It’s important to enjoy the summertime with your scholars! Let your busy schedule slow down a bit and spend some quality time with family. That doesn’t mean you have to plan an expensive or extravagant adventure. Science projects are a wonderful way to spend free time with your scholars. You can enjoy making a mess and learning about cool chemical reactions with your family from the comfort of your home or in your community. Grab your safety gear! Here are four fun science activities for children to with an adult chaperone this summer:
Dry Ice
Dry Ice (From grocery store)
Hot Water
Cooking Tongs
Glass bottle
Dish soap
This experiment creates a bit of a soapy mess, so we recommend setting up outside. When you’re ready to get started, the adult chaperone will place the hot water inside the glass bottle along with a few drops of dish soap. Then, the chaperone will use the tongs to place a few pieces of dry ice into the glass bottle. Be sure to keep dry ice away from children. Dry ice is the solid, frozen form of carbon dioxide, so once the dry ice is inside the bottle, the soap will trap the carbon dioxide, creating bubbles that will rise to the top. When the bubbles spill over from the top of the bottle, your scholars can pop the bubbles and release the carbon dioxide, which looks like steam. This is a process called sublimation, which is what happens when a solid (dry ice) never becomes a liquid, and instead immediately becomes a gas (the bubbles). The bubbles may feel a bit warm from the hot water, but they are safe to touch. Just be sure that children don’t touch the dry ice with their bare hands. Enjoy!
CO2 Explosion
Safety goggles
Measuring cups & spoons (different sizes)
Vinegar
Baking Soda
Reclosable plastic bags
Toilet paper
Put on your safety goggles and work together to fill three of the plastic bags with varied amounts of vinegar, then close them tightly. Next, fill the other three plastic bags with varied amounts of baking soda. Place the bags of vinegar inside of the bags with baking soda. Be sure to remove as much air as possible from the outside bags and seal them tightly. Lay the bags on a flat surface and let your scholars hit the bags with their fists to pop the inside bags full of vinegar. Once the vinegar pops, shake the bags to make sure the substances mix together. Watch as the bags start to expand, and encourage your scholars to measure their size based on the amount of vinegar and baking soda inside. Finally, stand back and time each of the bags as they expand to see which one pops first and explodes! Via Parenting
Soda Geyser
Safety Goggles
Mentos
Two-liter bottle of soda
Go outside and get ready to make a mess! Carefully open the bottle of soda and place it on the ground. The goal is to drop as many Mentos into the bottle of soda as possible, which can be easier said than done. Consider making a tube or funnel with a piece of paper to easily slide multiple Mentos into the bottle at once. Once the Mentos are ready to go, quickly drop them into the soda bottle, stand way back and enjoy the eruption! What causes this reaction? Mentos have a textured surface made of countless tiny craters, and the carbon dioxide (bubbles) in the soda reacts to those craters. When the Mentos drop into the soda bottle, bubbles form on the surface of the pieces. As the gas from the bubbles is released, the liquid is forced up and out of the bottle in a giant geyser of sticky soda. Via Parenting
Rainbow Bubble Snakes
Plastic water bottle (empty)
An old sock
Dish soap
Water
Food coloring
Shallow bowl or plate
Duct Tape
An exciting, colorful way to blow bubbles! First, cut the bottom of the water bottle off, slide the sock over the bottom of the bottle, and secure it with some duct tape. Add a few drops of food coloring to the very end of the secured sock. In the shallow bowl, add some water and dish soap. Then, dip the sock-covered part of the water bottle into the mixture. Once removed, let your scholars gently blow into the water bottle from the top. Enjoy the colorful bubbles and talk with your children about the science of behind them! Via Housing a Forest
All of these science experiments will surely bring smiles to your scholars’ faces as you enjoy summertime with them. Just be sure to utilize the necessary protective gear and supervise children at all times. Enjoy, and share your pictures with us on our social media channels using the hashtag #CCSScienceFun!
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