Welcome!

Howdy! Welcome to my world of messy "funness."  Those of you who know me or have checked out my other blog, realize by now that I am by no means a Type A personality (especially when it comes to science).  I believe that goop and mess are great introductions to science and that "why?" is not a four letter word (unless it comes from my kid). I also believe that kids will rise to the challenge and are more capable than most people give them credit for.  As such, I tend to incorporate the scientific method into my insanity.

Misty's Method:

• When working with a young scientist, I always encourage questions and hypotheses. Why do you think X happens? What would happen if we did Y?
• Giggle and goof
• Then we conduct controlled experiments (as controlled as possible). 
• Observe and rethink our educated guesses (re-experiment as needed).
• Recap and reinforce conclusions.
• Have Fun!

Admittedly, I am a sucker for big words and don't shy away from them, even when working with kids. Luckily for me, TV shows like Dinosaur Train and Sid the Science Kid have primed the kiddos for me. Ask a group of 4 year old what a hypothesis is and chances are you will get "an idea you can test" shouted back.  They tend to know what experiments and observations are. Even if they don't, they pick it up quickly.

Know thine audience and don't be afraid to improvise.