My background: I've been teaching math and science for 20 years, and I have a 3 year old of my own. Brief thoughts: It's not so much about a Sunday afternoon e

My background: I've been teaching math and science for 20 years, and I have a 3 year old of my own. Brief thoughts: It's not so much about a Sunday afternoon event, as it is for how they see their world every day. So: Tell them when they ask insightful questions. Answer every question they ask about how things work, sparing them no detail they're interested in hearing. (Spare them harsh realities for a while. Be honest about the fact that people die, but don't dwell on that.) Give them big principles at a young age - principles of science such as identifying questions, gathering evidence, testing ideas, being open to new ideas and refinements of ideas that work. Tell them that heat is a thing and cold is the absence of heat, light is a thing and darkness is the absence of light. Help them see that everything that exists was developed by someone - avoid using the vague "they". Say "European scientists just landed a probe on a comet!" That's much more powerful than "they". People who can say who "they" is can influence the world. All that said, rituals like a weekly time dedicated to making things together is a wonderful idea. People will remember the daily perspective they grew up with, and they'll remember the rituals we immersed them in. The greatest gift we can give our kids is exposure to many experiences, and the willingness to dive into the things they love.