We don’t let a Thanksgiving go by without making fizzing turkey Thanksgiving science! Simple supplies get you started in minutes and will keep your kids gobbling with fun.
Fizzing turkey Thanksgiving science is EPIC FUN!
It’s got everything you need for Thanksgiving science:
- Color mixing
- Bubbling, fizzing, and sizzling
- Turkeys
- Creativity
- More bubbling, fizzing, and sizzling
- Easy, inexpensive materials
I first learned about this activity years ago from my Instagram friend Katy Renfro (@prekwolfpack), and my eyeballs almost fell out of my head when I first saw it.
Related: Don’t miss our GIANT 10-foot Thanksgiving coloring page for larger-than-life Thanksgiving art
Materials
- Baking soda
- Vinegar
- Coloring – ex: liquid watercolors or food dye
- Small jars or cups
- Craft foam – in brown + orange (felt could work, too)
- Googly eyes – optional (you could also draw them on)
- Shallow tray
- Eyedroppers or spoons
Directions
First, prep the materials
- Make the colored vinegar by adding a splash of coloring into small jars or cups of vinegar. Add one eyedropper or spoon to each color.
- Make the turkey body from craft foam by cutting out a simple “8” shape where the top loop is smaller than the bottom, adding eyes and a foam beak.
- Spread a thin layer of baking soda into the base of a shallow tray and set the turkey body in the middle.
Next, start the experiment
The very best part!
Invite your child to add the colorful vinegar around the turkey for its (sizzling) “feathers.”
When the colorful vinegar touches the baking soda, it will bubble and sizzle and delight all who are around.
For real, this is F-U-N.
Kids will have a blast making colorful feathers, and the experiment lasts 10x longer than it might look like.
The vinegar + baking soda reaction happens over and over (and over) again, even in spots where it has already been done. You can add vinegar to the same spot of baking soda many, many times before it stops sizzling.
How do you make science fun for kids?
Oh, preschool science is effortlessly fun.
Preschool science includes bubbles and oobleck and sensory bins and baking soda + vinegar and plants and pumpkins and people and basically everything amazing.
Kids are natural scientists, and I have never taught a group of preschoolers who weren’t out of their minds for a science experiment.
I also taught college for eight years and my big students were equally dazzled.
If I could only teach two things for the rest of my days, it would be art and science. Both are the best.
Baking soda + vinegar make fizzing turkey Thanksgiving science the best
You might also know about my obsession with baking soda and vinegar science activities (#cantstopwontstop), and I am delighted that fizzing turkeys have joined the rotation.
I often gift a set of baking soda, vinegar, and coloring to kids as birthday and holiday gifts and it’s a HIT. (No, seriously, kids and adults get so excited.)
If you’re new to baking soda and vinegar experiments, just know the possibilities are endless.
Try some of these baking soda + vinegar projects, too
Bonus fizzing turkey Thanksgiving science tips
- You need less baking soda than you think! Spread a thin layer and when it’s saturated and not fizzing anymore, clean it out, add a new layer, and begin again.
- Craft foam is ideal, but felt or paper could work, too. The nice thing about foam is that it still looks perfect after it’s wet, but a wet felt or paper turkey is better than no turkey.
- You can dilute your vinegar with water in almost equal parts, and it will still fizz and look fantastic.
FAQ
Any that can safely enjoy the materials! We do this project with our 3-6 year old preschoolers with appropriate supervision.
Lemon juice works in place of vinegar, too.
We usually dump the liquid in the sink then scrape the wet baking soda into the garbage can.
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