Balloon Busters!

No - not like that! Today we are working with bicarbonate of soda and vinegar. We want to see if we can blow up a balloon without using our breath.

You will need a glass bottle, a balloon, bicarbonate of soda and some vinegar. You can substitute baking soda for the bicarbonate of soda.

Now for the fun! Nervous people (like me) stand well back. What do you predict will happen? If you are very brave, you can fill the balloon with a larger amount of bicarbonate of soda, and use more vinegar. It should produce a better result.

Using a teaspoon, fill the balloon part way with bicarbonate of soda. Fill the bottle part way with vinegar. Without letting the bicarbonate of soda in the balloon drop into the bottle, place the balloon carefully over the top of the bottle. Now watch as the bicarbonate soda falls into the vinegar.

As the bicarbonate of soda mixes with the vinegar it forms carbon dioxide gas and blows up the balloon!

How does this happen?

The vinegar mixes with the bicarbonate of soda to create a chemical reaction that produces carbon dioxide gas. The gas then blows up the balloon.

Here are some word bank examples:

balloon, bicarbonate of soda, vinegar, bottle, explode, expand, burst, carbon dioxide, gas, reaction, chemical.