Why is the

sky blue?

Why does it rain?

Why does ice float?

blue
indigo

Why is the ocean salty?

Why is the ocean blue?

 Table of Contents
Why is the Sky Blue?
Why is the Sky Blue? *
Why is the Ocean Blue? *
Why is the Ocean Salty?
Why Do We Yawn?
Why Do We Hiccup? *
Why Do People Blush? *
Why Do We Dream?
Why Do Cats Purr? *
Why Does Ice Float? *
Why Does Hair Turn Gray? *
Why are Manhole Covers Round?
Why Does the Earth Spin? *
Why is There a Leap Year? *
How is Honey Made? *
How is Glass Made?
How is a Pearl Formed? *
How is A Star Born? *
Why Does It Rain?

Certificate of Completion
Answer Sheets

* Has an Answer Sheet

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 WHY AND
WHYHOW
AND SERIES
HOW

Why
Whyisisthe
thesky
skyblue?
blue?
To understand why the sky is
blue, we must first understand
the physics of light and color. red
orange
yellow
The light from the sun seems white to us, green rainbow
but white light is actually made up of all blue
the colors of the spectrum: red, orange, white light indigo
violet
yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet!

We see objects in color because those objects

absorb some of the colors in white light, and
reflect the colors that we see! For example, prism
grass reflects the color green and absorbs all
the other colors.

The sky is blue because it has to travel

QUESTION & ANSWER: through Earth’s atmosphere, where
there are lots of gases that absorb red,
orange and yellow colors. Then, the blue
What colors make up the white light of the sun? light gets scattered all across the sky,
which is what we see when we look into
the sky.

If you see a blue car, what color/s does it reflect?

If you see a red apple, what color/s does it absorb?

 WHY AND
WHYHOW
AND SERIES
HOW

Why
Whyisisthe
theocean
sky blue?
blue?
The ocean appears blue
to us because of the light
from the sun.

d
ge
re
We often think that the sun’s light just

an
gr low
or
allows us to see, but without light, colors

n
l
ye
ee
wouldn’t even exist!

ol o
g
di
et
in
vi
What we see as white light from the sun is
all the other
actually a combination of all the colors of colors are absorbed
the rainbow. Try and imagine red, orange,
yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet rays
of light streaming from the sun. Objects
either absorb or reflect these rays.

QUESTION & ANSWER:

When the sun’s light hits the ocean,
the red, orange, yellow, green, indigo
What colors make up the light from the sun? and violet rays are absorbed so that
we can’t see them! Only the blue light
is reflected. The ocean itself isn’t really
blue; we’re just seeing the reflected
blue light.
What color/s does the ocean reflect?

What color/s does the ocean absorb?

 WHY AND
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AND SERIES
HOW

Why
Whyisisthe
theocean
sky blue?
salty?

The ocean has been salty for a long time–way before

humans were around to use it as a seasoning!
Millions of years ago when our planet
was first forming, gasses from deep
within the earth started bubbling up to
the surface. These gasses contained tons
of salt, and when they bubbled up into the
ocean, the salt was released.

Today, rain water continues to deposit

even more salt into the ocean. When
rain droplets fall on land, they often
pick up pieces of salt. Some of these
droplets slip and slide across the land
to eventually reach the ocean.

ACTIVITY:

Make your own salt water by mixing

several teaspoonfuls of regular table
salt into a glass of water. Leave it out
on a sunny windowsill for a couple of
days. The water will evaporate, but
salt residue will stay in the glass.
+
Why do you think this happens?
 WHY AND
WHYHOW
AND SERIES
HOW

Why
Whydoiswe
theyawn?
sky blue?
We often yawn because we are sleepy or bored. Sometimes
we even yawn because someone next to us yawned.
Scientists have a lot of theories to explain why That’s why we take a yawn, which is essentially
these situations cause us to yawn, but nobody just a bigger breath than usual. Another theory
knows exactly why it happens. One theory is states that our bodies are trying to cool our
that our bodies are trying to get more oxygen. brains by taking in more air.

ACTIVITY:

Did you know that the average adult yawns 20 times per day? Ask the members of your
family to keep track of their yawns for one whole day. Graph the results here.
20
19
18
17
16
15
14
Number of Yawns

13
12
11
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0

Family Members
 WHY AND
WHYHOW
AND SERIES
HOW

Why
Whydoiswe
thehiccup?
sky blue?
The often annoying There are lots of “home remedies”
hiccup happens when that people use to get rid of the
our diaphragms get upset. hiccups. Lots of them are silly.

