Science can be so much fun when you do simple Thanksgiving science experiments like dancing popcorn. Corn & cranberries are classic foods for fall or Thanksgiving.
I spent the weekend with my granddaughters and decided to do some fun experiments, even preschoolers or kindergarteners can do.
I made a few videos for you so your kids can have fun with Dancing Popcorn and Cranberry Chemistry. Check them out below, along with the directions.
And this one below which uses red food coloring … which is fun but makes it harder to see the hopping corn. The clear water without food coloring is easier to see the chemical reaction between an acid and base.
How can your kids make dancing popcorn?
All you need are a few items: clear glass, water, baking soda, popcorn and vinegar. That’s it. You can make dancing popcorn any day with these everyday items. Here’s how:
- Pour 1-2 cups of water in a clear glass
- Add 1-2 Tablespoons of baking soda
- Stir til mixed
- Add popcorn
- Pour in some vinegar
- Watch the dancing popcorn
We have an acid and a base (baking soda & vinegar). When these two mis together, a carbon dioxide gas is made. It’s the carbon dioxide that makes the corn dance up and down… dancing or hopping popcorn.
Now it’s time to try one more dancing or hopping chemistry experiment. Let’s look at Cranberry Chemistry. This Thanksgiving science activity is the easiest one ever.
Cranberry Chemistry is super-easy. All you need is a glass, 7-Up and dried cranberries. Pour 7-Up into your clear glass. Let your kids drop in dried cranberries.
Then … watch!
See what happens as the cranberries hop up and down from the carbon dioxide in the 7-Up. Again, there was a base & acid to make the carbon dioxide in the 7-Up.
Do you have any other Thanksgiving science experiments you can share? Leave a comment below.
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