Rainbow Milk Experiment

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Ages: 5-10

Objective: Introduce children to the concepts of surface tension, chemistry, and color mixing through an engaging and visually appealing experiment using milk and food coloring.

Materials Needed:

  1. Full-fat milk
  2. Liquid dish soap
  3. Food coloring (assorted colors)
  4. Cotton swabs or toothpicks
  5. Shallow dish or plate (one per participant)

Procedure:

  1. Pour enough full-fat milk into each shallow dish or plate to cover the bottom in a thin layer.

  2. Add drops of different colored food coloring to the milk. Space out the drops and use multiple colors to create a colorful pattern on the surface of the milk.

  3. Dip a cotton swab or toothpick into the liquid dish soap.

  4. Touch the soapy end of the cotton swab or toothpick to the surface of the milk, near the center of the dish.

  5. Observe as the colors in the milk begin to swirl and mix together.

  6. Continue adding drops of dish soap to different areas of the milk surface to create additional swirls and patterns.

Explanation:

  • Milk contains fat molecules, which have a property called surface tension that allows them to resist mixing with other substances.
  • When dish soap is added to the milk, it disrupts the surface tension and breaks apart the fat molecules.
  • As the fat molecules separate, they allow the food coloring to mix and spread, creating swirling patterns in the milk.

Extensions:

  1. Experiment with different types of milk (such as skim milk or almond milk) to observe any differences in the results.
  2. Try using different brands or concentrations of dish soap to see how they affect the swirling patterns.
  3. Discuss with children the science behind surface tension and how it affects the behavior of liquids.
  4. Encourage children to hypothesize what might happen if they change the temperature of the milk or use different types of liquids.
  5. Challenge kids to create their own artistic designs by strategically adding drops of food coloring to the milk before adding the dish soap.

Safety Note:

  • Supervise children closely, especially when handling dish soap and other materials. Remind them not to ingest any of the substances used in the experiment.

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