100 Days of Science #47 & 48-- Making Model Molecules Two Ways

We are currently studying chemistry and the periodic table of elements and we wanted some fun hands on lessons to go along with what we're reading.  So we spent a morning building models of various molecules and just playing around having fun with the concepts of covalent and ionic bonding.

I remembered we had this kit that we bought a few years ago and pulled that out along with some toothpicks, mini and regular sized marshmallows, along with some food safe markers.

First I just let the kids play around with our kit and supplies making up their own molecules.  Once they made up a molecule they had to tell me what they used to make it (each color represents a different element on the periodic table).

Then we worked either with the kit or with the marshmallows to make a few specific models.

First we started with H2O (water)

Then we made NH3 (amonia)

Then CH4 (methane)

And finally CH3OH (methanol)

I left the kit out along with the instruction sheet that showed even more molecules to make and let them explore on their own.

Others in this series:

1. Bernoulli's Principle
2. Ecotarium Trip 
3. Air Molecule Experiment
4. Kitchen Science
5. Corn Maze Field Trip 
6. Birds of Florida 
7. Making Static Music
8. Un-Make It Monday
9. Wind Tunnel Experiment
10. Biomes Field Trip
11. Disappearing Coin Trip
12. Snuffing out a Candle With Baking Soda
13. Making Plastic from Milk
14. Friction Experiment 
15. & 16. Snow Experiments
17. Making an Iceberg
18. Floating Eggs
19. Pond Water Under a Microscope 
20. Planting Eco Plant Pals
21. & 22. Cotton Candy Experiments
23. Springfield Science Museum Trip
24. Signs of Spring
25. Color Changing Slime
26. Growing Our Own Tickle Plants
27. Learning About Soil Sampling
28. Making Bouncy Balls
29. Exploring the Shoreline
30. Color Changing Flowers
31. Roger Williams Zoo Trip
32. Edible Silly Putty 
33. Raising Tadpoles
34. More Microscope Fun 
35.  Homemade Ice Cream
36. How Plants Breathe Experiment 
37. Save The Bay Exploration Center Trip
38. Making Fresh Peach Preserves 
39. Making Solar S'mores
40. Growing a Crystal Garden
41. & 42. Making Jolly Rancher Candy Apples & Lollipops 
43. Volcanic Lemons
44. Oozing Pumpkins
45.  Growing a Germ Farm
46. Germs Under a Microscope

49.  Kitchen Chemistry Experiments 

50.  Fall Leaf Chromatography 

51.  Color Changing Experiments with Iodine

52.  Learning About Birds in Winter

53. Iodine and Starch Experiment
54. Flouride and Calcium Experiment
55. Botanical Gardens in Winter
56.  Making Cell Models
57. Which Has More Water; Ice or Snow?
58. Exploding Snow and Water Baggies
59.  Exploring Minerals
60. Visiting the Hartford Science Museum
61-63. 3 STEM Bridge Challenges
64. Making Models of the Earth
65. Plate Techtonics with Graham Crackers
66.  Homemade Lava Lamp
67.  Science Movies We're Watching
68. Index Card Towers
69.  Botany at the Botanical Gardens
70. Best Board Games for Science 
71. Homemade Frozen Yogurt Pops
72.  Starburst Rock Cycle 
73. & 74. Sinking a Marshmallow
75. Jumping Conversation Hearts 
76-78. Building a Paper Airplane 3 Ways 
79. Learning About Hummingbirds 
80.  Planting an Herb Garden 
81. Mushroom Spores 
82. - 84.  Penny Saturation Experiments 
85. Sink or Float?
86. Disappearing Ink 
87. Sedment Layer Jars
88. Tie Dye Science 
89-91. DNA Experiments 
92.  Homemade Butter 
93. Floating Marker Art 
94. & 95. Oil Spills & Water Filtration 
96.- 98. Making Rock Candy & Rock Candy Experiments 
99. Rocket Science 

100. Permaculture Garden Tour