Chemistry in the Kitchen - Part II

Stimulating your young child's interest in science is easy. Children are naturally curious and ready, willing and able to learn and explore new concepts. The following activities are all simple chemistry explorations for kids using items that you probably already have in your kitchen cupboards.

This color mixing activity requires a quart of warm whole milk, red, yellow and blue food coloring, Dawn™ brand dishwashing liquid (this brand works best), and pie plates or shallow pans. Pour some warm milk into a pie plate or pan and squirt a few drops of red, blue and yellow food coloring into the milk near the edges. Don't mix the colors. Add a few drops of the dishwashing soap to the milk near the center of the pan. Watch as the colors mix. Fat and water don't mix but milk contains both elements and the soap can connect the substances together. The soap causes molecular movement to occur, mixing the colors.

This exploration shows how you can make an old penny look brand new again. You will need some old pennies (the dirtier, the better), vinegar and salt, and a plastic or glass jar with lid. Mix the salt and vinegar in the jar and then add the penny. Your child can swish the jar around if she'd like or just let it sit. In a few minutes the penny will be clean and shiny. The acid in the vinegar combines with the salt to make hydrochloric acid which is a good cleaner. Also, try putting an old penny in ketchup (which is also acidic) and see what happens.

You can make your own fingerpaints from biodegradable packing peanuts, water and food coloring. Place some packing peanuts in a Ziploc bag and add some water and a couple of drops of food coloring. Let your child squeeze the bag until the color, water, and peanuts mix and the peanuts dissolve. Open the bag and use the substance to paint.

You can change the color of a stalk of celery or a flower. You will need a glass or jar, food coloring, celery or a flower (daisies work best), and water. Put food coloring and water into the glass or jar and place the stem or stalk into the water. This is a good activity to do at bedtime as it takes a while to complete. It will be a fun surprise for your child the next day. You should be able to see some effect by morning, but it may take two days for the colored water to complete it's journey to the top of the plant. This experiment shows how water rises up the stem from the root to feed the plant.

These experiments are fun for kids and adults alike. And who knows? You may just be helping to encourage a future chemist!

Source: Easy Science Experiments by Diane Molleson and Sarah Savage, Scholastic, Inc., New York