By Curt Gabrielson

There's no bette way to understand how something works than to build it yourself. How does a toilet flush? Find out with a plastic drink bottle and a length of flexible tubing. What about the fingers on your hand? Construct a working model of their muscles, bones, and tendons using drinking straws, craft sticks, tape, and string. And how do musical instruments make sounds? Explore the many methods by creating your own harmonica, saxophone, marimba, oboe, and guitar.

These and dozens of other hands-on projects can be found in Stomp Rockets, Catapults, and Kaleidoscopes. Kids will learn how to build a:

* Heart pump
* Rubber band racer
* Mini-bot
* Electric car
* Helicopter
* Lung model
* Tornado in a bottle
* Hydraulic butterfly
* Crane
* And more!

Each project has been designedt to use recycled or nearly free materials. Kids will gain experience working with common tools and be encouraged to modify and improve their designs. Includes step-by-step instructions with photographs, and summaries of the science behind the projects.