National Science Week 2021 celebrated amid Sydney’s Covid lockdown

Sydney families are finding ways to make learning from home exciting with DIY science experiments.

Young Einsteins across Sydney are turning their homes into lockdown laboratories where they are exploding miniature volcanoes and studying fossils in their backyard.

With National Science Week upon us, families are still finding ways to make learning from home exciting with innovative experiments.

For example, budding boffins Bali and Indi Maguire made a green volcano in their Hillside home to celebrate the week of science.

Bali and Indi Maguire do a science experiment at their Hillsdale home. Picture: Justin Lloyd

Their mum Sarah Maguire, who also happens to be a teacher, said her daughters had been assigned small challenges this week that they can do every day.

“Whether it just be little experiments or little science investigations they can do at home, science gives the kids an opportunity to be hands on and creative, to break up their school day,” Mrs Maguire said.

“The activities their teachers are assigning them are easy enough to do at home and are keeping them interested and involved.”

Indi, 11, said she loves science.

“We’re looking at reptiles this week,”she said.

“Science is my favourite subject at school, I love getting to do all the experiments, we made a green volcano mixing bi-carb soda and vinegar.”

Indi was one of the NSW finalists in the Origin Little Big Idea competition last year with the invention of the “read function,” a microphone that transcribes teacher’s speech into text to improve life in the classroom for hearing-impaired students.

“I came up with this idea from my own experience with impaired hearing and sometimes struggling to understand discussions in class,” Indi said.