A Hidden Maze
Today Trisha from Inspiration Laboratories is here.  Trisha won me over with What Can You Learn from a Cardboard Tube? (the truth is she won me over long before that post… but it is one of my favorites!)  I bet she has something equally amazing today.  ENJOY….
If you hide a maze inside a box, can you still find your way through it?
Here’s what you need to try this:
- an opaque box (I used a shoe box) with a lid
- cardboard scraps – cereal boxes work well
- tape
- something metal to travel through the maze (metal balls or washers work well – be sure the metal you choose is magnetic)
- a magnet (You may need to test the strength of the magnet to see if it can move your metal ball or washer through the box. Â You can also use two magnets.)
Setup:
- Create a maze inside the box. Â Tape pieces of cardboard vertically to create the walls of the maze. Â You can make it as simple or as complex as you like.
- Place one or more metal balls or washers inside the box. Â (Be careful of small parts if you have little ones.)
- Put the lid on the box.  (You may want to seal the lid if you have  someone that will be tempted to open it.)
Next Steps:
It will depend on your child where you would like to start in this exploration process. Â Do what works for him/her.
- Hand the box to your child and let him/her explore it (moving it, turning it, shaking it, etc.).
- Ask: Â What do you think the inside of the box looks like? Â What is in the box?
- Ask: Â How do you think we can determine what the inside looks like without opening it?
- Try out some ideas. Â Draw pictures of what you think it looks like.
Tell you child there is a maze inside the box. Â The goal is to draw the maze. Â You have placed a metal ball/washer inside the box to help figure it out. Â (Ask how the metal can help and what else they might need.)
- Have your child place the magnet on the outside of the box and search for the metal ball/washer.
- Move the ball/washer through the maze.
- Draw a picture of the inside of the box.
- How can you tell where the maze walls are?
- How does the magnet help you find the walls?
- What happens when you move the magnet over the box?  (It should feel like it hits a wall or some resistance when the ball/washer runs into the maze wall.  The magnet may even release from the box.)
Modifications for Younger Children
- Create a maze inside a clear box. Â Help your child use the magnet to pull the metal ball/washer through the maze.
- Create a maze inside a clear box. Â Place a ball inside the box. Â Show your child how to tilt the box to get the ball through the maze from one side to the other.
- Create a maze in a box without a lid (or just on top of a lid). Â Add tunnels. Â Allow your child to move the ball through the maze.
- Place different sounding objects in various boxes or containers and allow your child to shake and explore them. Â The containers can be clear so they can see the objects that are making the sound. Â Or you can place the sound makers in opaque containers to add a bit more mystery to the sounds and to focus on senses other than sight.
The Science Behind It
This activity promotes observation and inference skills. Â An observation is made with one or more of your five senses; it is something you can directly measure. Â An inference is based on observations and data that is collected, but is not directly observable. Â Saying that someone looks tired is an inference. Â You observe what the person looks like and how they behave. Â Your observations lead you to conclude the person is tired. Â Inferences are made in science all of the time – when studying behavior in animals, when discussing the solar system, when describing the structure of our planet, etc. Â Inferences are important in helping us understand and describe the world around.
Trisha blogs at Inspiration Laboratories about her adventures with her son, Aiden. Â She is an educator with a passion for science literacy. Â It is never too early to start encouraging science learning (or any kind of learning for that matter). Â Trisha believes in encouraging learning through creativity and play.
I just want to run out and grab a few shoe boxes! I was glad to she included questions you could ask the child. I find so many “cute” activities but sometimes parents and educators fail to go further and ask questions that promote thinking strategies. Nicely done:)
I absolutely agree Deborah. I often find myself at a loss when it comes to science. I really appreciate a post that goes into detail about the learning aspect.
Fun. Inference is a difficult skills to teach but so necessary. This is a great way to do it in a fun scientific way. Now to find a box!
I could not agree more! Trisha did a fantastic job of bringing a fun activity to an entire new level. I’m in search of a box too!
This is so cool! What a creative way to strengthen science concepts.
I was so excited when I read this post. She did a brilliant job of laying out the science concept. Glad you liked it too!
Love this idea! I think both of my kids will enjoy it and not even realize my educational agenda!