OOBLECK!!

My favorite day of the year!

 First, kindergarteners read Bartholomew and the Oobleck by Dr. Suess. This is a wonderful story about a greedy king who is tired of the same boring weather day after day so he has his magicians create a new kind of weather... oobleck! Oobleck turns out to be a gross, messy, and sticky mess that wont go away until the king admits he made a mistake and says "I'm sorry!"

We then sat in a big circle and I made a big batch of oobleck in front of the students. We talked about liquids vs. solids as well as what color food dye we needed to make the color green. I also added some green glitter, just to make it a little more special.

Here is the recipe:

Materials

• Elmers Glue (8 oz bottle of Elmers Glue-All)
• Borax (a powdered soap found in the grocery store)
• Large mixing bowl
• Plastic cup (8 oz size works well)
• Spoon
• Measuring cup
• Food coloring (I used blue and yellow to mix my own green)
• Water
• Paper towel (hey, youve got to clean up!)
• Zipper-lock bag (dont you want to keep it when youre done?)
• Water

Here’s the easiest way to make a big batch Elmer’s Slime. The measurements do not have to be exact but it’s a good idea to start with the proportions below for the first batch. Just vary the quantities of each ingredient to get a new and interesting batch of goo.

1. This recipe is based on using a brand new 8 ounce bottle of Elmer’s Glue. Empty the entire bottle of glue into a mixing bowl. Fill the empty bottle with warm water and shake (okay, put the lid on first and then shake). Pour the glue-water mixture into the mixing bowl and use the spoon to mix well.
2. Go ahead… add a drop or two of food coloring (this is where I added the glitter as well).
3. Measure 1/2 cup of warm water into the plastic cup and add a teaspoon of Borax powder to the water. Stir the solution – don’t worry if all of the powder dissolves. This Borax solution is the secret linking agent that causes the Elmer’s Glue molecules to turn into slime.
4. While stirring the glue in the mixing bowl, slowly add a little of the Borax solution. Immediately you’ll feel the long strands of molecules starting to connect. It’s time to abandon the spoon and use your hands to do the serious mixing. Keep adding the Borax solution to the glue mixture (don’t stop mixing) until you get a perfect batch of Elmer’s slime. You might like your slime more stringy while others like firm slime. Hey, you’re the head slime mixologist – do it your way!
5. When you’re finished playing with your Elmer’s slime, seal it up in a zipper-lock bag for safe keeping.

At this point the kids were freaking out and super ready to go play with their oobleck! I gave them some play dough toys to make it even more exciting!