Wednesday, June 19, 2013

Super Erb saves the day!!

Well look at me- here I am 2 days in a row. :)

Let me tell you, my summer school kiddos are awesome. They love the things we do in the classes, and they are so inventive!! We got a little off topic today and were talking about MY first name. It's so funny how intrigued they are that teachers have first names. I happen to have Katie's in two different classes and one of them thinks it's cool to call ME Katie. Meh- it's summer school, right?

So today's science project was LAVA LAMPS!! If you've made these before, then you know that A LOT of vegetable oil is needed. I emptied three bottles {24 students!!} and the little scientists panicked each time one ran out. But don't worry, this is where I got my NEW name- Super Erb. It caught on real fast as a new bottle of oil would appear as soon as another would run out. I'm ok if it sticks. Ha.

If you HAVEN'T made a homemade lava lamp before, you need just a few simple ingredients:

1 Clear, Plastic Water Bottle {We used the 15.9 oz variation. :) And took the label off for the full bubbly experience.}
1/3 C. Water {That's an approximate measurement, I just poured water out of the bottle until it looked good.}
1 Drop of Food Coloring {Drop this in after the water and swish the bottle to mix it into the water.}
1 1/2 C. Vegetable Oil {Also an approximate measurement, I just filled them almost to the top.}
A LOT of Alka-Seltzer

Since I had so many kids to get to AND we had money to buy summer school supplies with, I bought a few cases of water and just poured what they didn't need out and that way everyone had a clear bottle with a lid. :) Next, I gave 4 color choices and had the students go to the appointed corner for the color that they wanted and that really cut down on the time it took to get food color to everyone. Then, I walked around with the bottle of vegetable oil and poured some into each bottle. And last but not least, I quickly passed out a pack of Alka-Seltzer to each kiddo and instructed them to open the package and break each tablet in half- this gave them each 4 pieces.

On the count of three everyone put some Alka-Seltzer into their bottles and watched the magic happen!!



Make sure you have LOTS of Alka-Seltzer, because a few just WON'T be enough.

Also, if you REALLY want to impress the crowd, turn out the lights, put a flashlight under the bottle, and THEN add the Alka-Seltzer. Impressive. Haha :)

Well, I think that's all I've got for tonight! If you try this and find that something works better, PLEASE let me know!! :)

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