Mad Science Camp: Chemistry Themes and Marvelous Metals

Where do you get ideas?  One reliable source for Camp themes is from The American Chemical Society (ACS): National Chemistry Week Themes.  Remember I am a Chemistry teacher.  I am always looking for new ways to make Chemistry more fun.  It happens the ACS themes, such as Get Cooking with Chemistry, The Joy of Toys, or Chemistry Rocks make great Camp themes.  Once you have a theme, you can scroll down page after. page in Pinterest for activities.

Let’s see how a theme, Marvelous Metals, (Packet is here.) becomes a morning of Camp.  First, I want a few activities as Start-up: Water Drops on a Penny, Metals and Magnetism. and Magnetic Paperclip Chain.  Kids do these activities while they wait for everyone to arrive. (At Camp, I have a few kids waiting for me when I arrive at 7:30.). Since we have pennies out, let’s clean pennies and Float a Metal Boat. Bring hundreds of pennies.

I would set up a Floating Ring Magnet Set, Eddy Currents, a Disappearing Coin Bank, and Cold Metal on a side table for the kids to explore as time permits.

We need activities: Steel Wool and Vinegar, Microscopes and Money (Look for the security strip.  Is it metallic?), Coin Drop, Stay Put Coins,  Colorful Coins, Spinning Penny, Roll a Can with Static Electricity, and Engineer a Coin Sorter.

Have a teen try to make this Magnetic Coin Spinner in advance to demonstrate.  What else?  Make Bubble Wands with metal washers and make washer necklaces or car nut photo frames. 


Marvelous Metals  includes very disparate activities.  Just think of all the areas of science!  I am sure at least one of these metallic activities will captivate your kids.