First graders will cheer when you announce that they’ll get to do a real, hands-on science experiment! These 1st grade science projects are easy for kids to do, with concepts that will help build their science knowledge for the future.
To make it even easier to find the best science projects for 1st graders, we’ve given each a rating based on difficulty and the materials you’ll need:
Difficulty:
- Easy: Low or no-prep experiments you can do pretty much anytime
- Medium: These take a little more setup or a longer time to complete
- Advanced: Experiments like these take a fairly big commitment of time and/or effort
Materials:
- Basic: Simple items you probably already have around the house
- Medium: Items that you might not already have but are easy to get your hands on
- Advanced: These require specialized or more expensive supplies to complete
Jump to:
- Animal and Nature Science Projects for 1st Grade
- Weather Science Experiments for 1st Grade
- More 1st Grade Science Experiments and Projects
Animal and Nature Science Projects for 1st Grade
Learn about animals, plants, and the Earth in general with these fun science activities for first graders.
Sort animals by features
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Basic
Use a printable or pull out the toy animals and have kids sort them into categories. It’s an early introduction to classification systems.
Learn more: Animal Sort at Fairy Poppins
Build the layers of Earth with Play-Doh
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Basic
Another creative use for Play-Doh! Teach your students about the different layers of Earth and then have them create the layers using different colors of Play-Doh.
Learn more: Layers of the Earth at Evans Elementary School
Turn a plastic bag into a greenhouse
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Medium
Turn your 1st grade science class into gardeners! Use a damp paper towel in a plastic bag to allow them to see a seed sprouting and growing roots.
Learn more: Greenhouse Bag at Lessons for Little Ones
See how shadows change throughout the day
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Basic
Start in the morning: Have kids stand in one spot on the playground while a partner traces their shadow with sidewalk chalk. Ask them what they think will happen when they stand in the same spot during the afternoon, then head back outside after lunch to find out.
Learn more: Shadow Experiment at The First Grade Roundup
Discover how plants drink water
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Medium
Capillary action is the name of the game, and your 1st grade science kiddos will be amazed at the results. Place celery stalks in cups of colored water, and watch as the leaves change color!
Learn more: Capillary Action at Lessons for Little Ones
Build a bird feeder
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Medium
Set young engineers loose with wood craft sticks, glue, and string to create a bird feeder. Then research the best seeds to fill them with, and hang them outside your classroom window to draw in some feathered friends.
Learn more: DIY Bird Feeder at Mombrite
Observe the birds at your feeder
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Medium
Once your feeder is in place, teach kids to identify common birds and keep track of their visits. Report their findings to one of Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s Citizen Science projects to let kids be part of real-life research. (Find more bird-watching activities for kids here.)
Experiment with apples and oxidation
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Basic
Apples turn brown when they’re cut open due to oxidation. Is there any way to prevent that from happening? This experiment aims to find out. (Explore more apple activities here.)
Learn more: Apples Experiment at Camping Teacher
Use colorful beads to learn about camouflage
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Medium
Animal camouflage is an important way for prey to protect itself from predators. To learn how effective it can be, place matching colored beads on top of a photo of wildflowers and see how long it takes students to find them all.
Learn more: Camouflage Activity at The First Grader Roundup
Expose a sponge fish to pollution
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Medium
It’s never too early to start learning about how important it is to protect the Earth. Use sponge “fish” to see how polluted water affects the wildlife living in it.
Learn more: Pollution Experiment at The Owl Teacher
Dig in the dirt with claws
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Medium
Animal adaptations allow creatures to live in just about every environment on Earth. Learn how claws help some animals survive and thrive by gluing plastic spoons to a glove.
Learn more: Claw Glove at The First Grade Roundup
Observe plant transpiration
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Basic
Many plants take in more water than they need. What happens to the rest? Wrap a plastic bag around a living tree branch to see transpiration in action.
Learn more: Leaf Transpiration at Teach Beside Me
Weather Science Experiments for 1st Grade
Try these science activities to explore wind, rain, and more with your firsties.
Create a weather vane
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Medium
A weather vane is one of the oldest scientific tools—they help people know which way the wind is blowing. Learn how to make your own with this cool weather experiment.
Learn more: Weathervane Experiment at Rookie Parenting
Grow a rainbow
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Basic
Kids learn the colors of the rainbow along with chromatography as they watch marker streaks climb up and meet across a wet paper towel. The word might be a big one for little kids to learn, but they’ll love to see it in action!
