Smarty Pants Science

Item #4430
Ages 8 and up
Adult Supervision Required
TM
Great for Science Fair Projects!
Ages 8 and up
Experiment Summaries
Welcome to Smarty Pants Science, and to the amazing world of super-absorbent polymers! This kit not only has cool experiments to try, and it not only allows you
to make real science discoveries, but it will teach you the scientific method. These experiments make a great foundation for Science Fair Projects!
In this kit you will conduct cool scientific experiments (like making instant snow and growing big jelly balls made of goo.) Then, based on what you discover, you
will make a hypothesis about what will happen in a third experiment. Try out your experiment to see if you were right. You’ll be able to track your travels and
record your discoveries in the included Observation Notebook, just like a real scientist! Let’s get started! Here are the experiments you’ll find in your kit:
Size it up!
Learn about the amazing science of the superabsorbent polymer as you make instant snow and grow big, squishy jelly balls. Use your newly acquired science smarts
to predict what will happen when you soak a Mystery Marble in water.
Water Works
You know what happens when you soak super absorbent polymers in water, but what about other liquids? In this experiment you’ll try out different liquids, then,
based on what you discover, you will hypothesize about a different liquid. You’ll design your experiment and see if you were right!
Coloring in the lines?
You are quite a jelly crystallologist, now, aren’t you? In this experiment you will begin to experiment with color. What will happen?
Only your science smarts will unravel the mystery.
Looking a little pale?
This experiment involves more investigations into crystals and color. You’ll learn cool science skills as you make more discoveries about
Polymer crystals, water, chemistry, and molecules.
Rainbow Tube
In this experiment you will use the discoveries you made in the last two experiments to hypothesize about colorful crystals. You won’t believe what happens!
Eye on Ions
Learn more about chemistry and molecules as you set up a race for your Clear Spheres. Grow some in distilled water, some in tap water, and some in a salt water
solution that you make up yourself. Will some grow faster? Will some grow bigger? This experiment makes a Great Science Fair Project!
Kit Components
Scoop • Insta-Snow® • Clear Sphere beads • Mystery Marbles • Polymer crystals • True Colors • small (2 oz ) cups (three) • large (9 oz ) cups (three)
• test tube rack • Instruction book • Observation Notebook • Parent’s Guide
WARNING:
© 2011 Be Amazing! Toys
Salt Lake City, UT 84110
www.beamazingtoys.com
INSTA-SNOW® is a registered
trademark of Steve Spnagler Science
This set contains chemicals that may be harmful if misused.
Read cautions on individual containers carefully.
Not to be used by children except under adult supervision.
Kit Dictionary
Cross-linker: A chemical used in polymer science to hook smaller molecules together to form molecules like long chains.
Hydrophilic: Molecules that mix well with water are called hydrophilic, or “water-loving.”
Hydrophobic: Molecules that do not mix well with water are called hydrophobic, a word that means “water fearing.”
Monomer: In polymer science, the smaller molecules that are linked together to form long, repeating chains that make up polymers, like the individual cars of a train.
Polymer: A special class of large molecules made up of many smaller molecules linked together. These larger molecules have very different properties than the
smaller molecules that they are made of.
Solution: When things are dissolved in water or other liquids, it is called a solution. For instance, when you stir lemonade powder into water to make lemonade,
you are making a solution of lemonade powder.
Super-absorbents: A special class of molecules designed to absorb and store LOTS of water.
The Scientific Method—A word on hypotheses
Learning to make good hypotheses is essential in designing good science fair projects and in learning to think scientifically.
A hypothesis is a theory or idea that:
1. is based on known and observed information
2. can be tested
A hypothesis should be a statement rather than a question. For instance,
“I wonder what will happen if I water a seed with only soda”
is not a hypothesis. It is a great question (and identifying a great question is step one of the scientific method!) but to turn a great question into a great hypothesis,
you should use what you know to write down a theory statement that you can test. For example:
“I think plants will grow better if given soda instead of water because they won’t have to work so hard to make their own sugar”
would be a great hypothesis. This statement of theory incorporates information observed or gathered (plants need water, and plants use water, sunlight, and carbon
dioxide to make sugar) and can be tested by setting up and performing experiments.