The diaphragm is a muscle at the bottom of Do you think any of these methods
the rib cage that helps pull air into our lungs actually work? Why or why not?
when we breathe. Every once in a while, the
Eat a spoonful of sugar.
diaphragm gets irritated and starts pulling air
into the lungs the wrong way. We experience Drink water from the opposite side of the glass.
this as a hiccup.
Chug a glass of water.
Eating too quickly, drinking cold beverages, Hold your breath.
and swallowing air are just a handful of ways
Get SCARED!
the diaphragm can get upset enough to cause
hiccups. In other words, the diaphragm can be Cover your ears.
kind of sensitive.
What methods do you use to cure
your hiccups?

QUESTION & ANSWER:

Hiccups are caused by the involuntary

contraction of what muscle?

Write down some ways that the diaphragm

can be irritated.
 WHY AND
WHYHOW
AND SERIES
HOW

Why
Whydoispeople
the skyblush?
blue?
When some people get embarrassed, their cheeks turn red.
We call this blushing, and it also can occur when a person is
anxious or angry.
The science behind blushing is pretty Did you know that some people
simple: your body sends extra blood to your are afraid of blushing? The fear
face which causes your cheeks to redden. of blushing is called erythrophobia.
The reason this happens is not so clear.
Scientists have suggested that our bodies
Why do you think people sufer
blush to reveal how we really feel. Next
from erythrophobia?
time you’re anxious to get in a game or
embarrassed that you dropped your ice
cream on the floor, your cheeks just might
give you away!

QUESTION & ANSWER:

What causes your cheeks to redden?

What is a possible reason behind blushing?

What is erythrophobia?
 WHY AND
WHYHOW
AND SERIES
HOW

Why
Whydoiswe
thedream?
sky blue?
In our dreams, we can be anything from superheroes to animal
tamers, but we can also be pursued by monsters or arrive late to
school. But why do we have certain dreams? Do our dreams mean
anything? Scientists have lots of theories to answer these questions,
but no real answers quite yet.
Dreaming may be our bodies’ way of storing Another theory is that dreams help our
up memories and thoughts. Throughout the bodies interpret what our brains have been
day, we each create a nearly infinite amount thinking about. If you dream about missing
of experiences. These experiences may the bus and forgetting all your school supplies,
organize themselves in our brains as dreams. you may be nervous about school starting.

Zzzzz....

I TY:
I V
ACT We remember our dreams best immediately after we
wake up. Keep a notepad by your bed tonight and write
down everything you remember tomorrow morning.
Can you figure out why you dreamed what you did?
 WHY AND
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HOW

Why
Whydoiscats
the sky
purr?
blue?
Cats purr for the same reason approached by a human he likes or another cat.
that humans sigh, smile and This second type of purr simply communicates that
the cat welcomes the visitor. Lastly, cats use the
sing. It’s a communication tool reassuring purr when they are afraid. Scientists
that means diferent things at believe that purring calms the cat, in the same way
diferent times. humans sometimes sing when they’re nervous to
make them feel better.
A cat’s purr can be broken down into three
separate categories: the happy purr, the
friendly purr and the reassuring purr.

The happy purr is the most popular purr. When

you scratch a cat behind the ears, the purr
signals the cat’s own comfort and enjoyment.
The friendly purr often happens when a cat is

Identification:
Mechanics behind a purr:
Purrs involve various muscles in a cat’s body.
Based on the reading, identify what type of purr The larynx, or voice box, and diaphragm play
cats make in these situations: key roles in the mechanics of purring.

a cat being scratched

two cats walking towards
each other
((
((
( (
vocal cords
a cat at a vet ( )
when a cat gets a treat The diaphragm moves
the air in and out of
a mother cat giving birth the vibrating vocal
cords which causes
when approached by the sound.
a stranger
 WHY AND
WHYHOW
AND SERIES
HOW

Why
Whydoes
is the
icesky
float?
blue?