Learn more: Grow a Rainbow at The Best Ideas for Kids
Make it rain
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Basic
You need rain to make a rainbow. Simulate a rain cloud in a jar with shaving cream and food coloring, and see how the coloring saturates the “cloud” until it simply must fall.
Learn more: Shaving Cream Clouds at Fun Learning for Kids
Create frost in a can
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Basic
This is an especially fun experiment during those chilly winter months. First, fill the can with ice and halfway with water. Then have the kids sprinkle salt in the can and cover the top. Finally, shake it and wait about three minutes for the frost to begin to appear.
Learn more: Frost in a Can at Kindergarten Worksheets and Games
Create an avalanche
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Medium
Learn about the destructive power of an avalanche in a safe way with this experiment. All you need is flour, cornmeal, pebbles, and a plastic tray.
Learn more: Avalanche Experiment at A Dab of Glue Will Do
More 1st Grade Science Projects and Experiments
Looking for more? Try these experiments on a range of subjects to teach first graders all about science.
Give gummy bears a bath
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Basic
Drop gummy bears into different liquid solutions to see how they change (or don’t) over time. Kids will learn about osmosis, as well as how scientists must be good observers.
Learn more: Gummy Bear Experiment at First Grade Buddies + Co
Play a DIY flute
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Basic
These homemade flutes are fun to play, but they also help young kids learn about sound. Let them experiment with straw lengths to see what tones they can make.
Learn more: DIY Pan Flute at Buggy and Buddy
Play with Play-Doh to learn why we have bones
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Basic
Ask kids to build a person from Play-Doh and see if it will stand on its own. Then show them how adding drinking straws gives it structure and strength, and explain that bones do the same for us! (Get more clever ways to use Play-Doh in the classroom here.)
Learn more: Play-Doh Bones at Keeping My Kiddo Busy
Find out which objects magnets attract
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Medium
Equip students with magnets and send them out to explore and discover which objects the magnet will stick to and which won’t. Record their findings on the free printable worksheet at the link.
Learn more: Magnet Science Experiments at Fairy Poppins
Grow a crystal garden
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Medium
First grade science students might not grasp the concept of supersaturated solutions, but they’ll still love a good crystal project! Grab some magnifying glasses and let them examine the crystals up close (try not to touch, as they’re very fragile) to see the cool geometric structures.
Learn more: Crystal Garden at Babble Dabble Do
Build a jelly bean structure
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Basic
If you’re doing this STEM project in the spring, jelly beans make the perfect base. If you can’t get a hold of jelly beans, try substituting tiny marshmallows in their place. Make sure to have some extras on hand since little hands are likely to snack as they build.
Learn more: Jellybean STEM Challenge at The STEM Laboratory
Experiment with marshmallow Peeps
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Medium
Peeps used to just be an Easter treat, but these days you can find them in different shapes throughout much of the year. Use them to practice making predictions and recording observations with this sweet experiment.
Learn more: Easter Peeps Science Experiment at Gift of Curiosity
Spark excitement with static electricity
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Basic
No doubt your 1st grade science students have already encountered static electricity by rubbing a balloon on their hair. This experiment takes things a step further, letting kids explore which objects an electrically charged balloon can pick up and which it can’t.
Learn more: Static Electricity Balloons at Kids Activities Blog
Melt crayons to explore solids and liquids
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Basic
Dig out some old crayons and use them for this easy experiment that demonstrates the difference between liquids and solids. When you’re done, you’ll have a cool piece of art to display. (Discover more uses for broken crayons here.)
Learn more: Melting Crayons at First Grade Circle
Talk through a paper cup phone
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Basic
This classic experiment will help your 1st grade science class understand that sound travels in waves, through the air, and across other objects. Watching their faces light up when they hear whispers in their cups will make your day!
Learn more: Paper Cup Phone at There’s Just One Mommy
Blow a bubble snake
Difficulty: Medium / Materials: Basic
You’ll need to plan this experiment for a day with nice weather since it is best suited to outdoors. You will need an empty water bottle, a washcloth, a rubber band, a small bowl or plate, food coloring, scissors or box cutters, distilled water, dish soap, and Karo syrup or glycerin. There’s a lot of prep, but the end result is definitely worth it!
Learn more: Bubble Snakes at Hand 2 Mind
Learn why we have night and day
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Basic
The Earth’s daily rotation gives us days and nights. This simple demo helps kids understand that. They draw a day scene and a night scene on a paper plate, then cover it with half of another plate that can be moved. This is an art project and 1st grade science experiment all rolled into one.
