Science-Themed Birthday Party

Our girl turned SEVEN last week and we celebrated with a Super Science Party complete with 7 fun and wacky experiments!

Invites were curtesy of Pinterest ideas and my graphically talented bestie.

Warm Up Activity: Marshmallows & Toothpicks

This allowed the kids to stay busy while we waited for everyone to arrive. There were some pretty cool structures.

Note: Any remaining toothpicks and marshmallows were put into a Ziplock and labeled with their name and placed on a side table with their creation on top. This served as a holding area for all of the finished experiments. After a project was over, I would simply ask the kids to take their item and place it with their bag.

Experiment #1: Growing Bugs

I found these little capsules at the Dollar Tree. You put them in warm water and watch them expand. There were several different colors and bugs in the pack.

Experiment #2: Fizzy Balloons 

We prefilled these test tubes with vinegar and allowed the kids to use a funnel to pour them into an empty water bottle. Each child was then given a balloon that had been prefilled with 3 T of baking soda. You attach the balloon to the opening of the bottle and tip in the baking soda. The reaction causes gas to inflate the balloon.

Experiment #3: Milk Fireworks

Fill a cookie sheet pan with milk. I allowed volunteers to come up and put drops of food coloring in and the birthday girl got to squeeze in drops of dish soap, which caused the colors to “explode” and swirl into a tie-dye type pattern.

Experiment #4: Mentos & Diet Coke

It was a cold day so the kids watched from the window as hubby performed this experiment outside. They used a paper towel holder to drop in 3 Mentos for round #1 and 6 Mentos for round #2. This experiment was a crowd favorite!

Note: You must have Diet Coke (brand name) and Mint Mentos. In case you were wondering, my hubby is 6′ tall and this went way over his head.

Experiment #5: Elephant Toothpaste

For this you start with an empty 2L bottle. Add in 1/2 cup of 6% hydrogen peroxide, food coloring, and 1 T. of dish soap. Next, in a separate cup, mix together 3 T. of warm water with 1 packet of dry yeast for 30 seconds. Pour that mixture into the bottle and watch it foam out the top.

Note: We were only able to find 3% hydrogen peroxide. It still worked but I think it would have been thicker and less foamy if we would have stopped by a beauty supply store for the 6%.

Experiment #6: Snow

A tube of this can also occasionally be found at the Dollar Tree or you can order Grow Snow online. It’s super easy. You dump the contents of the tube into a clear bowl and add water. The kids loved feeling the snow!

Experiment #7: Slime

There are a variety of different recipes for this. We decided on corn starch and water. Put 1 cup corn starch in a bowl, add 1/2 cup water, food coloring and mix together. This “slime” has an interesting texture. When sitting in the bowl, it seems solid but when you turn the bowl, it pours easily. If you squeeze it with your hand, it turns into a solid. If you relax your hand, it oozes.

Note: This experiment should be done last because it’s super messy. We used an inexpensive black table cloth that we rolled up and trashed after this experiment. Kids will also need to wash their hands, which now makes them and the table both clean, just in time for cake and ice cream.

Goody Boxes

I also wanted our take home gifts to be science related so I ordered these science journals, life cycle puzzles, and dino claw excavation kits. The kids loved the claws. They were already wanting to dig them out before they left.

Just For Fun 

We also had a pitcher full of water beads. I found mine in the floral section of Hobby Lobby. This was a hit with kids of all ages, including the adults. No one could resist the desire to reach in and feel them. Because I knew they would be a hit, I packed up some in little round tins and included them in the goody bags.

Overall, it was a very fun party. It took a lot of prep work to put the experiments together in advance so that the party would flow smoothly for the kids. I also had several adult helpers, which made it easier too!

Still can’t believe that this girl is SEVEN!