Foaming Rainbow Demonstration
Dry ice is added to a basic solution of dish detergent and universal indicator. Commercially, dry ice is used as a refrigerant in the food industry. Your students may be familiar with seeing a piece of dry ice, the solid form of carbon dioxide (CO2), bubble in water to create an eerie fog. Carbon dioxide […]
Investigating Phenomena: What Causes the Colored Solution?
Carolina Phenomenon Phenomena-driven science! Phenomena are observable, naturally occurring events that are everywhere and spark student questions and investigations. Ask students to observe the DCI-linked phenomena in the video and complete the attached student sheet prior to remote learning discussions. Observations: Carefully watch the petri dish electrolysis video. Gather all the evidence you can from […]
Borax Snowflake
This lab activity will guarantee a snow day! Teach solutions and crystallization while making snowflake decorations for your classroom. Looking for an activity to do that will guarantee a snow day? Help your students learn about solutions and crystallization while making snowflake decorations for your classroom. Borax is the common name for sodium tetraborate decahydrate, […]
Colorful Dyes from the Natural World
The chemistry behind environmental dyes In the springtime, it’s common to see articles about how to dye eggs with natural dyes, but eggs aren’t the only things that can be dyed. Since ancient times, humans have used materials from their environments to color their world. Chemistry of cloth dyeing The cuticle of eggs, which is […]
How to Make Slime
An Introduction to Polymer Chemistry Whether you want to introduce students to polymers, engage them with a fun science demo, or simply have the most popular station at your school’s science night, making slime is always a great idea. This non-toxic slime is easy to make and keeps the mess to a minimum. Turn the […]
Four Engaging Lab Activities for Spectroscopy
Help your students understand spectroscopy with these hand-on lab activities. Here are 4 engaging hands-on lab activities from Thermo Fisher Scientific that use the Spectronic® 200 Spectrophotometer to help your students understand spectroscopy. Each activity has been fully tested to ensure reliable, accurate results. Extensive background material is provided for each experimental concept, including the […]
Nomenclature and Bonding Basics of Ionic Compounds
How to spot ionic compounds Students often struggle to identify types of compounds and name them appropriately. The first step is to identify if a compound is primarily ionic or covalent. Ionic compounds are often solid with crystalline forms. Covalent compounds on the other hand, can be gases, liquids, or solids and the solid state […]
Kool-Aid® Chromatography
Chromatography is an important technique in the chemistry lab. This activity uses a popular beverage for a safe, engaging lab experience for students of all ages. Background What makes grape-flavored Kool-Aid® purple? Food dye, of course. Color additives are common in the foods on supermarket shelves. From foods and drinks to cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and toiletries, […]
Explaining Patterns in the Periodic Table
Identifying family and period properties within the periodic table Too often, students remember for a short time certain trends and properties associated with groups and periods of elements yet come away from a study of the periodic table without really understanding or appreciating how much information the table provides. In the following activities, students discover […]
Greener Chemistry Labs for Good!
Safer, Engaging Chemistry Lessons Green chemistry. The term conjures different images for different people. Perhaps for the business minded, it’s chemistry dedicated to generating a lot of greenbacks (dollars). For others, maybe it’s a huge cauldron of bubbling green goo with a who-knows-what toxic vapor rising from the brew. In fact, it is neither of […]