Humpty Dumpty

Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall. Humpty Dumpty had a great fall. All the king’s horses, And all the king’s men Couldn’t put Humpty together again. StoryTime STEM: Nursery Rhymes © Scholastic Inc. © Scholastic Nursery Rhymes STEM: StoryTime

1 Humpty Dumpty

INTRODUCTION Read aloud the nursery rhyme . Read it again, this time inviting children to say it with you . Talk about what happens in the rhyme . To jumpstart scientific thinking, make a Humpty Dumpty by using a permanent marker to draw a face on a raw egg . Place a plastic tub on the floor under the edge of a table . Then try to balance the Humpty egg on the edge of the table “wall ”. Have children share their observations .

Continue with questions, such as: Why did Humpty fall off the wall? Could Humpty have fallen up? Why not? How could the wall have been built to keep Humpty from falling? What could have been done to prevent Humpty from breaking?

ACTIVITY 1 Protecting Humpty Challenge: Come up with a way to protect a “Humpty” egg so it doesn’t break when dropped . Challenge children to come up with a way to keep a hard-boiled Humpty egg from breaking when it falls . Invite children to draw their idea and list the materials they need on their planning sheet . Then have them do the activity . Afterwards, have them mark on their sheet whether or not their idea worked . Discuss which ideas worked, which didn’t, and why .

DIRECTIONS MATERIALS • Protecting Humpty Make a Humpty Dumpty: Draw a face on a hard-boiled egg . 1 planning sheet (p . 4) • hard-boiled eggs 2 Gather the materials you need . • permanent markers 3 Make your protective device for Humpty . Use your idea • zip-lock sandwich bags, from your planning sheet . Styrofoam cups, or small food containers; flour, 4 Hold Humpty out at arm’s length . Drop him . uncooked beans, or rice; cotton balls, bubble wrap, 5 Did Humpty break when he fell? Check to see . packing foam StoryTime STEM: Nursery Rhymes © Scholastic Inc. © Scholastic Nursery Rhymes STEM: StoryTime

2 ACTIVITY 2 A Safety Chair for Humpty Challenge: Design and build a chair that Humpty can’t fall out of . Tell children they will build a safety chair for Humpty—a chair he can’t fall out of . Invite children to draw their idea and list the materials they need on their planning sheet . Then have them do the activity . Afterwards, have them mark on their sheet whether or not their idea worked . Discuss which ideas worked, which didn’t, and why .

DIRECTIONS MATERIALS • A Safety Chair for Humpty Make a Humpty Dumpty: Draw a face on a plastic egg . 1 planning sheet (p . 5) • plastic eggs 2 Gather the materials you need . • permanent markers 3 Make your safety chair for Humpty . Use your idea from • egg cartons, plastic or foam your planning sheet . cups, cardboard tubes; ribbon, yarn, pipe cleaners, 4 Put Humpty in the chair . craft sticks, straws • tape, scissors 5 Shake the chair . Tip it over . Did Humpty fall out?

ACTIVITY 3 Gravity Explorations Challenge: Drop two objects to compare how fast they fall . Tape a horizontal line on a wall at children’s eye level . Display the “What Is Gravity?” learning poster and discuss . Tell children they will choose two objects and drop them at the same time to see which one lands first . As children do the experiment, have them fill in their recording sheet .

DIRECTIONS MATERIALS • What Is Gravity? Choose one object from Box 1 . Choose another object from 1 learning poster (p . 7) Box 2 . Draw them on your recording sheet . • Gravity Explorations 2 Make a guess: Which one will land first? Why do you think so? recording sheet (p .6 ) Check the box on your sheet . • two boxes of objects 3 Hold one object in each hand . Then hold both hands next to Bo x 1: variety of classroom the line on the wall . objects, such as crayons, small blocks, scissors, puzzle 4 Count: 1, 2, 3! Let go of both objects at the same time . pieces, plastic cups and plates 5 Which object landed first? Check the box on your sheet . Box 2: lightweight objects, If both objects landed at the same time, check both boxes . such as cotton balls, sandwich bags, feathers, paper, balloons StoryTime STEM: Nursery Rhymes © Scholastic Inc. © Scholastic Nursery Rhymes STEM: StoryTime

3 Humpty Name: Dumpty Protecting Humpty

Challenge Humpty Dumpty is going to fall! Can you protect Humpty so he doesn’t break? MY Draw your idea here. IDEA

What materials do I need? Did my idea work?

yes

no StoryTime STEM: Nursery Rhymes © Scholastic Inc. © Scholastic Nursery Rhymes STEM: StoryTime

4 Humpty Name: Dumpty A Safety Chair for Humpty

Challenge Design a chair that Humpty can’t fall out of. Then build it.

MY Draw your idea here. IDEA

What materials do I need? Did my idea work?

yes

5 Humpty Name: Dumpty Gravity Explorations

Drop two objects at the same time. Will one fall faster than the other? Draw your object from Box 1. Then draw your object from Box 2.

BOX 1 BOX 2

Make a guess: Which object will land first? Check the box. Box 1 Box 2 (If you think both will land at the same time, check both boxes.)

What happened? Which object landed first? Check the box. Box 1 Box 2 (If both objects landed at the same time, check both boxes.) StoryTime STEM: Nursery Rhymes © Scholastic Inc. © Scholastic Nursery Rhymes STEM: StoryTime

6 What Is Gravity? Gravity is a force that pulls things down. Gravity affects everything.

Gravity makes things fall. Gravity makes things come back down.

Try it: Jump up. Gravity keeps things Gravity will pull from floating away! you back down! StoryTime STEM: Nursery Rhymes © Scholastic Inc. © Scholastic Nursery Rhymes STEM: StoryTime