6th Graders did a thing today, y’all! 

Last week, we made bath bombs, using 2 different recipes. One recipe was normal, and one had extra cornstarch added. Each mixture was pressed into a sphere-shaped mold and allowed to set/harden.

Today, students hypothesized which would dissolve faster. Then, we used our iPad stopwatch and a thermometer to test each. Bath water is usually between 90 and 110 degrees Fahrenheit, so we warmed 12 ounces of water within this range. Simultaneously, students dropped the bath bomb into the warm water and started the stopwatch. When the dissolving and fizzing was complete, the time was recorded. This process was repeated with the extra cornstarch bath bomb.

We concluded that the normal recipe produced a more solid sphere which held its shape better, as well as dissolved better and more completely. The extra cornstarch lost its shape, was more fragile, fell apart, and stopped fizzing long before the dissolving process was complete. In fact, class ended before the extra cornstarch bath bombs dissolved much at all. The average dissolving time of the regular recipe from all 4 groups was 197.75 seconds (3.3 minutes). 

We will use the normal recipe again tomorrow to make Valentine Bath Bombs to gift a special someone, and those will go home on Valentine’s Day. ❤