HOUSTON – With many children at home for summer break, parents are trying to find ways to keep the kiddos busy and engaged!
And a Houston-area mom has a YouTube channel where she teaches fun STEM activities that will help your little ones kick boredom to the curb.
She’s Crystal Lister with Mommy And Me: The Listers, and she joined us alongside her daughter Krissy and 2 of her friends, Justin and Idaci, to show us two easy experiments to entertain your kids.
To see how fun the experiments are, check out the video above.
For the complete,
Experiment #1: “Canister Rockets”
(for ages 3 and up)
Materials:
- Film Canister
- Water
- Fizzy Tablets
- Decorations are optional but, fun!
Steps:
- Decorate
- Fill the film canister halfway with water
- Add in half of a fizzy tablet
- Put the lid on really tight until it snaps
- Flip the canister over
- Countdown and watch the blast off!
The science behind it:
As the carbon dioxide is released, it creates pressure inside the film canister. The more gas that is made, the more pressure builds up until the cap is blasted down and the rocket is blasted up. This system of thrust is how a real rocket works whether it is in outer space or here in the earth’s atmosphere.” said Lister.
Experiment #2: “Classic Coke and Mentos with a Twist”
(for ages 3 and up)
Materials:
- Diet Coca-Cola (16-ounce bottle or 2L for an even bigger reaction)
- Mentos
- Geyser Tube
- Homemade geyser tube: Tape, construction paper, toothpick
Steps:
- Load in 5 Mentos in the geyser tube or the homemade geyser tube being sure that the pin or the toothpick is in place
- Screw the geyser tube carefully on the bottleneck or insert the homemade tube
- Release the pin or toothpick
- Stand back and enjoy the magic of science
- Baby swimming pool
The science behind it:
The carbon dioxide molecules attach to the surfaces of the Mentos and make a lot of bubbles that rise to the surface of the soda and push the soda out in a big explosion!
Mommy and Me The Listers will be appearing at the STEM Carnival, happening on September 10 at Greater Faith Baptist Church.
For more information, click here.