Even though ice is the solid form ACTIVITY:

of water, it actually has a lower
density than its liquid counterpart.
Try your own experiment. You know that
When water freezes, its molecules actually
ice cubes float in water, but what about
spread out a bit and organize themselves
other liquids? Record your findings here.
into crystal arrangements. Water molecules,
on the other hand, have tightly packed
molecules. So when you put an ice cube into
a glass of water, the ice cannot sink to the
bottom of the glass because the molecules
in the water are too dense.

ice molecules cold water

molecules
 WHY AND
WHYHOW
AND SERIES
HOW

Why
Whydoes
is the
hair
skyturn
blue?
gray?

To find out why hair turns QUESTION & ANSWER:

gray we have to investigate
What are the tubes of tissue that
hair follicles. surround the roots of each hair strand?
Hair follicles are tubes of tissue that
surround the roots of each hair strand.
Inside the hair follicles are pigment cells
that determine if our hair is red, brown, Located inside the hair follicles, what
black or blond. As people age, their hair determines the color of our hair?
follicles start to die. Without enough
pigment cells from these dying hair
follicles, hair gradually turns gray or white.

HAIR What helps determine whether a person’s

hair turns gray or white?

FOLLICLE

There isn’t a certain age when every person

starts getting gray hair. It depends on each
individual’s genes. A good way to predict
when or if someone you know might get
gray hair is to look at that person’s parents
or grandparents.
 WHY AND
WHYHOW
AND SERIES
HOW

Whyare
Why is manhole
the sky blue?
covers round?
Manhole covers are removable metal plates that cover manholes.
They have been around at least since ancient Rome, where there
were stone sewer grates.
They are round for several different reasons.
The round shape is easiest to roll when
workers need to maneuver the covers out of
the way. Workers don’t have to rotate the cover
in a certain way to fit it back in the hole. You
can also get scientific about manhole covers.
A round manhole cannot fall into the circular
hole it covers, but any other shape could if it
were to fall in diagonally.

TRIVIA: Scientists also say that round

manhole covers resist compression
Did you know that big companies from the Earth’s crust and prevent
traffic from dislodging them.
like Microsoft and Google used
to ask potential employees why
manhole covers are round?
Why do you think technological
companies would ask this during
a job interview?
What would your answer be?
 WHY AND
WHYHOW
AND SERIES
HOW

Why
Whydoes
is the
thesky
earth
blue?
spin?
The Earth spins because there is nothing in its way to stop it!
Long before our planet was a solid sphere,
there was just a mass of dust and gas. Earth
was formed when all this matter began to spin.
That’s how most planets and stars are formed!

Thousands of years later, the spinning cloud of

dust and gas became our planet, and thanks
to our position in the Solar System, neither the
sun nor the moon had the power to slow Earth’s
rotation enough to halt it completely.

QUESTION & ANSWER:

What was Earth before it became a solid sphere?

Imagine the Earth did not spin.

How was Earth formed? How would this afect your life?

Remember that the Earth’s

rotation is responsible for the
sun rising and setting. If the
Can the sun and the moon stop Earth from spinning? Earth did not spin, parts of our
planet would spend half a year
in darkness and another half a
year in full sunlight.
 WHY AND
WHYHOW
AND SERIES
HOW

Why
Whyisisthere
the sky
a leap
blue?
year?
The month of February NORTH POLE

usually has 28 days, but

every four years it has 29. SPRING

To understand this we have

to understand what a year is. EARTH’S ORBIT
SOUTH POLE

One year is supposed to match the time it

takes for the Earth to orbit the Sun. However,
the match isn’t perfect. Our year equals 365
days, but it takes Earth about 365 ¼ days WINTER
SUMMER
to complete its orbit. That little fraction may
seem insignificant, but every four years it
adds up to a complete day. We give that
extra day to February and call it leap year. AUTUMN

QUESTION & ANSWER:

Why is it called leap year when we’re
How long does it take the Earth to complete actually adding a day? It seems like it
its orbit? might make more sense to call it some
thing like plus day or add day. We call it
leap year because the addition of that one
How often does a leap year occur? day effectively leaps the rest of that year
forward by 24 hours.

