How do Polaroid cameras work and where do tree roots end? The kids’ quiz

1. Isla, 5, asks: how do Polaroid cameras work?

   1. They have tiny artists inside who create photos

   2. Light travels through the lens on to film inside which has special chemicals (like dyes) that react with light to make a photo appear

   3. They print a photo with ink, just like a printer

   4. They collect pixels in the scene to form a photo

2. Alby, 5, asks: where do tree roots end?

   1. Deep in the underworld

   2. Halfway across a garden

   3. As soon as there’s a river where they can find water

   4. Some tree roots stretch out two to three times as wide as the tree’s leafy top

3. Ava, 5, asks: what are butterflies’ wings made of?

   1. Pixie dust

   2. Something called chitin, covered in tiny scales

   3. A leather-like material named Larkin

   4. Cartilage, the same stuff your ears are made of

4. Edith, 10, asks: how do rollercoasters work?

   1. They use gravity and energy from the first big hill they’re pulled up

   2. They’re pulled by lions running for meat

   3. Every rollercoaster is possessed by a powerful spell called the Zaza-bongy

   4. They’re pulled by engines

5. Connie, 7, asks: if everything in the world was see-through, what would we be able to see?

   1. Nothing because our eyes would be see-through, too

   2. The centre of the Earth

   3. Everyone’s brains ticking away inside their heads

   4. All the fairies, pixies, unicorns, goblins and gnomes we can’t usually see

Solutions

1:B - Inside a Polaroid camera, there’s a pack of film that has three layers. When you press the button to take a picture, light enters through the lens and a chemical reaction happens on the film. Then the photo is pushed out through rollers, which squish the chemicals to spread them evenly. They react with the light and your picture slowly appears., 2:D - Tree roots can grow much wider than the tree’s crown, helping it find water, stay strong and hold tight to the ground, even in a storm., 3:B - Butterfly wings are made of thin layers of a protein called chitin – like insect shells! Thousands of colourful scales, like tiny tiles, create the beautiful patterns., 4:A - The rollercoaster is pulled up a hill using a chain and motor, giving it potential energy, like winding up a toy. Then gravity takes over. As it rushes down, the potential energy turns into kinetic energy, which keeps it going up and down until it slows at the end. Some new ones use magnetic launch systems., 5:A - If everything was see-through, the light-sensing parts in your eyes wouldn’t work, so you wouldn’t be able to see anything!

Scores

1. 5 and above.

2. 4 and above.

3. 3 and above.

4. 2 and above.

5. 0 and above.

6. 1 and above.

Molly Oldfield hosts Everything Under the Sun, a podcast answering children’s questions. Do check out her books, Everything Under the Sun and the new Everything Under the Sun: Quiz Book.