Known and observed information can come from many different sources, including previous experiments, personal observation, or information gathered from books,
interviews with experts, or reliable websites. One of the reasons that it is so important to write your observations and researched information down is so you can
review what you know when it’s time to review what you know before creating a hypothesis.
It is OK if your hypothesis turns out to be wrong. The goal of science is not to be right before doing experiments; science is really about learning things after doing
experiments. That’s one of the things that is so great about the scientific method. In the example we discussed above, whether seeds grow better when given only
soda or not, you would still learn something about plants by testing your hypothesis.
To The Adult Helper:
DO’s
• Read the instructions before beginning the experiment
• Ask scientific questions like, “What do you think will happen if…”
• Select an area for the experiments where it’s okay to make a mess
• Encourage the young scientist to write about or draw pictures of the experiments
• Ask afterward “What did you discover by doing this?”
• Answer questions with phrases like, “I don’t know, but how can we find out? Let’s TRY IT!”
DON’Ts
• Do the whole experiment for the young scientist
• Have all of the answers. Make discoveries together
• Worry about making a mess. That’s part of the fun!
• Rush through the experiments. Have fun exploring
The materials in this kit are considered to be non-hazardous when used properly with adult supervision. Be sure to read and follow all of the instructions carefully.
Creating a laboratory:
Most of the experiments in the kit involve water. It is important to find a space for your young scientist’s laboratory that is water-safe (can handle a few inevitable spills!)
and where the experiments can be left undisturbed for a few hours safe from other wandering adults, pets, or babies. Kitchen or bathroom counters make good lab
spaces, or water-safe tables with a drop cloth as needed. The experiments that involve snow will grow and spill outside of the cups (it’s really cool—you and your
young scientist will be amazed!) Clean up will be simplified by performing the experiments on a large tray or place mat.
Safety and Clean up:
All of the materials in the kit are safe and non-toxic. Hydrated superabsorbent polymers (Insta-Snow®, Clear Spheres, Polymer crystals, and Mystery Marbles)
are non-toxic and non-hazardous when used as directed. They are safe to touch, poke, prod, pinch, or squeeze through your fingers. Good scientists should
remember to always keep their experiments away from eyes, nose, mouths, pets, and babies. True Colors tablets are non-toxic and non-hazardous, and when used
as directed they do not stain surfaces, but full-strength tablets can stain wet fingers or clothes (or white carpets) so choose a laboratory space and lab gear that
will be OK. Snow and crystals can be disposed of in the garbage. Left alone, spilled hydrated snow crystals will dry in a few days, and can be easily swept
or vacuumed. Don’t put them down the drain, as they could hydrate and block the pipes. Above all, remember, uninhibited exploration (freedom to spill a little)
is half of the fun. Have fun exploring!
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Size it up!
Use water to make “instant snow” and a slimy, squishy jelly ball. Then use your smarts to figure out what will happen to a Mystery Marble!
Here’s what you’ll need:
From the kit: Observation Notebook • Insta-Snow® • Scoop • Clear Spheres • Mystery Marble • 2 oz cups (three) • 9 oz cup
You-get-it stuff: Large bowl • Water (room temperature) • Metric ruler (measures millimeters) • Pencil or pen • Large tray (optional)
Try It!
SET UP: Open your Observation Notebook to the “Size it Up!” section. Set out the large tray (optional—helps with clean up) as your experiment surface.
You will need your notebook to record your observations and discoveries. Fill the large (nine oz.) cup with room temperature water and set it aside for a moment.
Set out the three small (2 oz ) cups. In the first cup, measure out one blue scoop of Insta-Snow®. In the second, place a few Clear Spheres. Set the third aside
for a moment. (see the diagram below)
water
Insta - Snow®
Clear Spheres
MAKING AND RECORDING OBSERVATIONS is a very important aspect of scientific research, and as a Jelly crystallologist, there is no one more qualified than
you to record this information. Give the Insta-Snow® crystals and the Clear Sphere beads a thorough examination, and record your observations in your notebook.
You may want to draw some pictures of your observations.
Also record properties such as:
• What do they look like? • How big are they? • What color are they? • What is their shape? • Are they hard or soft?
PART 1: Insta-Snow®!