What is a person born on February 29th called? A “leap year baby” is someone
who is born on the last day of
February in a leap year. Would
A leap year consists of how many days?
a leap year baby age diferently
than everyone else?
 WHY AND
WHYHOW
AND SERIES
HOW

How
Whyisishoney
the sky
made?
blue?
Without bees we wouldn’t have any delicious honey to sweeten
our toast or tea. Honey bees work tirelessly to produce honey in
a multi-step process that is both wonderful and a bit disgusting.
First, honey bees have to use their The bees then lap their wings to help
tongues to slurp out the pollen and the mixture thicken before covering
nectar from lowers. They actually the combs with a wax cap.
digest all of this, allowing the pollen
After beekeepers take out these
and nectar to mix with the proteins
honeycombs, all they need to do is
and enzymes of their stomachs. When
process and clean out the combs a bit.
the honey bees return to their hive,
The odd combination of lower parts
they regurgitate–a fancy word for
and bee proteins is now honey!
throwing up this pollen/nectar/protein
/enzyme mix into a beeswax comb.

Can you help our bee friend find his mate?

START

FINISH
 WHY AND
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HOW

How
Whyisisglass
the sky
made?
blue?
A beautiful glass window
doesn’t seem to have a lot
in common with the millions
of sand particles that cover
beaches, but you’d be surprised!
Glass is made by melting lots of sand
with several other chemicals like
sodium bicarbonate and lime. The
temperature has to be very hot–hot
enough to reduce the sand mixture to a
steaming liquid. Once the liquid starts ACTIVITY:
to cool, glassmakers have only a small
window of time to give it shape before Go on a glass treasure hunt in your
the sand liquid cools into a hardened own home! Record the different types
substance. If the glassmaker works of glass items you find. How do you
fast enough, he can make the glass think a glassmaker formed the glass
into anything from a vase to a window! into each unique shape?
 WHY AND
WHYHOW
AND SERIES
HOW

How
Whyisisathe
pearl
skyformed?
blue?
Have you ever had a small piece of dust get in your eye?
It was probably annoying, but when an oyster gets dust
inside its shell, it turns the dust speck into a pearl!
Oysters try and protect themselves from unwanted
visitors by covering any outside dust particles with a
mineral substance called nacre. Layers and layers of
nacre eventually form a pearl.
Natural pearls form when a piece of dust gets into an
oyster’s shell by chance. Cultured pearls are the result
of humans forcing a dust particle into an oyster’s shell.
Pearls are so popular today that a lot of people don’t
want to wait for a pearl to form naturally!

QUESTION & ANSWER:

Can you think of anything else
in nature that starts of small
How do oysters protect themselves? and plain, but after a long time
turns into something beautiful?

How do natural pearls form?

How do cultured pearls form?

 WHY AND
WHYHOW
AND SERIES
HOW

How
Whyisisathe
starsky
born?
blue?
A star is a big ball of plasma that
is formed from a cloud of dust
and gas.
Sometimes particles of dust and gas float by
each other in space without anything happening.
Other times gravity clumps these clouds together
into compact substances. The particles begin
bouncing off of each other, creating friction and
heat. Eventually, the heat becomes so intense
that it creates a nuclear reaction which releases
a massive amount of energy and light. The
resulting substance is a star.

QUESTION & ANSWER:

Did you know that celebrities
What is a star? and actors are often called stars?
Why do you think we compare
famous people to burning lights
in the sky?
What gets released after a nuclear reaction
involving intense heat?
 WHY AND
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HOW

Why
Whydoes
is the
it rain?
sky blue?
Rain comes from clouds, which
Experiment:
are themselves made up of lots
and lots of tiny droplets of water Note: Ask an adult to help you with this activity
that are holding on to each other. What You Need: saucepan ice cubes
water oven mitt
When the sun shines on the earth, it causes
Directions:
water to evaporate. The water can come from 1. Ask an adult to boil some water in a saucepan.
lakes, oceans, seas and even from your pool 2. Using oven mitts to protect your hands, hold a
tray of ice above the steam.
outside. As this water evaporates it rises to
3. Drops will begin to fall like rain from the tray.
the atmosphere. When it reaches an altitude
Why does this happen?
(height) where the temperature is very low, it
The cold surface of the ice cube tray cools the
condenses to form clouds. When heavy enough, steam from the boiling water, changing it back
these clouds release water droplets which fall into water in the form of rain drops.

back to the earth as rain or hail.

wind

sun’s heat

water vapor
rising
Great job!
is an Education.com science superstar
 Answer Sheets
Why is the Sky Blue?
Why is the Sky Blue?
Why is the Ocean Blue?
Why Do We Hiccup?
Why Do People Blush?
Why Do Cats Purr?
Why Does Ice Float?
Why Does Hair Turn Gray?
Why Does the Earth Spin?
Why is There a Leap Year?
How is Honey Made?
How is a Pearl Formed?
How is A Star Born?

