Erupting Apples

When you have three little curious boys running around your house and a free afternoon, why not get a little messy and do some kitchen science? We did ours in the backyard and let the whole thing become a super sensory experience. When they inevitably try and find the remains of their apple in the mound of foam, be sure to ask them what it feels like.

  1. Ages: 3 - 8

  2. 30 minutes - 1 hour

  3. Super messy

  4. Grownup needed

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Materials you'll need

Step-by-step tutorial

  • Step 1

    Add 1 cup of baking soda, 1 tablespoon of soap, and 1 teaspoon of water to a small bowl. Start mixing them together with your hands.

    Photo reference of how to complete step 1

  • Step 2

    If you want to make a colored apple, add about a teaspoon of liquid water color (we used one pipette of lime green or red). Keep mixing until it comes together and you can shape it into a ball.If it is too crumbly, add a little bit of water at a time to bring it together. If it is too mushy, add more baking soda to make it firmer.

    Photo reference of how to complete step 2

  • Step 3

    When you've got a nice doughy consistency, scrape the mixture out of your bowl and roll it together into a ball. Add a leaf to complete your apple.

    Photo reference of how to complete step 3

  • Step 4

    To make your apple erupt, put about a cup of vinegar into a squeeze bottle and place your apple into a bowl. This will get messy so make sure everything is in a tray to catch anything that overflows. Now squirt some vinegar onto your apple and watch it erupt!

    Photo reference of how to complete step 4

  • Learn moremagnifying icon graphic

    What's going on?

    What you see happening to the apples is a chemical reaction, and in a chemical reaction, the molecules change! Vinegar reacts with baking soda and one product of that reaction is carbon dioxide gas. This is explains the fun fizzy bubbles that erupt from your apples!

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