1. The small cups hold two oz. (about ¼ cup) of water. Carefully pour some of the water into the empty cup (fill it up!) and then pour all two ounces over the Insta-Snow®.
2. Wow! What happened? Record your observations in your Observation Notebook. Feel free to touch, poke, and pinch—it’s in the name of science!
PART 2.: Clear Spheres:
1. Add two or three Clear Sphere beads to the water in the large cup, (the cup should be nearly filled with water) and let them sit for a few hours or overnight.
You can take them out and check on them from time to time to see what is happening, but be sure to put them back in afterward.
2. After the beads have stopped growing, take them out and examine them. Record your observations in your notebook. Has the shape or texture changed?
What do they look like? How do they feel?
You have conducted your two experiments and recorded your observations. Now it is time for the SCIENTIFIC METHOD! Using the things you have discovered
in the previous two experiments, you will make a hypothesis about your Mystery Marble.
PART 3: Mystery Marble
1. Get your Mystery Marble out of your kit and check it out.
2. Record your observations in your notebook. You might want to draw pictures. What does it look like? How does it feel? How big is it? Is it soft or hard?
3. Here is the exciting part: Based on what you discovered by adding water to Insta-Snow® or Clear Sphere beads, and what you already observed about the
Mystery Marble, What do you think will happen when you soak the Mystery Marble in water? Write your hypothesis in your Observation Notebook.
4. Time to test your hypothesis! Use your notebook to describe your experiment (you may want to draw pictures.) Fill your large bowl with water and drop the
Mystery Marble inside. You can take it out and look at it as many times as you want, just be sure to put it back in afterward.
5. When your experiment is done, record your results in your notebook. What happened to the Mystery Marble? How long did it take?
6. Your Observation Notebook also has a place for you to write down your analysis of your experiment. That means that you get to write down what you think your
results mean. This is one of the most important parts of the scientific method. What did you discover?
How does it work?
The Scientific name for the kind of molecules that make up Clear Sphere beads and Insta-Snow® crystals is cross-linked polyacrylamide polymer gel. It’s a big
name isn’t it? Did you catch the word “polymer” in there? A polymer is a really big molecule made of lots of little molecules linked together, just like a train is
made of many train cars linked together. In fact, the word “polymer” actually comes from two greek words, “poly” meaning many, and “meros,” which means
units or parts. So a polymer is a big molecule made of “many parts.” In polymer science, the train cars are called “monomers,” which comes from the greek
words “mono” (one, or single) and “meros” again.
But why do they grow in water?
Super Absorbent Polymers are like big nets made of lots of little molecules connected together. Because they are like a net, water can sneak inside through the holes.
That is, the crystals “drink” (soak up) water and hold it there. The polymers that make up Insta-Snow® and Clear Spheres belong to a class of molecules called the
“superabsorbents.” That means that the crystals are thirsty—VERY thirsty! Each crystal can hold up to 300 times its weight in water. If you were an Insta-Snow®
or Clear Sphere crystal you would be able to drink almost 2000 gallons of water! When the crystals meet water, they start drinking. When they soak up the water,
they expand (get larger) and soften. In other words, you added water to make amazingly realistic snow or huge, jiggly jelly balls made of goo!
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Water Works. . .
Explore more of the secrets of the superabsorbent polymer as you investigate the effect of water and oil on Clear Spheres. Then use your smarts to figure out what
will happen when you soak a polymer crystal in milk.
Here’s what you’ll need:
From the kit: Observation Notebook • Scoop • Clear Sphere beads • Large 9 oz cups (three)
You-get-it stuff: Water (room temperature) • Oil • Milk • Pencil or pen
Try It!
SET UP: Open your Observation Notebook to the “Water Works…” section. You will need your notebook to record your observations and discoveries. Pour about
4 oz (1/2 cup) of water into one of the large cups. Pour an equal amount of oil into the other large cup. Set them aside for a moment.
MAKING AND RECORDING OBSERVATIONS: Check out the Clear Sphere beads and record your observations in your notebook. You may want to draw some
pictures of your observations. Also record properties such as:
• What do they look like? • How big are they? • What color are they? • What is their shape? • Are they hard or soft?
