We want to share one more fun 4th of July themed craft! Today we made fizzing fireworks art which is both a fun craft and a mini science lesson!
| Materials: - coffee filters (we used about 8 but you can do as many/few as you like) - kitchen sized trash bag - food coloring/kool aid in varying colors - baking soda - vinegar - squirt bottle |  |
| Directions: 1. Lay the trash bag on a table and place the coffee filters on top. |  |
| 2. Pour vinegar into the squirt bottle and pour baking soda over the top of all of the coffee filters.  |  |
| 3. Put a few drops of food coloring in various places on each coffee filter. (On a separate note, I didn't have any red food coloring so I opened up a package of fruit punch kool aid and sprinkled it instead. If I do this again I will only use different colors of kool aid because the smell of the kool aid masked the smell of vinegar and worked just as well or better than food coloring.) |  |
| 4. Now for the fun! Using your squirt bottle (set on mist/spray) begin spraying the baking soda and food coloring covered coffee filters and watch the colorful, fizzing reaction! |  |
5. When you're done making fizzy reactions let the filters dry. (We took ours outside so the sun could accelerate the drying time.) Once they're dry you have fun, colorful coffee filters that you can display as art or even use to create coffee filter flowers by following this tutorial!
We hope you had fun! Check out the science explained below to teach your child about the reasoning behind why this experiment/art works!
We hope you had fun! Check out the science explained below to teach your child about the reasoning behind why this experiment/art works!
The Science Explained
In this experiment, the fizz is produced by a chemical reaction between baking soda and vinegar. Baking soda and vinegar react, and one of the products of the reaction is carbon dioxide gas. This gas forms bubbles that are surrounded by the liquid. The laundry detergent makes the bubbles last longer, and a foam is produced. The volume of the gas produced and trapped in the foam is much greater than the glass can hold, so some of it spills over the top of the glass.
Baking soda is sodium bicarbonate. Vinegar contains acetic acid dissolved in water. Sodium barcarbonate reacts with most acids. The products of the reaction with vinegar are carbon dioxide gas, sodium acetate, and water.
The reaction of sodium bicarbonate to form carbon dioxide gas is the basis of its use as a levening agent in baking. Cakes are solid foams. The foam is produced when bubbles of carbon dioxide from the reaction of sodium bicarbonate are trapped in the batter. As the cake bakes, the batter dries, and the trapped bubbles of carbon dioxide form the holes in the cake.
In this experiment, the fizz is produced by a chemical reaction between baking soda and vinegar. Baking soda and vinegar react, and one of the products of the reaction is carbon dioxide gas. This gas forms bubbles that are surrounded by the liquid. The laundry detergent makes the bubbles last longer, and a foam is produced. The volume of the gas produced and trapped in the foam is much greater than the glass can hold, so some of it spills over the top of the glass.
Baking soda is sodium bicarbonate. Vinegar contains acetic acid dissolved in water. Sodium barcarbonate reacts with most acids. The products of the reaction with vinegar are carbon dioxide gas, sodium acetate, and water.
The reaction of sodium bicarbonate to form carbon dioxide gas is the basis of its use as a levening agent in baking. Cakes are solid foams. The foam is produced when bubbles of carbon dioxide from the reaction of sodium bicarbonate are trapped in the batter. As the cake bakes, the batter dries, and the trapped bubbles of carbon dioxide form the holes in the cake.
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