Bouncing Polymer Balls

This post was actually scheduled for yesterday, however I forgot to hit publish so it is a day late.

We are half way through this weeks post of science related projects. Today we are actually redoing a project we attempted a few months ago that didn't work out so great, and you can read about it here. TIP: It actually helps if you read ALL of the directions BEFORE starting. Just saying :)

So today we will be making bouncing polymer balls. First you will need to gather all of your materials:

• borax (found in the laundry section of the store)
• cornstarch (found in the baking section of the store)
• white glue (e.g., Elmer's glue - makes an opaque ball) or blue or clear school glue (makes a translucent ball)
• warm water
• food coloring (optional)
• measuring spoons
• spoon or craft stick to stir the mixture
• 2 small plastic cups or other containers for mixing
• marking pen
• watch with a second hand
• metric ruler
• zip-lock plastic baggie

 I used 2 different types of cups so I knew which cup would have the borax solution in it and which one would have the ball mixture in it. It is best to use shorter cups with a wider mouth if possible. If you are doing this with multiple children, each child will need 2 cups. These instructions will only make one ball.

In the first cup add 2 tablespoons of warm water and 1/2 teaspoon borax. Stir until the borax has dissolved and add food coloring at this time if you wish.



In the second cup pour 1 tablespoon glue, 1/2 a teaspoon of the borax mixture from the first cup and 1 tablespoon cornstarch. DO NOT STIR THEM TOGETHER. Instead allow the ingredients to interact on their own for 10-15 seconds before stirring. Make sure you stir the mixture well until it becomes impossible to stir it anymore. Take it out of the cup and start molding it into a ball in your hands. The ball will start out sticky but will solidify as you continue to work with it.

Once the ball is no longer sticky go ahead and bounce it! You can store the bag in the ziplock baggie to prevent it from drying out once you are done playing with it.

Egg Geodes

Thanks for joining us for day 2 of our science related projects. Recently in a homeschooling group a mother posted some pictures from a science experiment her children did using different ingredients to make egg geodes. Yang is science crazy so we took a stab (Get it? Crystals have sharp ends!) at it. We used Epsom Salts for one set and Borax for another. I asked Yang & Poppy before starting which one they thought would make more crystals. Yang said the Borax because we use it in our laundry soap so it has to make big bubbles. Poppy said the Epsom Salts since they are already sort of like crystals.

We began by lightly cracking open 4 eggs near the smaller end of the egg. We poured the eggs into a bowl to use later. We then cleaned the insides of the eggs out with warm water, making sure to get the all of the slimy membrane out to prevent molding. NOTE: you want to keep as much of the egg intact as possible for better growth of the crystals.

EPSOM SALT

Next we used a 1/4 cup measuring cup and filled it about 3/4 of the way full of hot water, not boiling. Then we began adding tablespoons of the Epsom Salts, stirring as we made each addition, until the salts no longer dissolved.

Place the eggs in an egg carton so they do not tip over and spill everything. Carefully spoon the mixture into the eggs making sure to distribute between the eggs evenly.

Add a few drops of food coloring to each egg. I would suggest leaving on egg without food coloring to show a more natural crystal.

Place the eggs in the refrigerator for 3 hours.

If there is any liquid still in the eggs after 3 hours CAREFULLY pour it out, making sure you don't pour out any of the crystals. If you do not have crystals then your water was not warm enough, try again.


DISCLAIMER: We did not develop this experiment. We used instructions from The Happy Scientist.

BORAX

Place 2 cups warm water in a pot and add food coloring.

Add Borax until the water is super saturated.

Once the water starts to boil remove from heat and add the solution to the egss.

As the water evaporates from the eggs, borax crystals will deposit on the sides of the egg crating a geode egg.

  

Super Easy 2 Minute Silly Putty

This week I am going to post science related project you can do with your children. Some may just be ideas that you can build upon but nonetheless your children will have fun. After all, isn't that what learning is really about?

For our first science related project we have Super Easy 2 Minute Silly Putty. During Spring Break for the local public school Yang's best friend spent a few days with us. Keeping these two busy can be a bit of a task at times and sometimes I have to be creative. Since Yang's best friend attends public school she always likes to join us for some school time fun.

Making silly putty is super easy. All you need is water, Elmer's Glue, Borax, a bowl, and spoon. Add 3 Tablespoons water to the bowl and mix in 1/3 cup Elmer's Glue. You can add food coloring if you wish.

Next add 2 Tablespoons of Borax to the water/glue mixture and 1/4 cup hot water. As you stir the mixture will begin to form a ball. There will still be water that has not mixed in. You can either add more Borax to create a bigger ball or pour the water out.

Start playing and let the fun begin!

Store in an airtight container.