PART 1: Clear Sphere beads in water
1. Drop a Clear Sphere bead into the cup of water and set it aside for a few hours or overnight. You can take them out and look at them at any time, but
be sure to put it back in afterward.
2. After the bead has had a chance to soak for a while, take it out and give it a good check. Is it different? What does it look like? How does it feel?
Record your observations in your Observation Notebook.
PART 2: Clear Sphere beads in oil:
1. Drop a Clear Sphere bead into the cup of oil and set it aside for a few hours or overnight. You can take it out and look at it at any time, but be sure to put it
back in afterward.
2. After the bead has had a chance to soak for a while, take it out and give it a good check. Is it different? What does it look like? How does it feel? Record
your observations in your Observation Notebook.
You have conducted your two experiments and recorded your observations. Now it is time for the SCIENTIFIC METHOD! Using the things you have discovered
in the previous two experiments, you will make a hypothesis about what will happen when you soak Clear Sphere beads in a third liquid—milk!
PART 3: Clear Sphere beads in milk
First, you probably need to know a little something about milk.
Why milk is white:
Milk is made up of solids dissolved or emulsified in water. Some of the solids are minerals, sugars, proteins, and fats. Normally fats and oils don’t mix with water
very well. You can observe this by looking at a vinaigrette salad dressing. When the dressing has been sitting for awhile, it always separates into two layers.
Even when you shake it up (try it—but make sure it is tightly capped first!) it will eventually separate. Milk has fat in it, so why doesn’t it separate into two layers
like salad dressing does? The proteins in milk surround the globs of milk fat so that the milk fat can stay in solution. Light travelling through milk bounces off the
bundles of fats and protein and makes the milk look white.
1. Now that you know what milk is made of, and based on what you discovered by soaking Clear Sphere beads in water and oil, what do you think will happen when
you soak Clear Sphere beads in milk? Write your hypothesis in your Observation Notebook.
2. Time to test your hypothesis! Use your notebook to describe your experiment (you may want to draw pictures.)
3. Pour about four oz. (about ½ cup) of milk into one of the large (9 oz) cups, and drop in a Clear Sphere bead. Let it soak overnight. You can take it out and
look at it as often as you want, but be sure to put it back in afterward.
4. When your experiment is done, record your results in your notebook. What happened to the Clear Sphere bead? How long did it take? What does it look like?
5. Your Observation Notebook also has a place for you to write down your analysis of your experiment. That means that you get to write down what you think your
results mean. This is one of the most important parts of the scientific method. What did you discover? What do you think your results mean about what
Clear Sphere beads can absorb?
How does it work?
SPOILER ALERT! Don't look at this paragraph until after you've had a chance to do the experiment and think about it!
When the Clear Sphere beads are soaked in milk, they grow, but they remain colorless, just like when they were grown in water. They grow because of the high
percentage of water in milk (close to 90%.) However, the crystals are colorless because the protein/fat globules do not enter the crystals with the water.
Since it is the protein/fat globules that scatter light, crystals hydrated in milk do not appear to be white like milk.
Coloring in the lines?
You are quite a jelly crystallologist, now, aren’t you? In this experiment you will begin to experiment with color. What will happen?
Only your science smarts will unravel the mystery
Here’s what you’ll need:
From the kit: Observation Notebook • Large 9 oz cup (two) • Small 2 oz cup (three) • True Colors tablet • Scoop • Insta-Snow® • Polymer crystals (1/2 scoop)
You-get-it stuff: Water (room temperature) • Pencil or pen • Large tray (optional)
Try It!
SET UP: Open your Observation Notebook to the “Coloring in the lines?” section. You will need your notebook to record your observations and discoveries. Set
out your tray (optional) to use as an experiment surface. Fill the two large (9 oz) cups with water, each about ¾ full (6oz or ¾ cup). Set both cups of water aside
for a moment. Measure one blue scoop of Insta-Snow® powder into two of the small (2 oz.) cups. Choose a True Colors tablets and put it in the third small cup.
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MAKING AND RECORDING OBSERVATIONS: Check out the Clear Sphere beads and record your observations in your notebook. You may want to draw some
pictures of your observations. Also record properties such as:
• What do they look like? • How big are they? • What color are they? • What is their shape? • Are they hard or soft?
