Entertainment for children does not necessarily have to be childish. There are many toys that are both educational and fun. More and more scientific toys or science toys are being offered in toy shops. The principle of these toys is to demonstrate simple physical laws in a playful way. Unfortunately, many of these science toys are not cheap. If you are on a tight budget, you can make simple science toys for your children yourself.

Children can have fun making these simple toys and learn a few simple laws of physics when the processes are explained to them. 

Bottle tornado

The bottle tornado is one of the easiest home-made science toys. All you need are two lemonade bottles, some adhesive tape (e.g. masking tape) and glue. The bottles should be made of plastic and hold about one litre. It works even better with 2-litre bottles. Fill one bottle with water and place the empty bottle on top so that the openings of the two bottles touch. Use adhesive tape and glue to tie the bottle together in this position and seal it. If you now turn the bottles round very quickly so that the empty bottle is the right way round, the water flows in so that it looks like a tornado.

Straw whistle

The straw whistle is also very simple. You can actually produce sounds with conventional plastic straws. To do this, cut the tip of the straw so that the ends vibrate when air is blown through the straw. Cut a clean straw with scissors so that a point is formed at the end of the straw. It is best to flatten the straw and cut the two sides to a point to create two triangular tips. Blowing through the straw should produce a whistling sound. If this is not the case, the tip is too long or too short. Experiment with the scissors until it works. 

Volcano

The volcano is one of children's favourite science toys. You need a 2-litre plastic bottle, baking soda and clay to make it. Put the baking soda in the plastic bottle. Use the clay to form a volcano around the bottle, which the children can decorate themselves. The opening of the bottle is the volcano crater. To activate the volcano, pour a cup of vinegar into the bottle. The acetic acid reacts with the baking soda and creates an eruption.