The Magic School Bus Meets Molly Cule
Field Trip Notes
When Wanda's favorite singer, Molly Cule, comes to town, she chooses Ms. Frizzle's class to wash her famous car. The kids clean the car top to bottom, but Molly insists they missed a spot. Only when they shrink small enough to see molecules can they clean the car down to the very last bit - but time is running out, and they need a molecular miracle to get the job done before Molly's concert begins.
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Matchmaker, Matchmaker
Going Hands-On
Time: 50 minutes
Group Size: 4
Ralphie discovers that soap and water slip grease and grime away because of the special characteristics of soap molecules. Your kids investigate some characteristics of oil, water, and soap.
What You Need
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- Dishpan of water
- Paper towels
- Liquid detergent
- Copies of MATCHMAKER, MATCHMAKER page
- 2 tumblers of water
- 2 tablespoons cooking oil
- 1 tablespoon liquid detergent
- Spoon
Talk About It
Pass around samples of oil, water, and liquid soap. Ask: What are some characteristics of water? Oil? Soap? List responses. Ask: Do the teeniest-tiniest bits (molecules) of these things determine these properties? (yes)
What To Do
- Let kids touch the substances. Ask: How do they feel? Is how they feel a characteristic? (yes)
- Have kids dip a finger in oil and then try to rinse it off with water alone. Ask: Does the oil come off? Hocould we remove it?
- During the activity, students will discover that soap and water mix, while oil floats on top of water. Challenge kids: Can you mix oil and water? Record kids’ ideas. If possible, let them experiment with some of their ideas.
- After kids add soap to the oil and water, ask: What did the soap do to the oil and water? (Soap mixes oil and water because on end of the soap molecule is water-loving, while the other clings to oil. Stirring in soap creates a cloudy suspension of tiny oil droplets surrounded by soap molecules - an emulsion.)
- Ask: Why do soap and water clean oil and grime? (The oil-loving end of the soap molecule surrounds and lifts the oil; water rinses it away.)
Next Stop
Draw timelines of the kids’ rocks. Decide on a time scale, and let kids give their ideas for: where their rock was a very long time ago and what it looked like; where it was found; where it will be and how it will look a long time in the future.
- Scholastic Store
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The Magic School Bus Science Chapter Book #7: The Great Shark Escape
The Scholastic Store 
The Magic School Bus Science Chapter Book #7: The Great Shark Escape
by Joanna Cole and Bruce DegenThe popular and information-filled Magic School Bus stories are now offered in chapter book format. Loaded with science information and humor, these are sure to be a hit with anyone who's the least bit curious about sharks. So take a seat behind the Friz!
$3.99 You save: 20%
books;paperback books | Ages 7-9
Ages 7-9 $3.99
- Scholastic Store
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Magic School Bus Science Kit Set
The Scholastic Store 
Magic School Bus Science Kit Set
Three School Bus Science Kit:
$47.88 You save: 20%
In the World of Germs kit, Young Scientists will grow fungi, test antibiotics, cultivate bacteria in yogurt, use yeast to inflate a balloon, and more!
In the Journey into the Human Body kit where they'll bend bones, map taste buds, build a stethoscope, measure heart rates, perform the iodine starch test along with many more fascinating experiments!
Our Mysteries of Rainbows kit has a dazzling array of experiments, from learning to bounce light waves off ceilings and make rainbow milk, to blowing rainbow bubbles and recreating Newton's prism experiment.
Based on the popular Magic School Bus book series by Joanna Cole and Bruce Degen, these science kits include coloful booklets featuring Ms. Frizzle and friends, along with all the tools needed to perform each exciting, hands-on experiments.
Note to parents:
We recommend that all experiments be performed under adult supervision.
toys and games;science kits;science kits and projects | Ages 6 and Up
Ages 6 and Up $47.88
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