Kids love science, especially when it involves hands-on experiments. These experiments, activities, and science projects for 2nd graders are guaranteed to bring excitement and enthusiastic vibes into your classroom. Your students will learn basic concepts about physics, chemistry, biology, and more while having a blast!
To make it even easier to find the best science projects for 2nd graders, we’ve given each a rating based on difficulty and the materials you’ll need.
Difficulty:
Easy: Low or no-prep experiments you can do pretty much anytime
Medium: These take a little more setup or a longer time to complete
Advanced: Experiments like these take a fairly big commitment of time and/or effort
Materials:
Basic: Simple items you probably already have around the house
Medium: Items that you might not already have but are easy to get your hands on
Advanced: These require specialized or more expensive supplies to complete
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Also, be sure to grab your free printable science experiment recording sheet to use with any of the experiments below.
Myranda McDonald for We Are Teachers
Nature and Earth Science Projects for 2nd Graders
Explore animals, ecosystems, geology, plate tectonics, and more with these interesting and interactive science projects for 2nd graders.
Around the Kampfire
Pollinate like a bee
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Basic
Use pipe cleaner bees to discover how these pollinators pick up and move cheese powder “pollen” from one juice box flower to the next. Simple, fun, and adorable!
Use a jar to show your students how clouds form in the sky. Mix ice cubes, hot water, and hairspray to make it all happen. This demonstrates condensation and evaporation in one simple experiment.
NurtureStore
Make your own rain gauge
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Basic
Make a rain gauge and compare your collection with local weather reports to see if they are accurate. You might even inspire some future meteorologists with this one!
Demonstrate the power of flower stems with this beautiful experiment. Fill some mini vases with water mixed with food coloring. Then drop some white carnations in them and watch the magic happen!
Simulate a landslide
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Basic
This NASA video shows you how to create an indoor landslide in a milk carton, showing students the power of weather, erosion, and nature in action.
The STEM Laboratory
Grow a sprout house
Difficulty: Medium / Materials: Medium
This two-part science project first challenges kids to use their engineering skills to construct a miniature house made of sponges. Then, they plant chia, alfalfa, or other quick-sprouting seeds and keep the sponges moist until they start to grow.
This simple but effective experiment explores the water cycle. Fill a plastic bag partway with water and set it on a sunny windowsill to see how the water evaporates up and eventually “rains” down.
Simulate the effects of erosion by shaking sugar cubes in a cup with some pebbles to see what happens. Get more ideas for 2nd grade science activities about erosion and weathering at the link.
As students learn about the life cycle of plants, explore how water supports their growth. Plant seeds and water them with a variety of liquids to see which sprout first and grow best.
This clever demonstration helps kids understand how some types of mountains are formed. Use layers of towels to represent rock layers and boxes for continents. Then pu-u-u-sh and see what happens!
After you learn about pollination, take the next step and explore how plants disperse their seeds far and wide. One way is with exploding seed pods. Use a balloon to see how it works.
Build a variety of habitats (woodland, arctic, savanna, etc.). Then have kids compare to see how they are similar (all have water) and how they are different (trees, temperatures, etc.).
Take a nature walk to pick up rocks of all kinds. Bring them back and have kids examine them closely and sort them into groups by properties (color, size, shape, texture, and so on). This is a fantastic lead-in to learning about the types of rocks.
Help your students remember the four types of soil with this tasty 2nd grade science experiment. Layer pudding, graham crackers, and Oreos for a mouthwatering and memorable lesson.
Food Activities and Science Projects for 2nd Graders
Raid the pantry and try these kitchen science experiments and projects for 2nd graders! They all use common food items to explore all sorts of fascinating science concepts.
Power up a lemon battery
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Medium
Here’s another classic science experiment every kid should try. They’ll be amazed to learn a citrus fruit can generate an electric current!
Around the Kampfire
Parenting Isn’t Easy
Use bread to learn about handwashing
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Basic
There’s never been a better time for an experiment involving the importance of washing your hands! All you need for this one is bread, plastic bags, and some dirty hands.
Drink root beer floats to learn about states of matter
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Basic
What’s easy to make, delicious to eat, and demonstrates all three states of matter at once? Root beer floats! This will easily be your students’ favorite science lesson of the year.