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 Answer Sheet

WHY AND
WHYHOW
AND SERIES
HOW

Why
Whyisisthe
thesky
skyblue?
blue?
To understand why the sky is
blue, we must first understand
the physics of light and color. red
orange
yellow
The light from the sun seems white to us, green rainbow
but white light is actually made up of all blue
the colors of the spectrum: red, orange, white light indigo
violet
yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet!

We see objects in color because those objects

absorb some of the colors in white light, and
reflect the colors that we see! For example, prism
grass reflects the color green and absorbs all
the other colors.

The sky is blue because it has to travel

QUESTION & ANSWER: through Earth’s atmosphere, where
there are lots of gases that absorb red,
orange and yellow colors. Then, the blue
What colors make up the white light of the sun? light gets scattered all across the sky,
It is made up of all the colors of the spectrum like which is what we see when we look into
red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet. the sky.

If you see a blue car, what color/s does it reflect?

The blue car reflects the color blue.

If you see a red apple, what color/s does it absorb?

The red apple would absorb all the colors of the
spectrum except the color red.
 Answer Sheet

WHY AND
WHYHOW
AND SERIES
HOW

Why
Whyisisthe
theocean
sky blue?
blue?
The ocean appears blue
to us because of the light
from the sun.

or ed
ye nge
We often think that the sun’s light just

gr low
a
allows us to see, but without light, colors

n
l
ee
wouldn’t even exist!

ol o
g
di
et
in
vi
What we see as white light from the sun is
all the other
actually a combination of all the colors of colors are absorbed
the rainbow. Try and imagine red, orange,
yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet rays
of light streaming from the sun. Objects
either absorb or reflect these rays.

QUESTION & ANSWER:

When the sun’s light hits the ocean,
the red, orange, yellow, green, indigo
What colors make up the light from the sun? and violet rays are absorbed so that
It is a combination of all the colors of the rainbow we can’t see them! Only the blue light
is reflected. The ocean itself isn’t really
like red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet.
blue; we’re just seeing the reflected
blue light.
What color/s does the ocean reflect?
The ocean reflects the color blue.

What color/s does the ocean absorb?

The ocean absorbs all the colors of the spectrum
except the color blue.
 Answer Sheet

WHY AND
WHYHOW
AND SERIES
HOW

Why
Whydoiswe
thehiccup?
sky blue?
The often annoying There are lots of “home remedies”
hiccup happens when that people use to get rid of the
our diaphragms get upset. hiccups. Lots of them are silly.

The diaphragm is a muscle at the bottom of Do you think any of these methods
the rib cage that helps pull air into our lungs actually work? Why or why not?
when we breathe. Every once in a while, the
Eat a spoonful of sugar.
diaphragm gets irritated and starts pulling air
into the lungs the wrong way. We experience Drink water from the opposite side of the glass.
this as a hiccup.
Chug a glass of water.
Eating too quickly, drinking cold beverages, Hold your breath.
and swallowing air are just a handful of ways
Get SCARED!
the diaphragm can get upset enough to cause
hiccups. In other words, the diaphragm can be Cover your ears.
kind of sensitive.
What methods do you use to cure
your hiccups?

QUESTION & ANSWER:

Hiccups are caused by the involuntary

contraction of what muscle?
diaphragm

Write down some ways that the diaphragm

can be irritated.
eating too quickly, drinking cold beverages
and swallowing air
 Answer Sheet

WHY AND
WHYHOW
AND SERIES
HOW

Why
Whydoispeople
the skyblush?
blue?
When some people get embarrassed, their cheeks turn red.
We call this blushing, and it also can occur when a person is
anxious or angry.
The science behind blushing is pretty Did you know that some people
simple: your body sends extra blood to your are afraid of blushing? The fear
face which causes your cheeks to redden. of blushing is called erythrophobia.
The reason this happens is not so clear.
Scientists have suggested that our bodies
Why do you think people sufer
blush to reveal how we really feel. Next
from erythrophobia?
time you’re anxious to get in a game or
embarrassed that you dropped your ice
cream on the floor, your cheeks just might
give you away!

