Oobleck is one of the coolest science experiments we have ever tried. We first made it in March of 2010 in honor of Dr. Seuss (there is a Dr. Seuss book titled Bartholomew and the Oobleck), and this year we added oobleck to our summer bucket list because it is one of those things that is so much fun and yet we often forget to do it.
To make oobleck:
- pour one cup of water into a container
- add a few drops of food coloring to the water (we used blue this time)
- add two cups of corn starch and stir
This year I decided to double the recipe because we had a bigger container and we were experimenting outside (can you believe we did this in the house the first time?).
It feels like a solid when you try to pick it up, but it quickly becomes a liquid and drips through your fingers. I tried to capture this with my camera:
If you want the scientific explanation, oobleck is a slimy polymer classified as a non-Newtonian fluid. Non-Newtonian fluids can look and feel like both liquids and solids, but their flow only changes when you change the type of pressure you apply to its surface. If you want more details, you can google those terms.
WARNING: This is not for the faint of heart. This stuff makes a mess. The more water you add, the more resistant to clean up this stuff becomes. Believe it or not, oobleck washes off of clothing without a problem. Phew! Also, whatever you do, DO NOT put this stuff down the drain or toilet. If you do, you better call a plumber! To dispose of the oobleck, just leave it to dry out and then dump it into the trash. This is what ours looked like after it dried:
It's definitely worth the mess. I always enjoy this myself. It is so cool the way it changes in your hands. So, relax a little bit, cover all of your surfaces, and have fun!
For more cool science experiments, check out Science Sunday hosted by Adventures in Mommydom.
9 comments:
We are actually, finally, planning to make this, this week while we row Bear Hunt. Hoping it turns out as well as yours always does!
Love, love, love the pictures of the kids feet in the bin :-).
The kids are having so much fun! Thank you for your warning about disposing this stuff.
Not too surprisingly I did mine inside first as well.
The really depressing thing is I bought a kit ages and ages ago and it claimed it was "quick sand," yeah it was just oobleck. And a rather depressingly small amount of it.
Oh boy, it reminded me of our oobleck experiment - so messy but fun. I was very relieved to see that the stuff could dry out into a fine dust and be swept off - my husband almost had a heart attack when he unexpectedly came home and saw the mess. You are amazing for doing it so close to giving birth!
We need to make oobleck again soon. So fun!
Oobleck is in our top 10 favorite boredom buster projects - it never gets old!
We have still not made this one yet! Now I'm going to have to. What a mess though. LOL!
These are awesome pictures! We love oobleck...but I tried to make it in a kiddy pool, and I just ended up with a big messy pool of water. You have inspired me to try again!
Did you know that you can save the dried Oobleck in a plastic bag and then just add water again when you want to make it again?
Kids of all ages love the stuff, don't they?
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