Here’s an easy and fun experiment to do using simply hard-boiled eggs. Regular chicken eggs will do nicely, but I found these really cool Ostrich and Emu eggs from the Saveur Instragram that are sold at Whole Foods somewhere!
Ostrich and Emu Eggs Sold at Whole Foods Market (not mine though!)
You can give your child cardboard, paper, clear tape, and scissors but my son just ransacked the kitchen drawer, and that worked fine too!
This experiment is from Crazy for Science with Carmelo the Science Fellow by Carmelo Piazza and James Buckley Jr, illustrated by Chad Geran.
Can You Make a Protective Device That Stops An Egg From Breaking?
Let’s take a page out of Carmelo’s book of experiments and Protect the Egg on page 14. Using a hard-boiled egg (or several), paper towels, tape, scissors, cardboard, and string, build a Hard-boiled Egg Contraption that can fall from a table and survive intact. Learn from trial and error; if your egg gets cracked, don’t fret. Just try again!
My son used items found in the kitchen to design a contraption to protect his hard-boiled egg: plastic wrap, aluminum foil, and clear tape.
This is his design:
The key to his design is the layering. Here’s some of the debris in removing his protective device:
Did it work? Yes! It did!
Here’s an egg without any protective device!
Carmelo’s book has many other fun science experiments to try at home!
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Fascinating post! I did not realize that ostrich and emu eggs were so widely available.
Thanks so much Barbara! I wish we had ostrich and emu eggs at my Whole Foods Market!!!
I remember a couple of my younger siblings doing this in school. So fun!
Hi MaryAnne,
My son really enjoyed it too! How fun that your siblings did this in school. I don’t think my kids ever did (yet).
Amazing post. Didn’t realize you could do that with an egg. Loved the video.
Thanks so much Patricia! He had a lot of fun doing it and it’s an easy experiment using whatever is around the house (which makes it doable for me).
We did something similar when my son was in about 5th grade. Ours was slightly different in that we used a raw egg and chose different edible materials to cushion it with – rice, breakfast cereal, slices of bread, etc. It was really a fun experiment to do. #FriendshipFriday
Hi Adrian,
I LOVE your version! I was nervous to use a raw egg but that would be more dramatic! And I love the idea of using food to build the cushion!!!
I like the idea of using a hard boiled egg, less wasteful. Love those Ostrich and Emu eggs too!
My daughter did an egg drop in her science enrichment and hers was the first to crack. She felt bad but I still think she had a great concept which was to submerge it in gel. Her execution was just off.
Hi Ann,
That’s a great point. We did end up eating his experiment! I love your daughter’s idea to submerge in gel. She should try it again!