Geometry is a hands-on subject. What better way to explore the concepts of area, perimeter, and volume than actually measuring area, perimeter, and volume? With this helpful resource, you will build polygons out of pipe cleaners and flexible drinking straws, explore Mobius strips made from index cards, model the Pythagorean theorem using cheese crackers, and much more. Junk Drawer Geometry proves that you...

Junk Drawer Biology will demonstrate that you don't need high-tech equipment to make learning fun—just what you can find in your recycling bin and around the house. Science educator Bobby Mercer provides readers with hands-on experiments to explain the building blocks of living matter for children of all ages. The projects can be modified to meet the skill levels of the children doing them, from elementary school kids to teenagers. Though each challenge includes suggested material...

Junk Drawer Ecology is a hands-on guide to saving the planet. Fun, free science activities help kids of all ages learn about the science of our planet's ecology.The environment is changing every day, and we can help slow that change. Using free or low-cost things children already have around their homes, these activities are perfect to stimulate young brains.Readers will learn about the importance of the polar regions without leaving their communities, about new way...

Algebra as a hands-on subject? With this helpful resource, you can create coordinate graphs with candy, simplify algebraic equations with pennies and nickels, use aluminum foil to multiply polynomials (perfect for the FOIL method), examine exponential decay functions with a bouncy ball, and much more. Junk Drawer Algebra proves that you don't need high-tech equipment to comprehend math concepts—just what you can find around the house or in your recycling bin.Each of this book's 50 c...

There's no need for expensive, high-tech lab equipment to conduct chemistry experiments—you probably have all you need in your home junk drawer. Turn an old LED flashlight into an Energy Drink Tester using aluminum foil and electrical tape. Mix cornstarch and water to make Non-Newtonian Goo. Use a 9-volt battery and thumbtacks to break water molecules into hydrogen and oxygen. Create edible Sweet Crystals from a saturated sugar solution. Or construct your own Three-Penny Battery from galva...

Calling all future Amelia Earharts and Chuck Yeagers—there's more than one way to get off the ground. Author and physics teacher Bobby Mercer will show readers 35 easy-to-build and fun-to-fly contraptions that can be used indoors or out. Better still, each of these rockets, gliders, boomerangs, launchers, and helicopters are constructed for little or no cost using recycled materials. The Flying Machine Book will show readers how to turn rubber bands, paper clips, straws, plastic bottles, a...

Finalist for the 2015 AAAS / Subaru SB&F Excellence in Science Book exemplify outstanding and engaging science writing and illustration for young readersA children's instructional book on how to use readily available materials to turn the house into a science labPhysics teacher Bobby Mercer provides readers with more than 50 great hands-on experiments that can be performed for just pennies, or less. Turn a plastic cup into ...

Fireworks and grenades. Grills and campfires. Burps and farts.Men get a kick out of things that go boom, things that cook with fire, and all forms of bodily gas. What they might not know is that science is what makes it all happen. This book answers all the questions guys have about their favorite topics, such as:How do you make a Lifesaver spark?How do you hotwire a car?Why do kegs float?What is PMS?Why doesn't a cell phone wor...

Drones, RC cars, artificial limbs, Roombas—the robots have arrived! Don't you want your own? Author and physics teacher Bobby Mercer will show you how to turn common household objects and repurposed materials into 20 easy-to-build robots for little or no cost. Turn a toothbrush, an old cell phone or pager, and scrap wire into a Brush Bot, or hack a toy car to hotwire a Not-So-Remote Bot. A small electric fan, several craft sticks, and rubber bands make a Fan-Tastic Dancing Machine, and dri...

Gas grills. Riding lawn mowers. Pop-top beer cans.Forget fire and arrowheads and the wheel. The best tools invented by man are such wonders as beer, bikinis, and ESPN. And there's more where they came from, in this hilarious look at the stuff real men are made of:Chow and Suds (microwaves, vending machines, Tabasco sauce)Sports and Recreation (golf carts, cleats, shin guards)Household Gadgets (superglue, Swiss Army knives, Duct tape)Fun a...

A project book for young readers with a need for speed, this work provides instruction on 25 easy-to-construct racecars that can be driven both indoors and out. They will learn how to use mousetraps, rubber bands, chemical reactions, gravity, and air pressure to power the cars that are made for little or no cost using recycled and repurposed materials. Readers will discover how to turn a potato chip can, a rubber band, and weights into a Chip-Can Dancer; retrofit a car with a toy plane pro...

The projects in Junk Drawer Engineering demonstrate that you don't need high-tech equipment to make learning fun—just what you can find in your recycling bin and around the house. Educators and parents will find this title a handy resource to teach children problem-solving skills and applied physics, all while having a lot of fun.