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With each passing grade, children might find certain subjects more difficult than others. They may face difficulty navigating numbers, or they may struggle to grasp the concepts of chemistry. Chemistry is, in fact, a subject children find particularly challenging. The different chemicals, reactions, and equipment can all be a little confusing, especially at the start.
One of the best ways to make children understand chemistry is by incorporating an element of fun. Parents and teachers can ignite curiosity and interest in the subject by taking basic concepts outside the textbooks and teaching them through real-life demonstrations and chemistry projects.
If you are looking to discover more Chemistry teaching material or aid for your children, you can explore different options online. For example, living in Canada, you can look up “grade 12 chemistry Ontario” and find several great videos and tutorials, as well as science experiments you can easily do at home. Let’s talk about our top favorite chemistry projects for kids.
The classic exploding volcano
As adults, we have all made an exploding volcano once in our lives. It is fun and simple to do, but it is also extremely informative when it comes to explaining how different chemicals react.
If you want to recreate this classic chemistry project, then you can easily do so at home with your kids. Take a cardboard and build a base for your volcano. Next, you can glue a bottle at the center of the base. Try using a glass bottle with a narrow neck and a broad base. To build the volcano, you can use some salt dough or simple plaster. Once you have made the volcano by creating a mold around the bottle, let it dry completely.
Now for the eruption! Mix warm dish soap water with some red food coloring and fill the bottle halfway. Next, you can add some baking soda to the mix. If you are ready to get your volcano going, all you need to do is pour in some vinegar next. As the vinegar hits the mixture, the lava will explode outside and create a spectacular display.
Homemade large-size bubbles
Who does not love some good old bubbles? Did you know you can turn this fun activity into an easy-to-follow chemistry experiment that you and your children can do at home? Here is what you will need.
Take a large-sized jar and mix it with tap water and some concentrated dishwashing soap. You should also add some light corn syrup as a must. Once your mixture is ready, get your bubble-blowing wands out. You can use any that you have at home or go the DIY route and make them yourself using some stick and bendable pipes.
Now that everything is ready go ahead and enjoy making large-sized bubbles that you and your children can play with at home or in the park. Not only is this fun, but it also is a practical demonstration of how bubbles form and burst due to air exposure. You can supplement this project with some facts and theories learned at school.
DIY lava lamps at home
Lava lamps were all the rage back in the day and continue to be a super popular item to have in your child’s room. They also make for a great science project that can easily be done at home. For this, you need some basic material such as an empty water bottle, some food colors, water, oil, and an antacid tablet.
Start by filling your bottle with water and then add in the oil. Your child will be fascinated to note that water and oil don’t mix, which can serve as a practical demonstration of the theory. You can shake the bottle around, but eventually, both will settle in separate layers. Next, you can pour in the different food colors in the bottle and make your child note how it will mix once the paint hits the water and not the layer of oil.
You can then break an antacid tablet and drop it in the bottle to start the fun part. The tablet will cause a reaction and create small to large-sized colored bubbles that will go up and down the bottle. The lava lamp will continue to form bubbles until the antacid lasts but can easily be replaced to kickstart the same effect. This fun experiment is perfect for teaching kids about density, color mixing, and chemical reactions all in one.
Parting thoughts
While chemistry may seem complicated, it can easily be made fun with thought-through projects and experiments. As you try our recommendations with your kids, remember to include them in each step and be ready to answer their questions for the ultimate learning experience.