Lesson plan

Chemistry of home made slimes

Summary
Make slime and/or oobleck and/or flubber. Compare their properties.
Science content
Chemistry: States of Matter, Properties of Materials (K-7)
Chemistry: Physical Changes, Solutions, Mixtures and Separating (2, 4, 5, 6)
Chemistry: Chemical Changes (2, 7)
Procedure

Students can make and compare the different slimes and goops during a lesson on states of matter and mixtures.
Also used for a close-to-Halloween lesson.

Suggested order for slime and ooblek: Students first make regular slime, play with it, then put it in a baggie (can be taken home). Then they make oobleck. (Too messy to take home without spilling.)

Use a Venn diagram to compare how the slimes were made, and their properties (how they behave) - see worksheets attached.

Properties for discussion summarized:
Oobleck is a mixture (of cornstarch and water). Flubber is a mixture (of fibre and water). Slime is one kind of molecule (a long polymer).
Slime is made by a chemical reaction, oobleck and flubber are not.
All behave like a solid and a liquid, depending on how they are handled (see individual activities for explanations).

Notes

Ooblek is messier, so make last.

Grades taught
Gr 3
Gr 4
Gr 5