This post contains affiliate links. I was compensated for my work in writing this post.
Today we are talking about acids and bases, and we will be doing an experiment to show what happens when you combine an acid and a base. We are using Christian Kids Explore Chemistry by Bright Ideas Press to study elementary-level chemistry this year with my younger two kids.
First we went through the house opening cupboards, trying to find acids and bases. The book gives some examples of chemical names for acids and bases, and you can see if you can find those chemicals by looking at the list of ingredients for household cleaning products and food.
Here are some of the items we came up with:
Acids
- Vitamin C–ascorbic acid
- Tomato Sauce–citric acid
- Face Cleaning Product–salicylic acid
- Bubble Bath–citric acid
- Soft drinks–phosphoric acid
Bases
- Ammonia–ammonium hydroxide
- Oven Cleaner–sodium hydroxide
- Baking Soda–sodium bicarbonate
Acids and Bases Experiment
Now we are going to conduct a simple experiment that shows what will happen when you combine an acid and a base:
If you want to see this fun explosion in blue and red, check out these posts:
- Vinegar and Baking Soda Experiment (blue explosion)
- Make Your Own Volcano (red explosion)
Don’t combine just any acid with any base, or you could create toxic fumes that could kill you.
So what is the difference between an acid and a base? Acids are chemical compounds that donate or give away a proton (hydrogen ion) during a chemical reaction. Bases receive a proton (hydrogen ion) during a chemical reaction. So when you see this reaction with the vinegar and baking soda fizzing, the acid (the vinegar) is giving away a proton, and the base (the baking soda) is receiving the proton. Isn’t that cool?
Tags: Bright Ideas Press, chemistry, Christian Kids Explore Chemistry, hands-on science, Homeschooling, science
It’s crazy how many acids and bases you can find around the home hey?! So cool! Thanks for sharing this. I’ll have to check out that curriculum when my daughter is a bit older.
Wishing you a lovely day.
I was surprised to find acid in different products like shampoo, where you wouldn’t think there would be acid. It was a fun experiment.
Oh thanks for this! This topic has come up a couple of times in our daily life lately, strangely enough, so this is helpful. Stumbling this post!
I’m glad this post was helpful and relevant to your life. How fun!
what a great idea to do with the kids!! Science is so much fun, so I think most kids naturally love it when you give them activities like this. Thanks so much for the tutorial!
My kids prefer hands-on activities because it stays with them longer in their memories, and the work is real.
I really like hands-on activities and think that kids retain the information so much better that way. Your videos are great because I can take a look at everything beforehand. Thanks for the work you put into them. Pinned.
I’m glad you like the videos!
I’m pinning this in our “Homeschool for Later” board! Thanks for another fun idea!