Chemistry
Experiments
Chemical properties
Learn all about polymers and how they can assist in the execution of a cool new party trick! All you need is a couple of sharpened pencils, a plastic bag, and some water.
Enzymes and Chemical Reactions
Learn how enzymes work in chemical reactions all while creating a fun, foamy reaction! You will need warm water, yeast, 3% Hydrogen peroxide, dish soap, an empty water bottle, and some measuring utensils.
Ideal Gas Law
Using only soap, water, and a bubble wand(or an empty water bottle, a straw, and play dough or hot glue, if you don't have access to a bubble wand) make use of the cold winter weather to create frozen bubbles! Due to differences in pressure, a unique, frozen bubble can be formed right in the cold weather outside.
You no longer have to deal with the inconvenience of an explosion after you shake a soda can after learning how and why it happens. Two cans of soda or seltzer water are all you need to understand why shaking a can causes an explosion due to Le Chatelier's Principle, and how tapping a can can solve that problem.
Oxidation
Create and reveal secret messages thanks to oxidation. All you need to create your very own invisible ink is a lemon, a bowl, a cotton swab, paper, and a stove or lighter! Parental supervision recommended.
Everybody has 50 year old, dirty pennies laying around their house. Now, using the properties of oxidation, a penny, lemon juice, a cup, and paper towels, you can make a 50 year old penny look brand new!
Properties of Water
Make your very own pictures come to life with a simple dry erase marker, plate, and cup of water, and a little bit of help from solubility and density. Not everything can be soluble in water, and it just so happens that dry erase marker isn't. But, this allows for the ability to create mobile drawings!
Turns out, the small m on top of an m&m is a different from the colored candy shell surrounding the chocolate. Using different properties of dissolution of the two substances, separate the m from the rest of the candy. This experiment only requires water and m&ms.
Remember during the winter when you see everybody running outside to throw salt on their driveway. This can be explained by the freezing point of water and how the freezing point of salt affects it. Simulate this property using 5 small Dixie cups, hot and cold water, a 6 compartment muffin tin, salt, and sugar.
Resources
Ideal Gas Law
The Ideal Gas Law relates the pressure, temperature, and volume of gases in ideal conditions and describes gas behavior in them!
This simulation is a great resource to help demonstrate the Ideal Gas Law
Another great intro to all of the laws and gas behavior: simulation
Here's a great video explaining the Ideal Gas Law in less than 10 minutes!
Properties of Water
There are many properties specific to water in Chemistry, especially dissolution and freezing point!
Learn more about concentration and saturation of solutions using this simulation
Enzymes
An enzyme is a substance that acts as a catalyst in chemical reactions. In other words, it increases the rate of a chemical reaction, without being consumed by the reaction.
Check out this simulation to see how temperature, pH, and concentration of or surrounding and enzyme can affect how it functions.
Watch this video to learn some basics on enzymes and how they work!