Learn more: Night and Day Play at Universe Awareness
Float food coloring on milk
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Basic
Learn about surface tension by dropping food coloring onto different types of milk (whole, skim, cream, etc.). Then use dish soap to break down the fats and surface tension, and watch the colors dance!
Learn more: Surface Tension Milk at STEAMsational
Drop water onto a penny
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Basic
Continue your exploration of surface tension by adding water drop-by-drop to a penny. The surface tension will allow you to add far more water than you might think.
Will it sink or swim?
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Basic
Ask students to predict whether a variety of items will sink or float in water. Then test each object to check their hypotheses.
Blow up a balloon using yeast
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Medium
This is similar to the classic lemon juice and baking soda experiment many kids do at some point. But this one is better for younger kids since you don’t have to worry about them splashing the juice in their eyes. Kids will be just as astonished at the results as the yeast eats the sugar and produces carbon dioxide gas!
Learn more: Yeast Balloon Experiment at The STEM Laboratory
Push on air
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Medium
Teach your students about air compression and air pressure using a barrel, plunger, syringe, and flexible tube. Kids will definitely get a kick out of air wrestling and popping off their plungers using air pressure.
Learn more: Air Pressure Experiment at First Grade Adventurers
Test your reaction time
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Basic
Do your students have lightning-quick reflexes? Find out with this easy experiment. One student holds a ruler vertically, while another places their hand just beneath and waits. When the first student drops the ruler, the second catches it as quickly as possible, seeing how many inches passed through their fingers first.
Learn more: Reaction Time Experiment at Science Sparks
Assemble a DIY lava lamp
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Basic
Your firsties are too young to remember the lava lamp craze, but this science project will give them a taste of it as they learn about liquid density.
Learn more: Salt Volcano Lava Lamp at What Do We Do All Day?
Learn the scientific method with candy
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Medium
See the scientific method in action as kids hypothesize what will happen to various types of candy in the hot sun. Observe, record, and analyze your results to see if their predictions were correct.
Learn more: Candy Scientific Method Activity at Playdough to Plato
Look into mirrors to discover symmetry
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Basic
By now, 1st grade science students may have noticed that mirrors reflect objects backward. Ask them to write the alphabet in capital letters, then hold it up to the mirror. Which letters are the same when they’re reflected? Use those findings to talk about symmetry.
Learn more: Mirror Symmetry at Buggy and Buddy
Create a super-simple circuit
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Medium
This is the perfect way to introduce the concept of electricity to young students since the materials and steps are minimal. You will need a D battery, tinfoil, electrical tape, and a light bulb from a flashlight.
Learn more: Super-Simple Circuit at What Do We Do All Day?
“Bend” a pencil using light refraction
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Basic
Tell your students you’re going to bend a pencil without touching it. Drop it into a glass of water and have them look at it from the side. Light refraction makes it appear to be in two pieces!
Learn more: Bending Pencil Experiment at STEAMsational
Roll marbles to explore momentum
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Basic
Momentum is “mass in motion,” but what does that really mean? Find out by rolling marbles of different sizes down rulers placed at various slopes.
Learn more: Momentum Experiments at Frugal Fun for Boys and Girls
Dunk eggs to understand dental health
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Basic
Grown-ups are always telling kids sugary drinks are bad for their teeth, so try this experiment to put your money where your mouth is! Eggshells are a good substitute for teeth since they’re both made of calcium. Leave eggs in different kinds of beverages to see which ones do the most damage to the shells.
Learn more: Dental Health Eggs at First Grade Funtastic
Melt ice cubes to make new colors
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Basic
Color mixing is one of those incredibly cool activities that kids will want to try again and again. Make ice cubes using primary colors, then let them melt together to see what new colors you can create.
Learn more: Color Mixing at Gift of Curiosity
Fly a paper airplane
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Basic
Kid absolutely love creating and flying paper airplanes, so this experiment is sure to be a hit. Have your students create different-style planes and then experiment with thrust and lift to see which fly the farthest, highest, etc.
Weigh items with a homemade balance scale
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Basic
Make a simple balance scale with a coat hanger, yarn, and some plastic cups. Have students gather items from around the classroom, make predictions about which will be heavier, then test their hypothesis.
Learn more: DIY Balance Scale at WikiHow
If you love 1st grade science, be sure to check out these 25 First Grade STEM Challenges.
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