Between the recent eclipse and the Transit of Venus, my kids’ interest in astronomy has been piqued. We tracked down several pairs of special glasses to view both events and spent quite a bit of time talking about why you shouldn’t look directly at the sun.

Remembering summers spent burning ants with magnifying glasses (don’t judge me), I thought it would be fun to show my kids how powerful the sun really is. We pulled out our magnifying glasses and used the power of the sun to burn holes through leaves — classic fun for little boys.

Supplies Needed

• Baking sheet
• Magnifying glass
• Leaves

Instructions

This is a great test of patience for younger kids. They’ll have to hold their hands steady in order to burn a hole in the leaf. You likely won’t create any flames with this activity. We saw the occasional puff of smoke but for the most part it just singed a small hole in the leaf.

My kids were so completely drawn in by this activity and begged to do it again the next day.