PART 1: True Colors Tablet:
1. MAKING AND RECORDING OBSERVATIONS: Check out the True Colors tablet and record your observations in your notebook. You may want to draw some
pictures of your observations.
2. Drop the True Colors tablet into one of the large (9oz) cups of water. Wow! What happens? Record your observations in your Observation Notebook.
3. After the tablet has totally dissolved, you are ready for part two.
How does it work?
True Colors tablets contain a special dye and a combination of ascorbic acid (vitamin C) and sodium bicarbonate (baking soda.) When ascorbic acid and baking
soda are combined in water, they react to form a salt and carbon dioxide. Carbon dioxide is the gas that we exhale when we breathe, and it bubbles to the top of
the solution, leaving the salt and the dye molecules behind. The water molecules surround the salt and dye molecules so that they seem to disappear into the water.
Scientists would say that they “dissolved,” making a “solution.” You’ve probably made a solution before. For instance, if you ever made lemonade from powder,
you are dissolving the powder in water and making a “lemonade solution.”
PART 2: Comparing and Contrasting Insta-Snow®:
In this experiement, you will compare Insta-Snow® grown with regular water with Insta-Snow® grown with colored water. What do you think will happen?
1. Insta-Snow® with regular water: Use the empty small cup to measure 2 oz (1/4 cup) of regular water from the large cup. Pour the water into one of the small
cups with dry Insta-Snow® crystals.
2. Insta-Snow® with colored water: Use the empty small cup to measure 2 oz (1/4 cup) of colored water from the large cup. Pour the water into the other small
cup with dry Insta-Snow® crystals.
Keep the remaining colored water for part three
3. MAKING AND RECORDING OBSERVATIONS: Comparing and Contrasting are some of the first and most important things that scientists do when they start
studying something new. You will be like a scientist as you ask yourself, “How are the two kinds of Insta-Snow® alike, and how are they different? Record your
observations in your notebook.
You have conducted your two experiments and recorded your observations. Now it is time for the SCIENTIFIC METHOD! Using the things you have discovered
in the previous two experiments, you will make a hypothesis about what will happen when you soak the Polymer crystals in colored water!
PART 3: Polymer Crystals in colored water:
1. Based on what you discovered by dissolving True Colors tablets in water and by comparing Insta-Snow® grown with colored water to Insta-Snow® grown with
regular water, what do you think will happen when you soak Polymer crystals in colored water? Write your hypothesis in your Observation Notebook.
2. Time to test your hypothesis! Use your notebook to describe your experiment (you may want to draw pictures.)
3. Use the colored water you have leftover from part 2 or make some more. Place several Polymer crystals in the cup of regular water and a few Polymer crystals
in the cup with colored water. Let them soak overnight. You can take them out and look at them as often as you want, but be sure to put them back in afterward.
4. When your experiment is done, record your results in your notebook. What happened to the Polymer crystals? How long did it take? What do they look like?
5. Your Observation Notebook also has a place for you to write down your analysis of your experiment. That means that you get to write down what you think your
results mean. This is one of the most important parts of the scientific method. What did you discover? What do you think your results mean about what
Polymer crystals can or can’t absorb?
Save the colored water and the crystals you soaked in it for your next experiment.
How does it work?
True Colors tablets make water colorful because they contain a special kind of molecule called a dye molecule. Dye molecules look colored because they interact
with light in a funny way. White light is made of all of the colors of the rainbow mixed together. Dye molecules absorb (soak up) different colors of light preferentially,
and leave other colors of light behind. The light the dye molecules leave behind is the color we see. When the dye in the tablets dissolves in the water, it mixes all
through the water and soaks up some colors of light leaving other light behind. This makes the water look like it is colored. Amazing!
Looking a Little Pale?
Use your discoveries to explore more of the secrets of molecules as you perform scientific color-based experiments using your squishy Polymer crystals.
Here’s what you’ll need:
From the kit:
• Observation Notebook
• Polymer crystals grown in colored water from your last experiment and the colored water you grew them in, or make and grow some more)
• Large 9 oz cups (two)
You-get-it stuff: Water (room temperature) • Pencil or pen
Try It!
