Oh, the places you will go…making oobleck to celebrate Dr. Seuss’s Birthday and for just plain FUN. Kids will love this goo that acts as a solid and a liquid. If gooey slimy things are what your kids like you will want to show them how to make slime after making oobleck.
Oobleck
This stuff is amazing. My boys (okay and me too) were totally taken with this goo. Oobleck defies Newton’s third law of motion–for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. It is a science lesson that is a lot of fun! If you quickly smack it with your hand it immediately turns into a solid, instead of splashing or moving. If you slowly move it with your hands it reacts like a liquid. Cool!
How to make Oobleck
Needless to say, our oobleck took a lot of fist smacking! Our kitchen was filled with lots of “Wow,” “Cool,” wide eyes of amazement and much laughter!” Everybody had a handful (or two) of fun, and we even had some great conversation about science. “Is the oobleck solid? Is it a liquid? Is it a solid-liquid?”
Whipping up a batch of this stuff is a great way to learn while having lots of fun! Please read the comments on this post for the scientific explanation of what is happening.
Oobleck Recipe
You will find this oobleck recipe is mesmerizing and will keep kids engaged for a long time. When they slowly grab a handful of the green substance it will ooze through their fingers and then they will notice by quickly applying pressure to the mixture it feels solid. Another big bonus is it gets them interested in Science and how things work.
What is Oobleck made out of?
It couldn’t be any easier to make this science experiment you only need cornstarch and water. We made ours with 2 cups of cornstarch and 1 cup water. You can make your Newtonian fluid (or is oobleck a non newtonian fluid you can decide for yourself after reading all of the comments) any color you like, just add food coloring. Can you make oobleck with flour instead of cornstarch? No. Instead of turning into oobleck, flour mixed with water makes a dough.
Oobleck Recipe
You only need a few easy ingredients that you probably already have in your pantry to whip up this amazing concoction.
- 2 cups cornstarch
- 1 cup water
- food coloring (optional)
- To make your own oobleck mix 2 cups of cornstarch and 1 cup water in a bowl. If you want to color your oobleck like we did, add a few drops of food coloring to the water before adding to the cornstarch. It took some effort to mix the water and cornstarch. Try it out (hit it with your fist and pour it off a spoon to see if it works) before you give into the urge to add more water to make it easier to mix. We played with our science experiment all afternoon, and when the kids weren’t playing with it I covered it with plastic wrap.
Be sure to read about oobleck with Dr. Seuss book Bartholomew and the Oobleck!
Too Cool! Really, you must give it a try! After your kids are done with this science project get them hooked on slime and kinetic sand? Slime or Gak is another fun goo your kids will love. See how we make super safe slime, two-ingredient slime safe slime and don’t miss all these amazing slime recipes (who has ever heard of magnetic slime!)
Remember after playing with oobleck, slime or kinetic sand washing hands is a must!
Celebrate Dr. Seuss Birthday
How do you celebrate Dr. Seuss Birthday? Do you start the day off with green eggs and ham? Do you read your favorite Dr. Seuss book–or is it just too hard to choose only ONE favorite book?!? Here are some great ideas from our readers:
- “Oobleck is only one of the names for this crazy stuff. When I taught Preschool, I would make this with my class again and again. We called it MAGIC MUD. I would send the recipe home so that the parents could make it and the best part was that if it got on the carpet or clothes, you just let it dry completely and then sweep/vacuum or throw in the washer. I also used this with the very little ones ( 1-2 yr olds) since it was safe for them to put in their mouths.
- It is also called QUICKSAND and all you do is make it a tad thinner and then do a lesson around how quicksand works in real life.” ~Robbin
- “I read “Bartholomew and the Oobleck” and brought it to my son’s 2nd-grade class. I do every year on Dr. Seuss day. It never gets old, the kids LOVE it. ~Laura
- “I make this with my students every year for our final solids/liquids unit lesson.
Try mixing it in a heavy-duty Ziploc bag – it is easy to “smoosh” the bag, rather than mix the oobleck with a spoon. Also, add the water to the cornstarch slowly – if you go overboard, you will have a watery mess, rather than Oobleck!” ~MichelleRemember after playing with oobleck, slime, and kinetic sand
Be sure to let me know what you think! I hope you keep coming back for more fun things to do with kids!
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