Looking for an easy science project? Dunecraft has an amazing assortment of science products that your kids will love. (No, this is not a sponsored post. I just happened to get a few kits from Totsy, loved them, and wanted to share them with you.)

I needed something to help explain non-vascular plants to the children. Since as a child I never really understood the concept of how a plant could get water without roots, I didn’t want to mess this up.

Then I discovered the DuneCraft Curious George Science Novelties – Silly Squares. All you need to make this fun is water, but for added science oomph, you can grab measuring cups, ruler, and scale.

Before adding water to the cubes, measure and weigh them.

Next, add water to the cubes and stir it up a little… because little hands are not content to just drop these tiny pieces into water and walk away.

Have some paper handy and if the children want, let them draw the shapes of the squares as they grow and change.

We watched the clock and made a note of the time each time the children stirred the cubes around (which is not necessary but it is fun). I let them touch the squares too and I recorded what they said about the texture changes.

The next morning, it was time for some real fun!

For Lira, this was a real sensory test. I put the cubes on her plate and she touched them (barely) at first. Next thing I know, she was stacking them and wiggling them and squishing them between her fingers.

We measured and weighed the silly squares to compare the difference from when we started.

Then, Franc wanted to know what would happen if one of them dropped. So, outside we went and dropped them on the sidewalk. We tried different distances and… ahem… velocities. Nothing quite like smashed silly squares all over the sidewalk. But it was so much fun!

When they were done, I placed a few silly squares on a paper plate to let them dry. (Just a note… silly squares are reusable!)

The paper plate gave us an unexpected surprise. We were able to see the size variations as the water evaporated and the silly squares return to their original size. And, of course, we measured and weighed them again.

The children loved this project and it really helped them picture how non-vascular plants function. It also gave us an excellent opportunity to practice measurements. When I do it again, we are going to practice graphing by measuring and weighing every couple of hours.

How do you think you could use something like Silly Squares in your homeschool?