Easy Science – What will freeze?
This week is all about my love for simple science experiments. This time of year lends itself perfectly to all kinds of ice experiments because they are relevant – nature is certainly making ice, so why not explore it?
One way to go beyond just exploring ice is to look at all kinds of everyday items – both liquid and solid – to see which ones will freeze and which ones will not. This experiment will give your students the opportunity to make hypotheses, you can ask them which items they think will freeze before attempting.
Here are some items that you probably already have that you can experiment with:
- Water
- Juice
- Milk
- Dish Soap
- Corn Syrup
- Vinegar
- Vegetable Oil
I suggest trying to have the same type and size container for each item so that you can keep the amount of liquid constant. Clear containers will work the best because the children will be able to see more of the item both before and after you had them in the freezer. Make sure to leave the items in the freezer plenty long enough to make sure that every item has the opportunity to freeze if it is going to. I suggest starting the experiment and making your hypotheses on day, putting the items in the freezer and leaving them there overnight, and then finishing the experiments the next day.
After you’ve taken the items out of the freezer you can have some wonderful discussions about which items froze and which ones didn’t, as well as why they may have frozen – or not frozen.