Educational Resources

Hands-on Activity: Cloudy with a Chance of Clear Color

Mix a medicine called milk of magnesia with red cabbage juice and vinegar, rather than your own stomach acid, for some surprising color changes. Find the activity in the latest issue of Celebrating Chemistry.

Elementary & Middle School (Ages 5-13)

From Adventures in Chemistry (Grades K-5) 

• The Fate of Calcium Carbonate
  
• Add vinegar to an antacid tablet and an eggshell to find out what they have in common.
• Warm up to Some Cool Reactions
  Practice reading a thermometer as you check out two temperature-changing chemical reactions.
• The Secret Science of Braces
  Read about the science of braces, toothpaste, and filling cavities. 

From Inquiry in Action

• Designing an Absorbency Test
  Test to see which of 4 materials absorbs water. View an animation that shows how water molecules are attracted to paper and felt and move up through spaces in the material. 

From Middle School Chemistry

• The Ups and Downs of Thermometers
  Do a hands-on activity and view molecular model animations to discover how thermometers work.
• Temperature Changes in Dissolving
  Use a thermometer while dissolving a few different household substances in water to explore the inner workings of instant hot and cold packs.  Then, view animations to see how the breaking and making of bonds during dissolving causes these temperature changes.
• Neutralizing Acids and Bases
  Explore the color changes that result when citric acid and sodium carbonate are added to universal indicator solution. View animations to find out how acids and bases neutralize each other.