Ice safety!

Today we had a big discussion about ice safety!

It all stemmed from a conversation we had overheard by a few of the older schoolage children talking about how many of their friends were going down to the lake after school to play on the ice. Well, as the weather has been so mild for a New England winter it is hardly likely that the water is pure ice so we decided to make this conversation a teachable moment to all the children. 

So first, we put some water into a dish. Then we put it into the freezer for just a few minutes so that only the top truly became ice. 

We then invited the children to have the Lego people walk and skate on the water. The children observed that the water was still moving underneath the icy layer on top. Naturally, it didn't take long for one of the Lego people to crack the ice and fall through!

 The other was soon to follow. : (

After hearing multiple news reports of children falling through the ice and hearing the older children talk about it, I really wanted to add this activity into our day. We were already learning about how a liquid becomes a solid so it seemed only fitting to extend our learning further. It is my hope, that by teaching children at a young age to be more aware about ice and its dangers that fewer tragedies will happen in the future.