Kitchen Chemistry

Today we’re having a little fun with kitchen chemistry for kids.  The goal is exploration and discovery, so let your children lead.

Kitchen Chemistry

Materials:
mixing bowls
spoons
measuring cups
flour
salt
baking soda
water
vinegar

Safety Reminders:
Make sure to choose materials that you know are safe to mix together (pretty much anything you can eat is safe to mix).
Be careful when playing with acids like vinegar and lemon juice.  It will hurt if they get splashed into an eye or into a cut.
When in doubt, leave it out.

Questions to ask:
What do you think will happen when you mix A with B?
Why do you think it responded the way it did?
How can you change it to be like ____? (How can you make it more dough like or more liquidy?)

Exploration Ideas:

1. Mix flour and water together exploring the differences in consistency as you add different amount of each.  What proportions do you need to make dough? (You can also add salt to make a little salt dough.)
2. Add a spoonful of salt to a cup of water.  What happens to the salt?  What happens when you add more salt? Will it always dissolve?
3. Practice measuring using measuring cups and spoons.  (You can measure just water or just flour or whatever!)
4. Create a recipe by writing down the steps you take.  Have someone else repeat the steps (or repeat them yourself) and see if the end product turns out the same.
5. Add a little bit of vinegar to a small amount of baking soda.  Observe what happens.  (Make sure your bowl is big enough for this one, or conduct this one in the sink.)
6. Follow a real recipe to make something yummy – pancakes, muffins, etc.  Allow your child to measure and stir as much as possible.  (If your child is too little to measure, allow them to add ingredients measured by you.  You can help make sure the ingredients all get in the right place!)