@ Home Experiments; Summer Club SciKidz
MILWAUKEE - Tanzania Sewell from Club SciKidz shares fun experiments you can do at home!
Experiment #1 – Is it an acid, base or neither?
The pH scale (which ranges from 0 to 14) gives us the ability to understand how acidic (pH lower than 7) or basic (pH higher than 7) an item is. We can use a very common kitchen ingredient to create a pH indicator, red cabbage! With our kitchen-made pH indicator, we explore the pH of a few common household products: bleach, vinegar and tap water.
Ingredients:
Red Cabbage, Water and several household items whose pH you're curious about!
To make the pH indicator:
Place 2 cups of chopped red cabbage in a medium pot and cover with water. Boil until the water becomes deep purple in color. Strain the pieces of cabbage. The remaining purple water is your pH indicator. Cool indicator to room temperature before using.
To understand the pH of different products:
Pour a small amount of pH indicator into a clear cup (3oz bathroom cups are perfect for this). Add a small sample of the product you are testing to the pH indicator until a color change is noticed. Basic solutions will appear yellow, green or blue; while acidic solutions will appear light purple, pink or red. Neutral solutions will have very little color change.
Experiment #2 - Magic Sand
The chemical properties of hydrophobic (water repellent) or hydrophilic (water attracting) can be easily understood using magic sand! Best of all, creating magic sand is easy at home with just two products. Magic sand has hydrophobic properties, that is, regular sand is transformed into a material that repels water and never gets wet. We can use this property to make really cool underwater sand castles and sand features.
Ingredients:
1-2lbs of play sand or colored craft sand, 1 can of waterproofing spray.
To Make Magic Sand:
Spread sand in a shallow layer on a disposable sheet pan. Spray the first coat of waterproofing spray on the sand, being sure to saturate. Allow the sand to air dry completely and repeat the process two more times. After the last coat, allow the sand to dry completely, and it's ready for play!
To Play with Magic Sand:
Magic sand can be played with just like regular play sand. However, the most interesting properties are revealed when the sand meets water. Create underwater castles and the sand never gets wet.
@ Home Experiments; Summer Club SciKidz
Tanzania Sewell from Club SciKidz shares fun experiments you can do at home!