You can do this with anything, even a bike!
1
Full Screen
Controls Icon Exit Full Screen
Video trouble?
You can also bend string or wire into shapes and dip them in the saltiest sea. People even do this at home using super salty water!
1
Full Screen
Controls Icon Exit Full Screen
Video trouble?
Slide Image
Full Screen
Controls Icon Exit Full Screen
Full Screen
Controls Icon Exit Full Screen
Video trouble?

Voting for this episode is now closed. Would you like to vote on the most recent poll?

We pulled three questions from our jar. Which question do you want to explore?

  • Where does wind come from?

    -Sally, 3rd Grade

  • What’s the largest flying animal?

    -Lincoln, 4th Grade

  • What makes glue sticky?

    -Norah, 3rd Grade

Could you build a real house out of cookies and candy?

Watch the video to discover the answer and don't forget to vote for next week's question. There are mysteries all around us. Have fun and stay curious!