Slime

Slime Recipe #1

Homemade slime: A favorite polymer experiment of all kitchen scientists, big and small.  This experiment explores how substances interact to create new substances.

Lab Materials:

§  Borax

§  Water

§  Elmer’s or other white glue

§  Mixing Bowl

§  Food Coloring

Lab Procedure:

Common sense caution:  Wash hands after playing with the slime.  Borax is a potentially caustic chemical that should not be ingested.  Conduct experiments with adult supervision!

Pour 4 ounces of glue in a bowl.  What does it feel like?

Add 3-6 drops of food coloring to the glue (Hey, who said slime has to be green?).

In a separate container mix 1 tablespoon of borax into 1½ cups of water (Note that the measurements don’t exact).

This looks gross

 

Slowly pour 1/3 cup of the water mixture into the bowl with the glue & food coloring.  As you stir, the glue will become stringy.  What does it feel like now? Add more water solution if needed.

Feel free to knead the mixture by hand, the more you work it, the faster it will come together.   The end process will look like this:

Ask your scientist what it feels like now?  Try to pull it apart.  Dunk the slime in the left over borax water mixture.  Knead the water into your slime ball and then try to pull it apart.  It should break apart easier and kind of have a snap to it.  The more you dunk it, the snappier it will become (up to a point).

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Thank you!

Oobleck

It's been a long time coming, but I have had oodles of stuff going on.  To reward you for your patience, I present you wit the ewwiest experiment yet! In honor of Dr. Seuss' 108th birthday, we are doing an Oobleck float/sink experiment.

Lab Materials:

• 2 cups of Cornstarch
• 1 cup of Water
• Food Coloring (optional)
• Objects of various weight/density (I used pennies, yarn, toothpick, & a marble)

Steps:

Once more, beware the mess!  :)

First, mix the food coloring into the water.

Next, carefully mix the water and the cornstarch.  You may want to do this in batches, but no matter what you do, the cornstarch will end up at the bottom, creating a kind of quicksand effect.

I recommend that you allow your scientist to play in the oobleck (this gives them an idea of the Oobleck's properties for the next section).  Scoop deep into the bowl and pick some up.  Squeeze it tight in your hand, then open up your hand.  What does the oobleck do?

For the second half of the experiment:  Show your scientist different objects.  Have him/her predict whether or not the object will float or sink.

Next, using their fingers have them "walk their fingers" across the oobleck at varying speeds.  Have them hold their fingers still in one place.  What happens.
Here is a link to one of my favorite oobleck videos:

Have a Seusstastic day!