It’s Halloween this week and we’ll be busy delivering spooky dry ice and slime workshops in Cottingham and Brough and a library in Doncaster. There are still a few places left, so book now, using the link below.
If you fancy having a go at some spooky science experiments yourself at home, here’s a few simple ones to start you off!
Dancing Ghosts
For the experiment you’ll need:
- A piece of tissue paper
- A balloon
- Scissors
- A head of hair
Cut out some ghost shapes around 1.5 inches long then lay them flat on the table. Blow up a balloon and rub it on your hair vigorously. Then hold the balloon over the ghosts and watch them dance.
How does it work?
When you rub the balloon through your hair you create a build up of invisible electrons. The electrons have the power to pull very light objects toward them, which in this case is the tissue ghost!
Fizzy Pumpkin Patch
This experiment is brilliant for toddlers!
Materials:
Baking
Soda
Vinegar
Dish Soap
Food Coloring {Green}
Shallow
Container
Squeeze Bottles
Small Pumpkins
Set Up:
In the shallow dish, place small drops of dish soap a few inches apart. Then place tiny drops of food coloring in each drop. Cover the tray with the baking soda until you can’t see the drops any more.
Fill the squeeze bottles halfway with vinegar and you are ready to go. With each squirt your toddler will be amazed at the fizz.
Add the pumpkins and you’ve made your own fizzy pumpkin patch!
And now for the science!
This is a simple but effective experiment demonstrating the reaction between a base and an acid. In this case the base is the baking soda and the acid is the vinegar.
Hydrogen ions in the vinegar react with the sodium and bicarbonate ions in the baking soda. The result of this initial reaction is two new chemicals: carbonic acid and sodium acetate.
The second reaction is a decomposition reaction. The carbonic acid formed as a result of the first reaction immediately begins to decompose into water and carbon dioxide gas, which creates those fizzy bubbles!
Bubbling Pumpkin Bombs
What you need:
Baking powder
- Cornflour
- Vinegar
- Zip-lock bags
- Food colouring
- Black marker pen
- Toilet paper
- Start by drawing jack-o-lantern and ghost faces onto zip-seal bags.
- We used a permanent marker and sandwich-size bags. Larger bags will also work; you will just need more of the active ingredients.
Once the marker on the bags is dry you can either fill them all in advance with the vinegar or fill them outside as you go.
- You want to fill each bag roughly 1/3 of the way with vinegar.
- Add 2-3 teaspoons of cornflour to each bag.
- You will also want to add orange food coloring to the pumpkin bags.
- Then, tightly seal the bags and mix the ingredients until combined.
- For each bag you will need to make a baking soda bomb. To do this place baking soda in the middle of a square of toilet paper, and then fold the paper into a ball.
- You will want to let off one “Boo” or pumpkin at a time.
- Seal the bag almost all the way, leaving just enough room to place a baking soda bomb in.
- Do not let the bomb go until you have sealed the bag all the way.
- Double check to make sure the zipper is fully sealed.
- Then, drop the baking soda bomb, give the bag a quick shake, and set it down.
- The bag will fill with pressure until it POPS & explodes, sending colorful bubbles flying!
Blobby Lava Lamp
What you need:
- A 1 litre empty plastic drinks bottle
- 3/4 cups of water
- Vegetable oil
- Alka Seltzer
- Green or red food colouring
Pour the water into the bottle.
Pour the vegetable oil slowly into the bottle until it’s almost full. You may have to wait a few minutes for the oil and water to separate.
Add 10 drops of food colouring to the bottle. The drops will pass through the oil and then mix with the water below.
Break an Alka Seltzer tablet in half and drop the half tablet into the bottle. It will sink to the bottom and you can watch the blobs start to form!
Add another half tablet once the effect dies down
Have a great Halloween and enjoy experimenting!
Katie, Carol, Sarah and Anita
The Lab Rascals Team xx
Lab Rascals 