SET UP: Open your Observation Notebook to the “Looking a little Pale?” section. You will need your notebook to record your observations and discoveries.
Use the colored water and the Polymer crystals you grew in it from the last experiment, or make and grow some more. You will also need a cup of plain (colorless) water.
Rather than performing two new initial experiments, your “Looking a little pale?” experiment will involve thinking about some of your discoveries from previous
experiments in order to make a hypothesis. You can do it, because you are super smart and amazing!
PART 1: Remembering True Colors tablets
1. What do you know about True Colors tablets? Do you remember what they are made of? What did you discover about what happens when you put them in water?
Why do they make water colorful? Use your science smarts to record your answers in your Observation Notebook.
PART 2: Polymer Crystals recall:
1. What did you discover when you compared Polymer crystals grown in plain (colorless) water to Polymer crystals grown in colored water? Record your answers
in your Observation Notebook.
2. Based on your last experiment, do you think Polymer crystals can soak up dye molecules when they soak up water? Why do you think that? Record your thoughts
and observations in your Observation Notebook.
Based on what you have discovered and what you have learned in your science explorations, you it is time for the SCIENTIFIC METHOD!
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PART 3: Colored Polymer Crystals in plain water
1. Based on what you know about True Colors tablets, dye molecules, plain and colored water, and Polymer crystals, what do you think will happen when you soak
colored Polymer crystals in plain (colorless) water? Use your science smarts to create a hypothesis, and write your hypothesis in your Observation Notebook.
2. Time to test your hypothesis! Use your notebook to describe your experiment (you may want to draw pictures.)
3. Scoop out half of the colored crystals (you’ll want at least a few) pat them gently with a paper towel, and put them in the cup of plain (colorless) water. Leave
the other crystals in the colored water so you can compare your results afterward. Let the crystals soak overnight. You can take out and look at them as often
as you want, but be sure to put them back in afterward.
4. After your crystals have had a chance to soak for at least several hours, take them out of the cups and check them out. How do the crystals soaked in plain water
compare to the crystals soaked in colored water? Record your observations in the Results section of your Notebook.
5. Your Observation Notebook also has a place for you to write down your analysis of your experiment. That means that you get to write down what you think your
results mean. This is one of the most important parts of the scientific method. What did you discover? What do you think your results mean about what dye
molecules and Polymer crystals?
How does it work?
You might think that once a Polymer crystal soaks up water it would just keep the water inside, but water molecules never hold still. They are always moving,
stretching, wiggling, and bouncing, They wiggle around inside of the Polymer crystal, and take turns moving in and out of the crystal itself. Water molecules are
"sticky." They push and pull each other around (scientists call this cohesion), and they push and pull other molecules around, too (adhesion.)
Rainbow Tube
A very cool experiment that lets you use what you know to create an experiment with amazing results.
Here’s what you’ll need:
From the kit: Observation Notebook • Scoop • Polymer crystals • Large 9 oz cups (three) • Test tube • True Colors tablets
You-get-it stuff: Water (room temperature) • Paper towels
Try It!
SET UP: Open your Observation Notebook to the “Rainbow Tube” section. You will need your notebook to record your observations and discoveries.
Pour about 6 oz (3/4 cup) of water into each of the three large cups. Select one of each kind of True Colors tablet (red, yellow, and blue.)
PART 1: Colorful Crystals
1. Place a different colored tablet in each cup of water. What happens? Record your observations in your Notebook.
2. When the tablets have stopped fizzing and have totally dissolved, use your scoop to measure about a half scoop of dry Polymer crystals into each cup of
colored water. Let the crystals soak for several hours or overnight. You can take them out and look at them at any time, but be sure to put them
back in afterward.
3. After the crystals have had a chance to soak for at least several hours, take them out and give them a good check. Are they different? What do they look like?
How do they feel? Record your observations in your Observation Notebook. SAVE THE CRYSTALS FOR PART THREE.
PART 2: Remembering my discoveries from "Looking a little pale?":
1. Look back at your last experiment ("Looking a little pale?" And remember what you discovered. What happened when you soaked colored crystals in water?
Write down what you remember in your Observation Notebook.