This is one of those classic experiments your 2nd grade science students will love to see in action. Soak the gummies in water to watch them grow through the power of osmosis.
Practice sorting, comparing, and classifying using properties of matter in this tasty experiment. All you need is a variety of snack crackers and inquiring minds! (These magnifying glasses would be fun too.)
Give each student two chocolate kiss candies to hold onto for five minutes. Students should keep one palm open, while closing their other around the kiss. See what happens simply from our body heat.
How many rubber bands does it take to make a watermelon explode? Find out while observing the concepts of potential and kinetic energy with your students.
In this STEM project, your students will create a protective egg holder from simple materials. They will love seeing if their contraption keeps their egg in one piece during the competition.
Here is another 2nd grade science experiment that will make your students explode with excitement. Drop a Mentos candy in different types of soda, and see which one causes the tallest geyser.
Learn about density and acid-based reactions while watching popcorn kernels dance around! Vinegar and baking soda mix together to create carbon dioxide to make it all happen.
Use Skittles to teach your students about diffusion. By simply pouring hot water onto the candy, the colored sugar coating dissolves, creating a tie-dye effect! Groovy!
An apple a day keeps the doctor away, but nobody wants to eat apples once they turn brown! This experiment will provide the best method to keep those sliced apples looking nice and appetizing. For even more fun, try out different varieties of apples for a taste test!
More Experiments, Activities, and Science Projects for 2nd Graders
Kids will love these science projects for 2nd graders, from making their own slime to projecting stars on their ceiling, and everything in between!
Make a lava lamp
Difficulty: Medium / Materials: Medium
Your students will love making their own lava lamp! By combining water, oil, and an Alka-Seltzer tablet, students can observe density differences as the oil floats and bubbles move. Plus, it’s just super cool!
Make sidewalk chalk paint
Difficulty: Medium / Materials: Medium
Sidewalk chalk is always fun for kids of all ages. Step things up a notch by creating your own sidewalk chalk paint! It dries and washes away just like the old-fashioned stuff.
See what happens when you poke a pencil through a sealed baggie of water. This experiment demonstrates the magic of polymers. Your students will be amazed!
Make your own smartphone speakers from simple everyday objects that you already have at home. All you need are paper cups and toilet paper tubes, and then you are ready to jam!
We know that every human has a different set of fingerprints, but it is tough to see this with the naked eye. Have your students blow up their fingerprints for a closer look! All you need is a balloon and ink to investigate.
Gally Kids
Clean old coins
Difficulty: Basic / Materials: Basic
We have all seen how dirty pennies can get over time due to oxidation. Test out which solution works best to clean coins using various common household items. Your students will be surprised at the result!
Soak a large seed (beans are ideal) in water, then carefully take it apart to see what’s inside. Draw a diagram to label parts like the seed coat and plant embryo.
Every kid loves the classic baking soda and vinegar chemical reaction experiment. This version makes a foamy rainbow, thanks to some added food coloring.
Explore simple machines by building race cars from basic supplies like clothespins and drinking straws. It’s a really fun way to learn about wheels and axles.
Play dough activities are always fun to do! Visit the link below for free printable mats to use as you have your 2nd grade science students sculpt the bones, organs, and muscles of the body.
Kids might wonder why they need to wear sunscreen when they’re at the park or playing soccer. This experiment shows them the power of the sun’s rays and the protection sunscreen provides.
Every teacher knows that glitter is just like germs … it gets everywhere and is so hard to get rid of! Use that to your advantage, and show students how soap fights glitter and germs.
Around the Kampfire
Bend objects to test flexibility
Difficulty: Easy / Materials: Basic
Explore one of the properties of matter with this easy experiment. Kids plan how to test flexibility, then try it out with a variety of basic objects.
This simple experiment covers a lot of 2nd grade science concepts. Learn about solutions, density, and even ocean science as you compare and contrast how objects float in different water mixtures.
How many water drops fit on a penny? Find out with this fun and easy experiment that focuses on surface tension. Your students will be amazed by the results!
Make your own invisible ink from just baking soda and water, then have your students write messages to one another. Reveal the secret messages with a flashlight once the ink is dry.
