Just the other morning the youngest member of the Kideeko family (age four ) peeled back the covers to crawl in for a cuddle at 6am. He happily tapped me on the forehead to proudly explain that – “When you see a rainbow in a puddle it’s not REALLY a rainbow its oil!”

Toddler's natural curiousity and interest in their surroundings ( and ability to chatter all day long! ) gives the perfect setting for some science. Look for opportunities during your everyday activities to simply encourage your child to ask questions. You don't need all the answers, just get them thinking, exploring and find solutions together. Simply sharing tasks, like baking, mixing paints, planting flowers, building wooden block bridges or flying toy airplanes all have opportunities to encourage your child to think about scientific matters. 

With National Science and Engineering week this month, there are many special events across the country to get your young Einstein’s inspired. These festivals are packed with exciting events, shows and experiments, here are just a few highlights:

Edinburgh Science Festival | 30 March - 15 April 

This festival is bringing science to the kitchen with their Junior Chef Challenge events. Children can learn the Anatomy of their Dinner or discover chocolate at the Chocolate Tree Workshop. Perfect for an Easter treat!

Look out for Edinburgh’s Street Science team who will be taking their mind-boggling experiments and dazzling science demos outdoors. Watch out for their balloon animals!

For full information, dates, times and cost (some events have limited space and will need tickets) please visit

www.sciencefestival.co.uk/whats-on/event-search

Newcastle Science Fest’ 2012 | 8 March - 15 March

Don’t miss the ScienceFest Weekender. A family fun extravaganza with robots, hands-on experiments and mind bending optical illusions. 

The Exploding Custard show will have you eager to try out the spectacular experiments yourself!

Join in the fun at the Nature Party as part of the National Garden Scheme where there will be lots of opportunities for the children to dig in and get their hands dirty.

For full information, dates, times and cost ( some events have limited space and will need tickets ) please visit

www.newcastlesciencefest.co.uk/programmeo

University of Cambridge Science Festival | 12 March - 25 March

In celebration of the Olympic and Paralympic Games, University of Cambridge Science Festival gives your family the chance to test your sporting abilities in a range of Olympic events. Have a go and compare your scores to athletes in the Olympic and Paralympic Games. 

You can also learn if there is an alien in your garden, learn about ladybirds and how to carry out your own ladybird survey. Or, if you are feeling brave, meet some real GIANT creepy crawlies.

For full information, dates, times and cost ( some events have limited space and will need tickets ) please visit

www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival