Fizz It Up!!
Ages: 3 - 5 years
Get Ready: Collect items needed: vinegar (white or apple cider), baking soda, food coloring, cups, cookie sheet/cake pan, eye droppers, turkey baster and spoons.
Get Set: Set up the play station at a table covered with a cloth or newspaper. Shake the baking powder out evenly over the bottom of the tray or pan. Pour vinegar into two cups and add one color to each cup. Lay out the tools for your child to choose from.
Sit Back and Watch Your Child Go: Your child will strengthen the muscles in her hands and fingers by using the eye dropper or turkey baster. As your child transfers the vinegar from the cup to the baking soda on the tray, keep an eye on her face! There’s going to be some real surprise and excitement showing up as she observes what happens when the vinegar hits the soda!
Want to amp up the learning? Use the terms “experiment”, “explore” and “discover” as you set up this activity with your child. If your child wonders why it gets fizzy, look it up and find out! Test it out to see what happens if you reverse the process and put the soda into the vinegar. Which do you like better?
Get Creative: Add more cups of vinegar with different colors – test out mixing colors to make a new color. What happens when all the colors are mixed together? Put the baking soda into a narrow glass and add vinegar – get ready for a volcano!
As your child grows: your child will want to test things out & will learn more about cause and effect. Explore the world of ‘gases’ and what makes a volcano explode. She may want to know where volcanos are located in our world. Check out some books from the library!
Your child will love: using tools to add and mix and discover what happens when! She will love seeing changes in matter that she can make happen!
You will love: seeing the process in which your child explores these materials & hearing her exclamations of surprise, wonder and delight!
