Fun Class experiments in K1E

Fun Class experiments in K1E

Written by David, checked by Janet

We held a science activity using materials commonly found in western households and some Chinese homes. This linked science to our theme of “Around my Home”.

We did 3 visual experiments and then let students try 2 practical experiments.

The components used for the experiment were baking soda; clear vinegar  ; food coloring; yeast (used in cooking); dish soap  and hydrogen peroxide (used in cleaning).

We used a story concept to explain the reactions to students, creating a monster and explaining that in the ‘reacting agent’ lives tiny monsters who eat the baking soda. This made them thirsty so they drink some vinegar; which causes them to make bubbles.

Additionally students were given the opportunity to taste the yeast, baking soda and vinegar. Taking note of the flavors and providing comparisons to where they experienced it before.

First we experimented with bottles and balloons. We began by adding a small mixture of Baking soda and vinegar. The Balloon was placed on the bottle and we watched as it expanded.

 

Our second experiment involved making a Volcano. Again simply mixing baking soda and vinegar creates this reaction. The students learnt Volcano, Lava and watched careful at the reactions.

We then looked at the amazing foam reaction of “Elephant Toothpaste” which is a very specific combination of peroxide, soap and yeast. This reaction causes the peroxide to be eaten by the yeast, releasing oxygen which makes a large amount of foam thanks to the soap. Students had a lot of fun playing with the soapy bubbles!

Finally we had our 2 practical experiments. The first one we did was called “Coral Reef” which added the vocabulary of coral. Students were given beakers with baking soda and vinegar, and then instructed to use pipettes to create coral-like art in the baking soda.

 

 

The following day we had all students bring their very own volcano from home. Now that they have a solid understanding of the reaction, it was time to let them experiment on their own!

We gave each student 250ml of vinegar (dyed red) and a large bowl of baking soda. The students experimented with the reactions, adding different amounts of soda and vinegar. Even changing the order of which they added! The real fun was watching them compare the reactions to the different shapes and sizes of each others volcanoes. All in all the experiment was an amazing success; students had a lot of fun and felt a strong sense of accomplishment after testing the knowledge the learnt firsthand! Hilariously one of the students who ran out of vinegar grabbed my Vitamin water and tried to use that in their mixture!! It was the same color but unfortunately the reaction was not the same!!

Overall the students came away with a wonderful insight to the reactions of vinegar and soda; bubbles and the initial concepts of volcanoes, coral and lava.

It was a messy class, but a happy one!