SAN ANTONIO – Editor’s note: This story was published through a partnership between the STEMToyExpert.com and KSAT.
Hello parents, teachers and students!
Are you looking for something fun to do at home that has a little bit of science behind it?
Well, check out this awesome at-home experiment to make a lava lamp. Science enthusiasts and educators at the STEMToyExpert.com put this together.
Make Your Own Lava Lamp
We’ve tried this one in our classrooms, and trust us, our kids go wild year after year. Kids love making something that they can use as home decoration, and they love how easy it is to show new people – this is the experiment that lives on and on!
Questions to ask beforehand:
- How do you think density is involved in this experiment?
- Why don’t the water and oil mix?
- Why can’t we shake our lava lamps?
Here’s what you’ll need:
- Water
- Clear Plastic Bottle
- Vegetable Oil
- Food Coloring
- Alka-Seltzer
Procedure/Instructions:
- Pour water into the plastic bottle until it is approximately one quarter full.
- Then pour vegetable oil in until the bottle is almost completely filled.
- Allow some time for the oil and water to separate.
- It is important that your children do not shake the bottle in this step. It will extend the experiment for no other reason than you waiting for the bubbles to dissipate.
- Add as much food coloring as your child deems fit and then drop a piece of Alka-seltzer tablet into the bottle for the lava lamp fun to begin.