Easy Science Fair Demonstration Ideas

Science fairs are popular with children because they get a chance to work hands-on with the lessons that they have been learning about in the classroom. It also gives kids with an interest in science to explore fields that they want to learn more about. There are many science fair demonstrations that are educational and provide excitement for other students at the fair. Preparation is important, so help your students conduct a test run of their experiments before they put them on display at the fair.

Volcano

One of the most classic and exciting science fair demonstrations is creating an eruption from a model volcano. The volcano experiment highlights what can happen when two ingredients react with each other. Start by making a fake volcano, which will be the shell for the reaction. You can mold the volcano out of modeling clay or paper mache, but it is important to make sure that you let the volcano dry and that there are not any cracks before you begin. Pour about 5 tablespoons of baking soda, some water and a couple of drops of dish soap inside the volcano. Add red food coloring if you want the "lava" to be red. When it is time to demonstrate, pour vinegar into the volcano. The vinegar will react with the baking soda and the "lava" will come spouting out of the top of the volcano. Just be prepared for a mess.

Mentos and Diet Coke Fountain

The reaction that occurs when you drop Mentos candies into diet soda will excite all of the kids at the science fair. Because of the gritty texture of the coating of Mentos candy, the diet coke becomes agitated and bubbles will form. The aspartame in diet drinks reduces friction inside the container, causing the bubbles to form quickly. These bubbles need a place to go, and the only way out is up. As pressure builds inside the bottle, the fizz will shoot out of the 2-liter like a geyser. Be prepared for cleanup.

Launch Angles

Students can experience a lesson in physics and get to play with toys at the same time. The angle from which you launch a projectile will have a big influence on how far that object travels. So what is the optimal launch angle? Use your favorite Nerf gun or another shooting device that will fire its projectile at the same speed every time. For this experiment, fire a toy shooter at different angles and measure how far the projectile travels before it hits the floor. Use a protractor to measure the launch angle and a tape measure to record the distance. Get a measurement that is near horizontal, near vertical and at least one in the middle. Chart the results and show off your "method" for the demonstration.

Reaction Time and Temperature

Discover how temperature has an effect on the time it takes for a reaction to occur. Get three Alka-Seltzer tablets and three glasses of water. One glass of water should be room temperature, another should be very hot and the third should be as cold as you can get it. Drop the Alka-Seltzer tablet into each glass of water and time how long it takes them to completely dissolve in each glass.