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PEEP Family Science: Ramps

Parents and children explore ramps indoors and outdoors. Together, they’ll experiment with ramps that are steep, test how objects move down ramps with smooth and rough surfaces, discover that some things roll while others slide down ramps, and invent some ramps of their own.

Download the App

Download the App

This PEEP Family Science app features four weeks on the science of ramps and movement. It includes:

  • Videos of animated stories from the TV show PEEP and the Big Wide World
  • Live-action videos featuring real children
  • Hands-on activity instructions
  • Parent videos, which model how to do the activities

Instructions

If you need help downloading the app to your phone or tablet:

  • We recommend you download the app over Wi-Fi if you don’t want to use your phone’s data plan. 
  • Home visiting organizations may want to supply parents with Wi-Fi or suggest places where they can get free access.
  • Once the app is downloaded, it works completely offline: you won’t need your phone’s data plan or the Internet to use the app!
For Educators

For Educators

The Educator Guide covers everything you need to support and encourage parents as they explore ramps with their children. It walks you step-by-step through each week of the PEEP Family Science app.

For educators who want more background on the PEEP approach to preschool science, you can find sections on the PEEP parent strategies, problem-solving tips, and using educational media with children.


 
 

Weekly Printouts for Ramps

To explore ramps, all parents need is the PEEP Family Science app. However, in case parents want to refer to a printout rather than the app while doing the activity, here are the printouts of all the activities that are in the app.

Ramps Week 1: Sliding Down Ramps

Explore slides and ramps and how things move down them.


 

Ramps Week 2: Sliding and Rolling

Discover that some things roll down ramps and other things slide.


 

Ramps Week 3: Different Kinds of Ramps

Explore ramps with different surfaces, both indoors and outdoors.


 

Ramps Week 4: Rolling Up, Down, and Around

Make a ball go up and down a ramp. Then, make a ramp with turns.

Videos

Videos

Educator Video

This video outlines the critical role educators play in supporting and encouraging parents doing PEEP Family Science. Educators can watch the video on their own, or their organizations may want to feature it during a staff meeting or orientation.

Educator Video: Getting Started (6:15)

Watch a home educator introduce the PEEP Family Science app to a mom; model a science activity; discuss the PEEP parent strategies; and help build the mom’s confidence in doing science with her child.

Parent Videos

Parents will find these videos in the app at the beginning of Week 1 and Week 3. Watching them is a great way to get started with that week’s activities. If educators have the time, we recommend they watch and discuss the videos together with parents. To enhance the viewing experience, there are video-viewing questions in the Educator Guide.

Ramps Week 1 (3:55)

Watch a mom and her son explore ramps for the first time, indoors and outdoors.

Ramps Week 3 (4:09)

Watch a mom and her son have a ramp race and then experiment with ramps that have rough and smooth surfaces.

Peep Videos

Week 1

The Whatchamacallit

Peep, Quack, and Chirp discover how much fun it is to slide.

Week 2

Snow Daze

Peep and his friends find things that slide and sled down a snowy hill.

Week 3

Homemade Hill

Children play with ramps that are rough and smooth.

Down They Go

Children roll things down a hill and a sidewalk.

Week 4

Marble Mover

Peep and his friends try to roll a marble up a hill. It’s harder than you think!
Games

Games

Some PEEP games can be played online (requires Wi-Fi); others can be downloaded as apps. If parents have room on their phones for additional apps, encourage them to download these free PEEP games on ramps, which are closely related to the science activities families will be doing. The games can be found in the app store along with the PEEP Family Science apps. High-quality educational games are a great way to increase children’s learning (but parents should limit their young children’s overall screen time to an hour a day).

Quack Snacks

Use ramps to guide a berry into Quack’s mouth.

Quack’s Apples

Help Quack roll apples down a hill.
Parent Handouts

Parent Handouts

Recommended Books and Online Games about Ramps

Books and online educational games are a great way for children to explore ramps. This handout lists recommended books and PEEP online games about ramps and includes guidelines for reading together and using online media.

The Parent Strategies

Throughout the app and the videos, PEEP encourages parents to use three strategies to help get their children excited by science: Play and Explore, Ask Questions and Talk about Ideas, and Explore More! Distribute this handout to remind parents of the strategies. They’re not only useful for doing PEEP but help with many other family interactions.

For Site Coordinators

For Program Site Coordinators

This brief guide offers a quick rundown of all the PEEP Family Science resources and can help organizations put together a meeting or orientation session for educators and other staff members.