Why do I have to go to bed?

Bedtime is one of my favourites times of the day. For me, going to bed is a time to get comfy and snuggle down under my duvet, head on pillow, for a good night’s sleep. Lovely.

But my daughters have other ideas at their bedtimes – they want to stay up late, read books, watch TV or play games. I insist on a routine of calming down (no TV or games!), cleaning teeth and brushing hair, maybe a bath, a short story and getting off to sleep as quickly and quietly as possible.

And our cat sleeps for most of the day and the night – he thinks sleeping is great!

So why is it so important to go to bed? What good does sleep do?

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Why don’t you get upside-down in a mirror?

Have you ever held up a shiny metal spoon in front of your face to see your reflection? And have you noticed that your reflection changes if you switch from looking at one side of the spoon to the other? Your face will be the right way up when you look at the back of the spoon but upside-down when you look at the bowl of the spoon.

The other morning, my elder daughter was studying her face in a spoon instead of using it to eat her breakfast. She noticed the change in her reflection when turning the spoon around and it got her thinking: Why am I upside-down on one side of the spoon? Why does a spoon work like a mirror? And why don’t I ever look upside-down in a mirror?

The answer to all these questions is physics, so let’s find out more…!

Do sharks hibernate?

Hamsters are the latest pet obsession in our house – the 8-year-old wants one but Daddy has said “No”.

The girls have friends and cousins with hamster pets and they know lots of facts about the furry little creatures. “Apparently, they hibernate in the Winter” our eldest told us, as she and her sister tried to list all the animals they could think of that hibernate. “But what about sharks?” asked the 4-year-old. “Can they hibernate?”

How is my tongue joined on?

My 4yo has recently figured out how to roll her tongue into a tube-shape. She’s delighted with this new skill but now wants to know all about how her tongue works. So for delight and enjoyment, here’s a set of interesting facts and figures about tongues!