Exploration of Eruption
Updated: Oct 27, 2021
This experiment is an absolute crowd pleaser!!!
When I'm planning our lessons, I keep her interests in mind.
I often ask her to choose a topic, place, or thing that interests her. I don't remember how we got on volcanoes, but I mentioned that Hawaii has three. She's had an interest in Hawaii for some time. So, I planned this week's lessons around that.
We covered science, introduced new words, and of course, geography! We learned about Hawaii's history and even some popular dishes—so many lessons out of one interest. Not only did she learn a lot, so did I. Now to complete the task, a trip to Hawaii!! Lol, if only it were that easy.
Vocabulary Words
Volcano
Lava
Eruption
Island
Beaches
Tropical
Active
Download our Scientific Method Chart below.
Check out our volcano experiment, and we'd love to see yours! Tag us on IG @Happynappycurls13
What you'll need: Building a Volcano
2 Empty water bottle
Tape
Baking Soda
Vinegar
Water
Red & Orange food coloring
Gold Glitter (optional)
Thin cardboard-Optional(break down cereal box ahead of time)
Spray Bottle(optional)
The dough to sculpt the Volcano
4 cups of flour
1 cup of salt
2 Tbsp of oil
Brown food Coloring
1 - 1 1/2 cup of water
Mix flour, salt, water, and oil; The dough should be firm but easy to form(if sticky, add a bit of flour). You can add food coloring to the water if you'd like a more uniform color. I like the color variation, so I added the food coloring to the dough. Now you're ready to form your volcano!
Get the water bottle, top off: add 1-2 drops of each food coloring, warm water, 4-6 drops of soap, and 2 Tbsp of baking soda to the bottle.
Grab the cereal box; break it down if you haven't already. Begin shaping the cardboard around the water bottle in the form of a volcano. I used tape to hold it together. You can omit the cardboard and form it directly over the bottle. I chose to use the cardboard for more stability because I wanted a broader base, and it worked out!
When you have the shape that you like, add the dough to the cardboard. I suggest shaping it on a cookie sheet. The sheet will help contain the mess of the ERUPTION! Now spritz the cardboard lightly. Shape the volcano using the dough. Now that you've shaped your volcano grab the vinegar; it's time to make the eruption! Slowly pour the vinegar into the volcano and watch the magic happen. Check out or pics and video!
Adaption for younger children
Grab a mason jar add some baking soda, glitter, food coloring, warm water. Place the jar onto a dish or baking sheet. Pour in the vinegar and watch the fun reaction!
Science in Action!
The lava is the result of a chemical reaction between baking soda and vinegar.
In this reaction, carbon dioxide gas is produced, which is also present in real volcanoes.
The more carbon dioxide gas made, the more pressure builds up inside the bottle, and the gas bubbles out of the volcano's mouth.