Cool Chemistry

We started our delve into chemistry by defining an atom and looking at its parts. We used beads with "P" for proton, "N" for neutron, and "E" for electron along with some glue and wire to make a model of an atom. Our model shows that the nucleus of the atom is made of protons and neutrons, and the electrons orbit around the nucleus.

Once we understood the basic structure of an atom we expanded our learning and familiarized ourselves with the Periodic Table. We learned that the elements in the table make up all known elements which makes up all matter. These elements can be grouped according to their properties. Take a look.

Of course, not all matter is made up of single elements. Elements combine together to make new substances. Many household products are simple chemical compounds, below are just a few (check out the chemical labels we added).

We learned that there are both physical changes and chemical changes that can occur with elements and compounds.

There are many physical changes we see in everyday life such as when ice melts into water or water boils, when you sand down rough wood to make it smooth, cut a cube of jello in half.

We also wanted to explore chemical changes. We watched some videos of violent chemical reactions, and we created some "non-violent" reactions of our own in our kitchen.

Next, we made bath bombs.

Today we are making plastic from milk and vinegar. By heating the milk it will combine with the molecules of vinegar to create curds and whey. By eliminating the whey and letting the curds dry, it's supposed to make plastic. We are planning to mold our plastic into small rectangles that we can make into dominos. It will take a few days to dry and harden, but we will keep you posted on how it works out.