We travelled to the grossest swamp in the world to get inspiration for our ‘Swamp Slime’â„¢. It is a great way (in fact the Crazy Way) to learn about polymers, chemical reactions, physical features of solids, viscosity and MORE. Â Start making it today with our special ‘Swamp Slime Test Tubes‘ and enjoy the slimy feeling bwteeen your fingers.
Materials Needed
– 1 x Swamp Slime Test Tube
– 1 x Swamp Slime linking solution (1% Borax solution)
– Container to mix in
– Kids (non-toxic) poster paints
– Sieve and electric mixer
– Electric balance.
Remember:
1. No part of this experiment is edible. Do not taste any chemical used
2. Adult supervision is advised.
3. Only an adult is to use the electric mixer
4. VERY slippery slime, wipe up any spilt on floor.
5. Don’t use your mums good hand towel to wipe slime, you won’t be popular!
Measure out 10.0g of Guar Gum, 10.0g of glycerine and 10.0g of Borax using a balance.
Measure out 1.0L of warm to hot water in a measuring jug and place into a large bucket. (adult help needed if hot water used).
Pour the glycerine and food colouring into the water and stir.
VERY slowly, tap the guar gum and add to water while stirring. You may need to use a mixer to ensure it is all dissolved.
The guar gum should be nice and thick. You may leave it cool for 20-30min while you make up the Borax solution by dissolving it in some warm water.
Add the Borax slowly while mixing with fingers.
You will notice it start to thicken. The more borax you add, the thicker it becomes. Stop when you reach a thickness you feel your swamp slime is BEST.
Play with your slime. Wash your hands after you play with it and place in a container.
It should last for a while, but will start to grow fungus over period of time, so throw it in the bin and make more.
Check out the ‘Wacky Science’ video of this experiment and ‘What’s Going On’ series link. They are currently ‘In Production’, so check back soon…..
This slime is made up of guar gum thickener. Guar gum is a long chain of sugar units called a polymer. Think of it similar to a string of beads, where each bead represents a sugar unit. In guar gum, there are small braches that come of the long chains every two units. The chemical structure of guar gum is shown below.
When you add the Borax solution, it links the chains togather to make a thick ‘gel’. By adding differet coloured paints, you can create different coloured slime.
If you would like
– more details,
– pictures of the second half of the experiment
– information on how to investigate this further
– links to everyday examples
– management hints & teaching pointers (5P Teacher develpoment program)
 ….. then why not subscribe to one of the following
(1) Crazy science Club
(2) 5P Teacher Training course called ‘Looney Lab  Classroom Creations‘
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Or you can purchase the ‘Bright Sparkes Guide’ of this demonstration only ($2.50) which has:
- HD pictures of experiment steps
- Detailed explanation of science
- Mini-challenge section (another experiment)
- Making it a ‘Scientific Method’ experience
- Graphing opportunities
- REAL links and descriptions to everyday examples of concept.