QUESTION & ANSWER:

What causes your cheeks to redden?

It is when the body sends excess blood to your face.

What is a possible reason behind blushing?

Blushing occurs when a person is anxious or angry.

What is erythrophobia?
It is the fear of blushing.
 Answer Sheet

WHY AND
WHYHOW
AND SERIES
HOW

Why
Whydoiscats
the sky
purr?
blue?
Cats purr for the same reason approached by a human he likes or another cat.
that humans sigh, smile and This second type of purr simply communicates that
the cat welcomes the visitor. Lastly, cats use the
sing. It’s a communication tool reassuring purr when they are afraid. Scientists
that means diferent things at believe that purring calms the cat, in the same way
diferent times. humans sometimes sing when they’re nervous to
make them feel better.
A cat’s purr can be broken down into three
separate categories: the happy purr, the
friendly purr and the reassuring purr.

The happy purr is the most popular purr. When

you scratch a cat behind the ears, the purr
signals the cat’s own comfort and enjoyment.
The friendly purr often happens when a cat is

Identification:
Mechanics behind a purr:
Purrs involve various muscles in a cat’s body.
Based on the reading, identify what type of purr The larynx, or voice box, and diaphragm play
cats make in these situations: key roles in the mechanics of purring.

happy purr a cat being scratched

friendly purr two cats walking towards
each other
((
((
( (
vocal cords
reassuring purr a cat at a vet ( )
happy purr when a cat gets a treat The diaphragm moves
reassuring purr the air in and out of
a mother cat giving birth the vibrating vocal
reassuring purr cords which causes
when approached by the sound.
a stranger
 Answer Sheet

WHY AND
WHYHOW
AND SERIES
HOW

Why
Whydoes
is the
icesky
float?
blue?

Even though ice is the solid form ACTIVITY:

of water, it actually has a lower
density than its liquid counterpart.
Try your own experiment. You know that
When water freezes, its molecules actually
ice cubes float in water, but what about
spread out a bit and organize themselves
other liquids? Record your findings here.
into crystal arrangements. Water molecules,
on the other hand, have tightly packed Olive Oil
molecules. So when you put an ice cube into
Vegetable Oil
a glass of water, the ice cannot sink to the
bottom of the glass because the molecules Nail Polish
in the water are too dense.
Oil Paint

Maple Syrup

ice molecules cold water

molecules
 Answer Sheet

WHY AND
WHYHOW
AND SERIES
HOW

Why
Whydoes
is the
hair
skyturn
blue?
gray?

To find out why hair turns QUESTION & ANSWER:

gray we have to investigate
What are the tubes of tissue that
hair follicles. surround the roots of each hair strand?
Hair follicles are tubes of tissue that Hair Follicles
surround the roots of each hair strand.
Inside the hair follicles are pigment cells
that determine if our hair is red, brown, Located inside the hair follicles, what
black or blond. As people age, their hair determines the color of our hair?
follicles start to die. Without enough Pigment Cells
pigment cells from these dying hair
follicles, hair gradually turns gray or white.

HAIR What helps determine whether a person’s

hair turns gray or white?

Genes

FOLLICLE

There isn’t a certain age when every person

starts getting gray hair. It depends on each
individual’s genes. A good way to predict
when or if someone you know might get
gray hair is to look at that person’s parents
or grandparents.
 Answer Sheet

WHY AND
WHYHOW
AND SERIES
HOW

Why
Whydoes
is the
thesky
earth
blue?
spin?
The Earth spins because there is nothing in its way to stop it!
Long before our planet was a solid sphere,
there was just a mass of dust and gas. Earth
was formed when all this matter began to spin.
That’s how most planets and stars are formed!

Thousands of years later, the spinning cloud of

dust and gas became our planet, and thanks
to our position in the Solar System, neither the
sun nor the moon had the power to slow Earth’s
rotation enough to halt it completely.

QUESTION & ANSWER:

What was Earth before it became a solid sphere?

A mass of dust and gas

Imagine the Earth did not spin.

