How Things Work
by Amanda Formaro

 A fun way to teach your kids "Deduction and Reason"

Don’t throw away those old, broken appliances, battery clocks, old
telephones or computer components! Put them into a big box, CUT OFF THE ELECTRICAL CORDS and save them for a ‘How Things Work’ day.

Spread an old sheet or quilt on the floor or padded work surface, choose a
broken appliance and some simple tools with a pair of gloves, if necessary. (For a young child, the parent should remove screws and metal clips that hold the broken item together, making sure to check for any sharp edges or small parts that could prove dangerous.)

With a pad for notes handy, your child takes the object apart and makes
notes of how he/she would put it back together, what else any of the parts
could be used for, if he/she recognizes the function of the parts, what made the object ‘break’ and how one may go about fixing it.

Carefully following their notes, the object is then put back together.
Since the object doesn’t work, you should ask if there is anything inside
that your child thinks he/she could use for another purpose (i.e. computer
circuit boards can be used as ‘walls’ for a miniature sci-fi setting,
numbers and letters from an old keyboard can be used for decorating picture frames or spelling words, etc.).

Note: Do not take anything apart that may hold an electrical charge, like a television, computer monitor, computer power supply, etc. 

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