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National Chemistry Week - Experiments
Research for this material was made possible by sponsorship from Dow Chemical Canada, Inc.
Experiments for:
| grades 1-3 | grades 4-6 | junior high and high school |
grades 1 - 3
Amazing Ice
Examine what happens to the floating and sinking properties of water as it changes from a solid to a liquid in oil...Amazing Powder
Demonstrate the amazing effect that a powder from diapers has on water...Brim to Brim
Show that two pieces of matter cannot be in the same space at the same time...Broken Pencil?
Show that looking at objects through water makes them appear different...Dry Paper
Keep a piece of paper towel dry even after placing it under water...Evaporation in Action
Observe the process of evaporation...Expansion on Freezing
Show that water expands when it is frozen...Guessing Game
Demonstrate the difference between objects that sink and float...Hot Sips
Observe hot water rise in cold water...How to Make Six-Sided Snowflakes
Ice Fishing
Lift an ice cube out of a glass of water using a piece of string..."Magic" Screen
Show that water will not drip through fabric, even though the fabric is not water-proofed, because water likes to stick together...Moved by Marbles
Observe that two things cannot occupy the same space at the same time...Musical Glass
Cause a goblet of water to emit sound...Over the Rim
Show that water likes to stick together and can even rise about the edge of its container...Soapy Stories
Demonstrate the effects of soap on water...Super Snowflakes
Demonstrate what the smallest particle of water looks like and to use this to show how snowflakes are made...Racing Water Droplets
Observe water droplets as they race down a hill...Rainbow in Your Room
Observe the separation of colours in white light using water...Water and Sand
Show that a glass of sand has air in it...Water Magnifies
Show that looking at objects through water makes them appear larger...
grades 4 - 6
A Breath of Air
Measure your lung capacity...
Atoms and Molecules
Construct your own molecules...Baking, Brewing and Bodybuilding
Carry out starch digestion and glucose fermentation
Bones in Knots
Tie chicken bones in knots with the help of chemical changes...Chemical Word Searches
Search for chemistry in and around you...Colour Mixing
Observe the mixing of primary colours to form secondary colours...Crystal Garden
Create a crystal garden...Crystal Streamers
Observe a solid as it dissolves in a liquid to produce streamers of colour...Elements at Home
You can have fun collecting 10 or more uncombined elements in your own home...
Falling Spheres
Make spheres of coloured water float between a layer of water and oil...Green Pennies
Demonstrate a chemical change using pennies and vinegar...Growing Fingernails
Compare the growth rates of thumbnails
Hidden Colors
Find out what colours are hidden in different coloured inks...In Suspense
Examine the characteristics of a cornstarch suspension...Magnetic Chemistry
All chemicals are affected by magnets. The most strongle attracted are...
Making Rock Candy
Make your own rock candy...Microwaves and Water
You can do a startling experiment in a microwave...
Soap and Cells: Making molecules 'Stand on Their Heads'
Soap films can be spread on water almost instantly in this experiement.
The Erupting Volcano
Cause a minitaure volcanic eruption...The Disappearing Egg Shell
Remove the shell from an egg without breaking the egg...The Paper Bag Mystery
Find out what is hidden inside an inflated paper lunch bag...
junior high and high school
A Clock Reaction
Two solutions (A and B) are mixed by pouring from one beaker into the other. After many seconds, the mixed solution turns dark blue, the color of the starch-iodine complex. Changing the concentration...A Chemical Engineer’s Recipe for Chocolate Chip Cookies
Household cooking involves chemistry. Here is a cooking experiment in which the product is edible...An Absorbency Experiment
Try this experiment see how a small amount of absorbent material can take up many times its own mass in water...CELLULOSE MOLECULES: LEFT OR RIGHT-HANDED?
Most objects that occur naturally are not identical with their mirror images. This characteristic is called "chirality" or "handedness." The two forms are often designated...Detection of Acids and Bases with Red Cabbage Juice
Red cabbage juice is an example of an acid-base indicator. In chemistry, an indicator is a tool used to indicate the presence of a specific chemical or a specific type of chemicals...Electrolysis of a Water To electrolyze water. Electrolysis is a process by which a chemical reaction is carried out by means of the passage of an electric...
Electrolysis of a Water Solution
A water solution is electrolysed using a 9V battery. Electrode phenomena can be observed. The kinetic of the reactions can be changed. Such electrolysis give rise to many industrial applications...Electrolysis of KI
To electrolyze a potassium iodide solution. Electrolysis is a process by which a chemical reaction is carried out by means of the passage)of an electric current. As the reaction proceeds iodide is oxidized at the anode...Fluorescence Emission from Tonic Water
To observe the fluorescence of quinine in tonic water. This experiment demonstrates the important and fascinating phenomenon of fluorescence, the prompt emission of longer wavelength light when a molecule...Growing Crystals
To grow crystals from a supersaturated solution. A solid that dissolves in a liquid (solvent) is called a solute. Solute can be added to the solvent until no more will dissolve...Make Your Own pH-Indicator
To make a phenolphthalein indicator and test the acidity or basicity of household products. Phenolphthalein is a large organic...Making Sponge Toffee
Household cooking involves chemistry. Here's a chemistry experiment in which the product is edible. What is the purpose of...Natural Product Chemistry: Extracting Pigments
To extract organic pigments from a variety of vegetables. Organic pigments are large and often complex organic molecules responsible for the different...Paper Chromatography
This experiment shows how ink can be separated into its component dyes by chromatography. This is an illustration of an important technique used in all chemical sciences...Paper Chromatography (2)
To separate the different colours that are in coloured pens. Chromatography is a common chemical method for separating substances...Radial Paper Chromatography
The purpose of this experiment is to separate a mixture of dyes in felt pen ink...Removing Iodine from Iodized Salt
To remove potassium iodide from iodized salt. Iodine is a halogen. At room temperature it is a bluish-black solid with a metallic luster and is classified as a semiconductor of electricity. Iodine is needed by the thyroid...Removing Iron from Cereal
To remove metallic iron from iron fortified cereal. Iron is the most abundant metallic element in the human body as well as an...Studying Slime
To make slime and observe its "non-Newtonian fluid" properties. The slime made in this experiment is similar to a product that used...