6 Simple and Hands-On Chemistry Experiments for Kids

Want to do fun chemical experiments? Lets’ find out the best science activities to perform simple chemistry experiments with everyday materials at home. 

Chemistry is a scientific discipline where students study the properties of matter and how it interacts with energy. Simply put, Chemistry studies the make-up of all things and how they behave. For many students, especially young children, the study of chemistry may be a difficult connotation. However, various chemistry experiments make the study of chemistry more fun and engaging. These chemistry experiments are educationally beneficial for kids and require just a few materials and ingredients. To help you perform chemistry experiments at home with your kids, we have listed below simple chemistry experiments with everyday materials. 

 1. Slime 

Slime is an example of a polymer. The white glue, which is generally used in the classic slime formula, is also a polymer. Making slime can be more fun. But wondering how to make it? Let’s find out what you all need to make slime.  

Materials and ingredients to make slime: 

• Borax powder 
• Water 
• Glue 
• Teaspoon/plastic spoon 
• Bowl 
• Measuring cup 
• Food coloring (optional) for colorful slime  

What to do next to make slime? 

• Pour the glue into the bowl/jar, then add water and stir it into the glue. 
• If you want to make it colorful, add food coloring; else, the slime will be an opaque white. 
• Take a separate bowl, and mix your water and borax powder. 
• Gently stir the glue compound into the borax solution bowl. 
• Now place your slime that forms into your hands and squeeze until it feels dry. 

2. Cabbage Chemistry Experiment 

This experiment teaches you about acids and bases. Acid and bases form an important part of chemistry till the higher classes. You can use red cabbage to perform as a pH indicator to test the pH of seven common household liquids. A cabbage fundamentally contains a pigment molecule known as flavin or anthocyanin that changes color depending on the acidity of the solution. Red cabbage indicates color. When it combines with something acidic, it turns in red, while it turns green in color when it combines with a base. 

 To perform cabbage chemistry, you will need the following things: 

• Red cabbage 
• Knife and cutting board 
• Hot tap water 
• 7 clear plastic disposable cups and spoons 
• Large plastic bottle 
• Strongly acidic material, e.g., powdered toilet cleaner 
• Acidic material such as lemon juice, vinegar, or citric acid 
• Feebly acidic material like cream of tartar 
• Neutral material, e.g., pure water 
• Slightly basic material like bicarbonate of soda 
• Basic material, e.g., washing soda 
• Strongly basic material such as dishwasher liquid or powder  

What to do next? 

• Cut three or four red cabbage leaves. 
• Put the leaves in the plastic bottle, and half fill the bottle with hot water and screw the cap tightly. 
• Keep shaking the bottle for a couple of minutes until the water becomes a deep purple color. 
• Keep the solution aside and let it cool. 
• Strain the solution and add the required amount of water to the solution. 
• Put a small amount of the above materials in each of the cups. 
• Now put red cabbage juice in each cup, mix the solution and observe for color change. 
• If the solution turns pink or red, the chemical is an acid.  
• If it turns blue or green, the chemical is a base. 

3. Rubber Egg Experiment 

Remember watching videos where an egg when thrown, instead of breaking, bounces back! Chemistry reactions are really exciting. You make an egg rubbery or bouncy. Making a rubber egg is a great way for kids to learn about the layers of an egg. The following experiment is performed in vinegar, which has an acid. The outer layer of egg made up of calcium carbonate reacts with the acid in the vinegar. The acid dissolves the outer layer and leaves behind the outer membrane of the egg.  

What do you need to make a rubber egg? 

• Eggs 
• Jar or cup 
• Distilled White Vinegar 
• Food Colouring 
• Bowl of water  

 What to do next? 

• Put an egg in a cup and then add vinegar. 
• Add a few drops of food coloring and stir gently. 
• Observe the eggs each day. Because the vinegar will dissolve the eggshell over several days. 
• After some days, remove the egg from the vinegar and place it in a bowl of water. 
• Gently rub off the eggshell. Your egg will now be bouncy and rubbery. 

4. Invisible Ink Experiment 

Invisible inks can either react with another chemical in order to become visible or soften the paper’s structure, so the message appears if you hold it over a heat source. It is also known as security ink or sympathetic ink. These are usually easily miscible with water, do not react with heat and are non-volatile, i.e., it doesn’t get evaporated easily under heat.  During World War I, these inks were extensively used by the parties involved to share secret war messages.  

 What things will you need? 

• Half lemon 
• Bowl 
• Spoon 
• Water 
• Paintbrush/Cotton bud 
• White paper 
• Lamp/ light bulb 

What next: 

• Squeeze half of a lemon juice into the bowl. 
• Add a few drops of water into the lemon juice and mix it. 
• Use the paintbrush or cotton bud to write something onto the white paper. 
• Wait for the paper to dry completely in order for the message or something is written onto the paper to completely become invisible. 
• Now when you hold the paper close to the light bulb or lamp, the message written onto the paper will be visible. 

5. Coloured Fire 

It is easy and fun to make colored fires at home using common household chemicals. Generally, the flame color may be red, yellow, blue, orange or violet, and is ruled by blackbody radiation from soot and steam. There are chemicals for each of the colors, with a fuel. You can use a fuel that burns with a clean blue flame. Some of the best choices include rubbing alcohol, 151 rum, hand sanitizer made with alcohol, lighter fluid, or alcohol fuel treatment. As many chemicals produce colors in a fire, not all of them are readily available or safe to use. 

Below are the flame colourants with chemicals: 

 Coloured Fire Safety Information 

• When performing this experiment, it is better to do it in a well-ventilated area or outside the home. 
• Burn the treated material completely.  
• Wait until the flames are completely burned down to some coals and then low flame. 
• Add the treated material to see the best show of colors. 
• By making wax cacks containing chemicals, you can create another variation of fire color.  
• You can start by melting paraffin from candle stubs in a double boiler.  
• Do not melt over an open flame as it may ignite. 
• It is also important that you wear protective eyewear and clothing. 

6. Crystal Experiment 

A crystal represents a solid material made up of atoms and molecules that are arranged in a consistent repeating pattern, creating geometrical shapes. Crystals are very expensive and beautiful. Even the most precious gem of all, diamond, is a crystal. In higher classes, you’ll be taught about the various shapes of these crystals and the various pattern in which they are arranged. But for now, read on to know how you can make them at your home with sugar and salt. 

What you will need: 

• Sugar 
• Salt 
• Sodium bicarbonate/ baking soda 
• Warm water 
• Pipe cleaners 
• Spoons 
• Plastic containers or bowls 
• Measuring cup 
• Small plastic cups 
• Food Colouring (optional) 
• Marker 

What to do next?

• Label the containers of sugar, salt, and baking soda. 
• Now, pour half a cup of warm water into the container labeled sugar. 
• Add a spoonful of sugar into the water and keep stirring until melted.  
• Keep adding sugar until no more gets dissolved. 
• Now do the same, but this time with salt instead of sugar. 
• Again, repeat with baking soda. 
• Label the small plastic cups of sugar, salt, and soda. 
• Use separate pipe cleaners to put a few drops of each of the container’s solutions into the matching cup. 
• Place the cups in a warm and sunny place and leave them until the liquid evaporates. Your crystals are ready now. 

Final Thoughts

These are some of the best chemistry experiments that your kids can do at home. Theoretical information without practical knowledge has no meaning. One of the most common mistakes that elders do is to ask their children to be glued to their books. More emphasis should be put on practical knowledge for better application of the theories learned at schools. You can also try other experiments to make chemistry learning fun and interesting for your kids. But make sure the experiments are performed under an adult’s supervision.