Today’s STEAM Activity is continuing our slime week theme. We made Fluffy Cloud Slime on Monday, and today we’re making Silly Putty!
My kids loved the silly putty! My son doesn’t really like slime because it’s too wet, slimy and messy, but he loved the silly putty because it’s more dry, but still stretchy and fun to play with.
MATERIALS:
- Washable school glue
- Borax
- Warm water
- Food coloring
- Measuring cup
- Large bowl
- Small bowl
- Spoon
PROCEDURE:
- Measure 1/4 cup glue and pour into the large bowl.
2. Add a few drops food coloring and stir until it’s well combined.
3. In a separate small bowl, add 1/4 teaspoon Borax to 1/4 cup very warm water and stir until the Borax is completely dissolved. The warm water helps dissolve the Borax, and in my experience the warmer the water the quicker and easier it dissolves.
4. Add the Borax solution to the glue in the large bowl.
5. Stir the mixture and you will see it begin to clump together immediately.
6. When you can no longer stir it, pick it up and knead it with your hands until it’s smooth.
7. Your silly putty is ready. Play with it by squeezing it, squishing it, molding it, rolling it, and more. This is so relaxing to play with, and it’s mess free!
STEAM CONCEPTS LEARNED:
- Science: Slime is a great introduction to science for kids. You made an amazing and fun non-Newtonian fluid! It’s a fluid but acts differently depending on the forces exerted on it. The polymers in the slime have covalent bonds between the molecules creating a net to catch liquid and keep the slime feeling wet, and the long polymer chains keep it stretchy. Making slime and reading about the science behind it reminds me how much I love chemistry!
- Math: Always have your kids help you measure the ingredients. This is great math practice of fractions, counting, and addition.
I found this recipe on Little Bins for Little Hands website. They have so many slime recipes, if you have a slime lover, you have to check it out! Plus they have lots of background information about the science of slime. I really love their site and it’s my primary slime resource. 🙂
Have you ever made silly putty at home? What is your favorite kind of slime?
