Science
Ramp races
- Builds: Testing slopes
- 15 min
- Ages 2–5
- Energetic
- No mess
From the house
- A cutting board, tray or big book
- Cushions to prop it up
- Things to roll: ball, toy car, orange, block, cup
How to play
- Lean the board on a cushion to make a ramp.
- They send things down one by one. Which roll, which slide, which get stuck?
- Add another cushion to make it steeper. Faster now?
- Race two things at once: “Ready, steady, go!”
Fit it to your child
- Easier: Just hold a ball at the top, let go together and cheer when it reaches the bottom.
- Harder: Put a sock where each thing stops, and they guess which will go farthest before every run.
Words to use
- roll
- slide
- fast
- slow
- up
- down
Why it helps
They change one thing at a time, what goes down or how steep the ramp is, and watch the result, which is how scientists run a fair test.