You have conducted your two experiments and recorded your observations. Now it is time for the SCIENTIFIC METHOD! Using the things you have discovered
in the previous two experiments, you will make a hypothesis about what will happen when you conduct a third VERY COOL scientific experiment.
But first, some analysis.
THINKING LIKE A SCIENTIST: Ask yourself the following questions, and write down your answers in your notebook:
1. Can dye molecules go into Polymer crystals? Why do you think that?
2. Can dye molecules go out of Polymer crystals? Why do you think that?
PART 3: Rainbow Tube
Use the colored crystals that you grew in Part one:
1. CAREFULLY pour the excess water out of the cups—don’t spill the Polymer crystals!
2. Scoop the red, yellow, and blue Polymer crystals onto three separate paper towels, and gently pat them dry.
3. Decide which order you want your crystals to be stacked in your tube—you will be stacking them like a parfait (for instance, you could choose red on the
bottom, then yellow, then blue, or yellow on the bottom , then blue, then red…whatever you like!) Pack the first color of crystals into the test tube until it is
a little over 1/3 full. Tap the test tube gently so they are all at the bottom of the tube.
4. Add a middle layer of your second color of crystals until the tube is a little more than 2/3 full. Use a finger to squash the crystals down so they are as tightly
packed as possible.
5. Top the crystal stack with your third color choice. You want the crystals to be overflowing from the top. Squish the lid onto the test tube and screw it
down tightly.
6. Keep your test tube closed for a couple of days and watch what happens. Record your discoveries in your Notebook.
How does it work?
SPOILER ALERT! Don't read this part until after you have done the experiment and thought about your results!
Water molecules are wiggling all of the time, and when they leave the crystal, they can take the dye molecules with them. Hydrated Polymer crystals are so
full of water that when they are next to each other, it is just like a crystal is sitting in water. Water and dye molecules can wiggle out of one crystal into another.
When more than one kind of dye molecule is in a crystal at the same time, the color we see changes. Instead of just crystals with yellow dye and blue dye, there
are crystals with both, which makes GREEN crystals. For another cool experiment, dump the crystals from your rainbow tube out onto a piece of waxed paper
and let them sit out for a few days. What do you think will happen?
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Eye on Ions
This is a great experiment that will help you understand more about molecules. It also makes a great science fair project!
Here’s what you’ll need:
From the kit: Observation Notebook • Clear Sphere beads • Large 9 oz cups (three)
You-get-it stuff: Tap water (room temperature) • Distilled (or deionized) water • Table salt • paper and pen, permanent marker (optional)
Try It!
SET UP: Open your Observation Notebook to the “Eye on Ions” section. You will need your notebook to record your observations and discoveries. It would be
helpful to write "tap water," "distilled water," and "salt water" (one each) on the three cups. If you don't have a marker that can write on the cups, just write the words
on three pieces of paper and be sure to set the right cups on each paper. Pour about 6 oz (3/4 cup) of tap water into one cup, and set it on the "tap water" paper.
Pour the same amount of distilled water into the second cup, and place it on the "distilled water" page. In the third cup, pour six oz of tap water, and add a teaspoon
(or one blue scoop) of table salt. Stir until it dissolves. Allow the cups to sit for a few hours to make sure that they are all the same temperature. Pick three Clear
Sphere beads that are the same size, and set them in one of the small plastic cups. For this experiment, you'll be performing Parts 1 and 2 at the same time.
tap water
distilled water
salt water
T
D
S
tap
distilled
salt
PART 1: Playing taps: Growing Clear Sphere beads in tap water
1. Make sure you labeled your tap water cup correctly (it's hard to tell tap water and distilled water apart otherwise.)
2. Use a metric ruler to measure a bead and record the information in your Observation Notebook. You can also use the print of the ruler in these
instructions to measure it.
3. Place the bead in the cup and let it soak for several hours.
PART 2: Still distilled: Growing Clear Sphere beads in distilled water
1. Double check that you have labeled your distilled water correctly.
2. Use a metric ruler to measure a bead and record the information in your Observation Notebook.
3. Place the bead in the cup and let it soak for several hours.
Once the beads have soaked for several hours, take them out the cups (be careful not to mix them up) pat them dry gently, and measure them again.
How much bigger did they get? Record your observations in your Notebook.
How does it work?
