Have you accumulated candy that no one will eat (or you’d prefer that they not eat it)?  Jennifer has a great idea!  Use it for science experiments!

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We have a lot of Halloween candy we can’t eat. So we decided to do experiments with the candy we couldn’t eat because of the colorings in it.

Our first experiment was “Does it contain Acid?”. We took candy, put it in water, then we added baking soda. If the solution bubbles, its an acid. If it doesn’t, its not an acid.

Nerds are definitely an acid. M and M’s are not. It was fun, the kids loved playing mad scientist with the candy.

We plan to do more experiments this week. We have a whole bucket of candy to make it through!

To learn more about the differeneces between an acid and a base substance, check out the site Chem4Kids.  They have a simplified explanation of acid and why it can be dangerous.  If you have elementary students, Helium, has several similar experiments you can try with cabbage, lemon juice, coffee and more things you can find around your kitchen.

Jennifer is a homeschooling mom to three kids.  For more great lesson ideas, like this one, check out Jennifer’s blog!