Simple Preschool Science Activities with Ice and Water

Water and ice are two of the easiest materials to use when introducing preschoolers to science. They’re low-prep, engaging, and full of opportunities for hands-on exploring. These activities are ideal for warm summer days, but most of them work just as well indoors with a towel underneath whatever the weather. They’re also a gentle way to introduce big ideas like melting, freezing, prediction, and observation through play. So here are five simple preschool science activities using ice and water to get you started.

Ice and Water Science for Preschoolers

Ice and water are perfect for early science exploration. They are familiar, safe to handle, and naturally fascinating to young children. Just watching ice melt or water ripple can spark questions and curiosity.

These simple materials help introduce important science concepts like:

• Temperature and change
• Cause and effect
• Observation and prediction
• Comparing and classifying

They also encourage hands-on learning through play, which is how preschoolers learn best. You do not need special tools or detailed explanations. Just a few materials and some time to explore together can lead to great learning moments.

Here are our favourite ideas for water and ice science with little kids.

1. Ice Paints

This is one of our favourite creative science activities. Freeze coloured water in an ice cube tray with craft sticks or lollipop sticks. Once frozen, children can use the ice cubes to paint on paper and watch as the colours mix and melt.

As they paint, prompt simple observations like:

• What happens when you hold the ice longer?
• What colours appear when they mix?
• Which colours melt the fastest?

Check out the full instructions and ideas in How to Make Ice Paints

2. Ice Cream Melting Experiment

This is a fun and delicious way to explore melting on a warm day. Give your child a small scoop of ice cream on a plate or in a bowl. Place one scoop in the sun and one in the shade, or try two different surfaces like wood and metal.

Ask your child:

• Which scoop do you think will melt faster?
• What’s different about where they are?
• How can we slow the melting down?

As the ice cream melts, observe the changes together and talk about what’s happening.

This activity pairs perfectly with the book Wemberly’s Ice-Cream Star by Kevin Henkes. Read the story first, then follow it up with your own melting investigation. Check out the full idea with extensions here.

3. Dinosaur Ice Eggs

This one is always a hit. Freeze small plastic dinosaurs or other toys inside balloons filled with water. Once frozen, peel off the balloon and place the “ice eggs” in a tray or in the garden.

Give your child tools like salt, warm water in droppers, or spoons to try and “rescue” the dinosaur. It’s a brilliant mix of sensory play and science observation.

Check the idea and top tips for a Dinosaur Ice Egg Excavation here.

4. Sink or Float: Water Edition

Fill a large container, washing-up bowl or your water table with water and collect everyday items like spoons, corks, buttons, leaves, and coins. Ask your child to guess which items will sink and which will float. Drop them in one by one and talk about the results. This simple activity introduces early scientific thinking, prediction, and classification.

You can turn this into an ongoing game by encouraging your child to find new items to test around the house or garden. Check out the full idea, reading recommendations and more here.

5. Ice Smash

Freeze small items like flowers, LEGO bricks, or coloured pom-poms into an ice tray or muffin tin. Once frozen, pop them out onto a tray and provide a child-safe hammer, spoon, or mallet for your child to break the ice.

This is a fantastic gross motor activity, and it opens up discussion about how ice forms and changes. Add food colouring or glitter for extra interest. Check out simple instructions on how to do that here.