What is distilled water, anyway? Although water that comes out of your tap is clear and colorless, there are actually a lot of things hidden inside, such as dissolved
minerals, salts and ions. The kind of (and amount of) minerals, salts, and ions in tap water varies from place to place, but some of the things commonly found in tap
water are sodium, iron, copper, calcium, magnesium, chloride, and bromide. In some places there are so many minerals and ions in the water that they affect the
plumbing and laundry systems of houses. Water with a certain level of minerals and ions is called "hard water." Scientists have come up with a way to change some
of the ions in water (usually calcium and magnesium) for others (usually sodium, from sodium chloride, or table salt.) Water that has had its ions switched from
things like Calcium and Magnesium to Sodium is called "soft water." You may have a "water softener" at your house that needs to be filled with salt (sodium chloride)
from time to time.
Distilled water is different from soft water. With distilled water, ions and salts are not switched, they are removed. Distilled water is water that has been purified to
remove these minerals and ions. Did the presence of salts, minerals, and ions make a difference in the growth of your Clear Sphere beads? What do you think will
happen if you soak a Clear Sphere bead in water that has lots of salt in it?
PART 3: Salty Soak
Using the things you have discovered and learned in your science explorations, now it is time for the SCIENTIFIC METHOD!
1.You made tap water even saltier by adding a scoop of table salt to it. What effect do you think it will have on the growth of your crystal? Write down your
hypothesis in your Observation Notebook.
2. Use a metric ruler to measure a Clear Sphere bead and record the information in your Observation Notebook.
3. Place the bead in the cup of salt water and let it soak for several hours.
4. Once the bead has soaked for several hours, take it out the cup pat it dry, and measure it again. How much bigger did it get? Were you right?
Record your observations in your Notebook.
How does it work?
SPOILER ALERT! Don't read this until you have done the experiment and thought about your results!
Superabsorbent polymers work because of what is called an "osmotic gradient." That means that the superabsorbent polymer has ions inside of it, and when the
water you are soaking the polymer in has fewer ions, the water molecules want to sneak inside the polymer and surround the ions. More and more water will sneak
inside until the concentration (how many ions in a given amount of space) inside the polymer is the same as the concentration outside the polymer (or until the
polymer gets too full and can't grow anymore. ) If the concentration of ions inside and outside the polymer become the same, then water will come in and out of the
polymer in equal amounts (scientists would say the polymer has reached "equilibrium") and the polymer will stop growing.
Now that you understand how the scientific method works:
You are amazing! You can now ask your own questions and use the materials in your kit to design and perform your own experiments.
Your only limit is your imagination! We'd love to hear from you--please send your comments or pictures of your experiments to our website:
[email protected]
6
Here are some ideas to get you started.(These would make GREAT science fair projects!)
1. How salty is my tap water?
Use your Clear Sphere beads to figure out the concentration of salts in your tap water. Grow one Clear Sphere bead in tap water and another in a separate cup
of distilled water (Make sure you pick two beads that are the same size.) Add small amounts of salt to the distilled water (keep track of how much you add), stir,
and soak until the Clear Sphere bead has shrunk to the size of the tap water bead in the other cup. You'll want to cover the cups while the beads are soaking to
stop water from evaporating.
2. How does salt affect the rate of growth of superabsorbent crystals?
Conduct a race to see how salts affect the speed of super absorbent polymer growth. Compare the growth of Clear Sphere beads in distilled, tap, and salt water.
You'll need to set up this experiment at a time when you can take the beads out every half hour or so and measure them. You can record your measurement time
in a chart and make a graph like this (Science teachers LOVE charts and graphs!):
What else can you think of to try?
Soaking time
Distilled water
0 hours
1/2 hour
1 hour
1 1/2 hour
(
)
Tap water
( )
Salt water
5 millimeters
5 millimeters
7 millimeters
6 millimeters
9 millimeters
7 millimeters
6 millimeters
11 millimeters
8 millimeters
7 millimeters
(
)
5 millimeters
millimeters
5
2 hours
2 1/2 hours
20
19
18
Clear Sphere size (in millimeters)
17
16
15
14
13
12
11
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
soaking time (in hours)
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Salt Lake City, UT 84110
www.beamazingtoys.com