Give it a Try, It’s DIY! Let’s Make a Tornado in a Bottle

How to make your very own tornado

Here at GoStudent, we like to make learning fun! If you want something crafty and educational to do with your child, watch our video on how to make your very own tornado – the step-by-step guide is below! 🌪️

For your tornado, you’ll need:

• An empty glass bottle with a lid (an empty glass jar is also fine)
• 3-4 tablespoons of glitter (the more the better!)
• Water

Before we get started:

• While glitter is super-pretty, it seems less so when it goes everywhere so we recommend putting down some paper *just in case* of glitter spillages.

OK, let’s go!

1.  Pour or spoon the glitter into the bottle. If the opening of the bottle is small, use a funnel to pour the glitter in.
2. Fill the bottle ¾ full of water.
3. Screw the lid on tightly.
4. Turn the bottle upside down and quickly move the bottle in a circular motion for 10-15 seconds.
5. Put the bottle down on the table and voila – watch the tornado! 🤩

Want to share some fun facts about tornados with your child? Keep reading!

What are some interesting facts about tornados?

• The UK experiences about 35 tornadoes every year.
• Because of their circular movement, tornadoes are sometimes called twisters.
•  Most tornadoes only manage to travel a few miles before dying out – phew! 😅
• The deadliest tornado that ever took place happened in 1989 in Bangladesh. It killed around 1300 people. 
• Want to know the safest place to be when a tornado strikes? Underground – therefore, many people escape to their basement.
• Tornadoes that are formed over water are called waterspouts. 💦
• The winds of tornadoes can reach up to 480km per hour. That’s strong enough to throw a car hundreds of metres. 🚗
• Tornadoes are measured using the Fujita Scale (also called the F-Scale) with the range being between F0 and F5. The measurement that indicates the strongest and most destructive tornado is F5.
• It’s not easy to see all tornadoes and, in fact, they only become visible when they start picking up dust and debris, or when a cloud forms within the spinning funnel.
• The way a tornado is formed is so complex that scientists still don’t completely understand them, and because of their unpredictability, they’re difficult and dangerous to study. 😟

What are the best books to help my child understand science?

If your child is really into science, or, on the other hand, their interest is a little lacklustre, we’ve compiled some science books that will hopefully get them riveted about the wonderful worlds of biology, chemistry, and physics. 🤓

• See Inside Your Body written by Katie Daynes
  A fun and colourful flap book that shows the inner workings of the human body, expect bold, original illustrations paired with clear and informative text. The bonus? Over 50 embedded flaps that children can lift to reveal more fascinating information.

• Unlocking the Universe written by Stephen and Lucy Hawking
  Written by world-famous English theoretical physicist and cosmologist, Stephen Hawking, and his journalist daughter, Lucy, this book is made up of easy-to-read essays, amazing facts and wonderful photographs. From learning about what it takes to put humans on the moon to what you would do if you could travel through space and time, your child will embark on an extra-special scientific journey within these pages.

• Meet the Planets written by Mrs Caryl Hart
  Does your young scientist have a penchant for planets? This book is just for them; written to be read aloud thanks to some excellent rhyming, and featuring vibrant illustrations, budding astronauts will love this expedition into the solar system. 🪐

• Scientists: Inspiring tales of the world's brightest scientific minds written by DK
  Comprising stories about science’s smartest minds, every page in this book tells the tale of a famous scientist’s life and how their contribution made a difference in their field. From Stephen Hawking and Marie Curie to Mary Anning, a pioneering palaeontologist, and Neil deGrasse Tyson, an astrophysicist, your child’s mind will be blown at the genius talent on show here – enjoy!
• Exploring the Elements: A Complete Guide to the Periodic Table written by Isabel Thomas
  Let’s be honest, the periodic table is confusing to say the least. Luckily, this book is a comprehensive guide to all 118 chemical elements and how we use them. Featuring each element’s letter symbol and atomic number along with its characteristics and uses, science enthusiasts and curious minds alike will really enjoy this vivid chemistry guide.

If your child enjoyed making their very own tornado, maybe they’d like to learn how to make a stress ball too! They’re perfect for taking the edge off at exam time.

Whether your young one is a budding scientist or finds biology to be a bore, our fantastic tutors will do their best to develop scientific minds so that schoolwork becomes a breeze. Book a free trial lesson today!