Lemon Volcano Experiment

Instead of using the tradition ingredients for a volcano like hydrogen peroxide, decided to go this route with the lemon and baking soda. It does not make a huge "explosion" but it is just enough for a toddler to get excited. Also, using different and fun colors help as well. 

Ingredients used:

• Lemon

• Lemon juice

• Food coloring

• Dish Detergent (not required)

• Baking soda

• Paper towels

• Old grocery bag

• Flat tray

How to do this experiment:

1. Cut bottom of lemon so it can sit flat on tray

2. Cut open top of lemon in a circular formation to create a hole

3. Use some type of tool, we used a popsicle stick (safe for a toddler to use) to poke the lemon to create depth to pour in the ingredients

4. Pour in a few drops of food coloring of your choice

5. Pour in dish detergent (this is not required, it just creates bubbles and makes it a little more fun for a toddler)

6. Add a tablespoon of baking soda

7. Add some lemon juice and watch it "explode"

We did this experiment twice, as I stated above, I rinsed out the lemon, cleaned up the tray, and just repeated the above steps. Adding lemon juice helps to do this experiment twice because when rinsing the lemon out to re-use, you are rinsing out the lemon juice which is necessary for the reaction. You can just add lemon juice to the rinsed out lemon and repeat the experiment with a different color. 

I used the old grocery bag for quick clean up during the activity. When cutting the lemon, cleaning up paper towels, messes, etc. I just toss it into the bag and tie it up at the end for a easy clean up. 

Let me know if you try this experiment and what you think.

#science #toddlerscience #kidskidskids #lemonvolcano #teddysterrificadventures #mommyandteddy #scienceisfun