Three cups are set beside the bath — one warm, one cold, one at room temperature. One ice cube goes into each at the same moment. The child predicts which will melt first, then watches. The result is usually different from what both child and parent expect. Predicting before testing is a habit of thinking worth building early.
What you need
- 3 ice cubes
- 3 small cups or containers
How to do it
- 1Which ice cube melts first? Watch.
- 2Which ice cube will melt first? Why do you think so?
- 3Drop all three simultaneously — one per cup — and wait. Say nothing.
- 4Ask about the result. Was the prediction right? The thinking matters more than the answer.
Variations
- Korb-Tür: If they won't predict — just watch you drop them. They can cheer for the melting. Prediction is optional.
- Ausstieg: All three cubes melted. 'Time travel complete. Ice becomes water.' Wait for it fully and move on.
💡 Parent tip
Let the wrong prediction stand. The point of making a prediction is not to be right — it's to have something to compare to the result. A wrong prediction that gets explained is more educational than a correct one that just confirms a hunch.
What your child develops
- Heat transfer intuition — ice melts faster in warmer water because the temperature difference is larger
- Prediction and hypothesis — forming a prior prediction before the experiment is the first step of scientific thinking
- Phase change observation — watching solid become liquid is a concrete encounter with states of matter
Safety notes
- Never leave children unattended in the bath. Ensure ice cube containers are stable.
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