How was Earth formed? How would this afect your life?
It was formed from the spinning cloud of dust
Remember that the Earth’s
and gas.
rotation is responsible for the
sun rising and setting. If the
Can the sun and the moon stop Earth from spinning? Earth did not spin, parts of our
No planet would spend half a year
in darkness and another half a
year in full sunlight.
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WHY AND
WHYHOW
AND SERIES
HOW

Why
Whyisisthere
the sky
a leap
blue?
year?
The month of February NORTH POLE

usually has 28 days, but

every four years it has 29. SPRING

To understand this we have

to understand what a year is. EARTH’S ORBIT
SOUTH POLE

One year is supposed to match the time it

takes for the Earth to orbit the Sun. However,
the match isn’t perfect. Our year equals 365
days, but it takes Earth about 365 ¼ days WINTER
SUMMER
to complete its orbit. That little fraction may
seem insignificant, but every four years it
adds up to a complete day. We give that
extra day to February and call it leap year. AUTUMN

QUESTION & ANSWER:

Why is it called leap year when we’re
How long does it take the Earth to complete actually adding a day? It seems like it
its orbit? might make more sense to call it some
It takes the Earth 365 ¼ days to complete its orbit. thing like plus day or add day. We call it
leap year because the addition of that one
How often does a leap year occur? day effectively leaps the rest of that year
A leap year occurs every 4 years. forward by 24 hours.

What is a person born on February 29th called? A “leap year baby” is someone
A leap year baby who is born on the last day of
February in a leap year. Would
A leap year consists of how many days?
a leap year baby age diferently
It consists of 366 days as opposed to a regular 365 days.
than everyone else?
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WHY AND
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HOW

How
Whyisishoney
the sky
made?
blue?
Without bees we wouldn’t have any delicious honey to sweeten
our toast or tea. Honey bees work tirelessly to produce honey in
a multi-step process that is both wonderful and a bit disgusting.
First, honey bees have to use their The bees then lap their wings to help
tongues to slurp out the pollen and the mixture thicken before covering
nectar from lowers. They actually the combs with a wax cap.
digest all of this, allowing the pollen
After beekeepers take out these
and nectar to mix with the proteins
honeycombs, all they need to do is
and enzymes of their stomachs. When
process and clean out the combs a bit.
the honey bees return to their hive,
The odd combination of lower parts
they regurgitate–a fancy word for
and bee proteins is now honey!
throwing up this pollen/nectar/protein
/enzyme mix into a beeswax comb.

Can you help our bee friend find his mate?

START

FINISH
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WHY AND
WHYHOW
AND SERIES
HOW

How
Whyisisathe
pearl
skyformed?
blue?
Have you ever had a small piece of dust get in your eye?
It was probably annoying, but when an oyster gets dust
inside its shell, it turns the dust speck into a pearl!
Oysters try and protect themselves from unwanted
visitors by covering any outside dust particles with a
mineral substance called nacre. Layers and layers of
nacre eventually form a pearl.
Natural pearls form when a piece of dust gets into an
oyster’s shell by chance. Cultured pearls are the result
of humans forcing a dust particle into an oyster’s shell.
Pearls are so popular today that a lot of people don’t
want to wait for a pearl to form naturally!

QUESTION & ANSWER:

Can you think of anything else
in nature that starts of small
How do oysters protect themselves? and plain, but after a long time
They protect themselves by covering any outside turns into something beautiful?
dust particles with a mineral substance called nacre.

How do natural pearls form?

They form when a piece of dust gets into an oyster’s
shell by chance.

How do cultured pearls form?

They form when humans force a dust particle into an
oyster’s shell.
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WHY AND
WHYHOW
AND SERIES
HOW

How
Whyisisathe
starsky
born?
blue?
A star is a big ball of plasma that
is formed from a cloud of dust
and gas.
Sometimes particles of dust and gas float by
each other in space without anything happening.
Other times gravity clumps these clouds together
into compact substances. The particles begin
bouncing off of each other, creating friction and
heat. Eventually, the heat becomes so intense
that it creates a nuclear reaction which releases
a massive amount of energy and light. The
resulting substance is a star.

QUESTION & ANSWER:

Did you know that celebrities
What is a star? and actors are often called stars?
It is a big ball of plasma that is formed from a cloud Why do you think we compare
of dust and gas. famous people to burning lights
in the sky?
What gets released after a nuclear reaction
involving intense heat?
A massive amount of energy and light gets released.