SCIENCE EXPERIMENTS FOR KIDS
BOUNCING POLYMER BALL
Make a bouncing ball in this science experiment you can do at home.
Grade level: kindergarten and older (with help from a grown-up)
GATHER THIS:
- borax
- cornstarch
- white glue, blue or clear school glue
- warm water
- food coloring (optional)
- measuring spoons
- spoon or craft stick for stirring
- two small cups for mixing
- marking pen
- timer
- seal-able baggie
THEN DO THIS:
- Label one cup “Borax Mix” and the other cup “Ball.”
- Pour two tablespoons of warm water and a half of a teaspoon of borax powder into the cup labeled “Borax Mix.”
- Stir the mixture to completely dissolve the borax.
- Add food coloring to color the solution.
- Pour one tablespoon of glue into the cup labeled “Ball” Add 1/2 teaspoon of the borax solution you just made and 1 tablespoon of cornstarch. Do not stir.
- Allow the ingredients to interact on their own for 10-15 seconds and then stir them together to fully mix. Once the mixture becomes impossible to stir, take it out of the cup and start molding the ball with your hands.
- The ball will start out sticky, but it will solidify as you knead it more.
- Once the ball becomes less sticky, bounce it!
- You can store your plastic ball in a sealed bag when you are finished playing with it.
- Once you are finished, make sure that you thoroughly clean your hands of the mixture.
ASK THIS:
- What happens if you make a few differently sized balls? Does the size of the ball affect how the balls bounce?
- What happens if you experiment with the ratio of glue, cornstarch and borax? Does more or less cornstarch affect the way the mixture bends or how it is molded?
- What happens if you add more glue or more borax? What about when you use less?
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