We don’t know about you, but we’re still in the 4th of July spirit. Let’s keep the celebration going with some fun 4th of July STEAM! Your kids will have a blast – you might even hear them ooo-ing and ahhh-ing – while creating Mint Fireworks!
All you need for this spectacularly simple science experiment is a white plate or flat-bottomed white cup, a ½ cup measuring cup, and starlight mints.
First, ask your child to brainstorm and make a guess (hypothesis) about what will happen when water is poured over a mint. Place a mint on the plate. Then, fill your measuring cup with room temperature water. Gently pour the water over the top of the mint, allowing it to overflow onto the plate.
Watch carefully, and you should see a beautiful red and white striped firework begin to appear on the plate! Why does this happen? The starlight mints are made with sugar and food coloring. When the water and sugar interact, the sugar begins to dissolve, leaving the food coloring behind in the water!
You can take this experiment to a new level by changing some of the variables. What happens when you use hot water? Cold water? Does the firework appear more quickly or more slowly? Do the colors stay the same, or do they run together? Does it make a difference if you pour the water more quickly or more slowly? What happens if you try this experiment with different hard candies? What about with different liquids? We know your head is just exploding with ideas… the sky’s the limit!
See the full experiment from Playdough to Plato HERE.
As always, get as creative as you want, and above all, have lots of fun learning together!
We’ll see you right back here next Saturday for another STEAM Saturday activity! Scroll through the rest of our website to learn how Critchlow Adkins is Building Brighter Futures for the children and families we serve!
