Volcanos in Action

We could not do a rainforest expedition camp without learning about the volcanos of Costa Rica. So, I set out to make my own on Wednesday night. We spent Thursday learning about the volcanos and then decorating the ones I made. On Friday, the last day of camp, we finished off the volcanos with red paint (lava) and the final grand performance. 

If making this for a class, allow at least three days: one day to make them, one day to paint them, and another day to make them explode. 

Day 1: Make the volcano

Materials:

3/4 Cup salt

2 Cups flour

1/1/4 Cup of warm water

Plastic bottle

1 tablespoon olive, canola or vegetable oil

Wide tape (I used white duck tape)

Wood sticks (I used skewers)

Glue gun

Lava materials:

2 Cups of warm water

1 cup of white vinegar

Red food coloring

2 Tablespoons of dish soap

1 Cup of Baking Soda

First, I glued the skewers against the plastic bottle in a teepee shape. I stuffed crumbled paper and stuffed it in the base to give it some stability.   Next, I cut off the skewers at the top, so the bottle opening would be open.

Mix the playdough:

Mix two cups of flour with 3/4 cup of salt.  In another bowl, mix one tablespoon oil with 1 and 1/4 cup of warm water.  Mix flour and water mixture together. You will eventually need to use your hands, as this mixture will be thick. Make golf size balls, flatten, and push onto volcano. Let dry overnight. 

The following day, the kids painted them, using fairly small brushes. I didn't want this part to be over immediately, so it took some time to paint them. They experimented with mixing different colors: brown, white, black. 

We allowed the volcanos to dry for one day. The next day, we took them outside and made them erupt.

To make them erupt, we added the plastic bottle inside of the volcano 3/4 of the way full with warm water. Then, I added added a few drops of dish detergent, red food dye, and about 1/2 cup of baking soda. Last, I slowly poured in the vinegar, and it slowly bubbled over. The children screamed and laughed with excitement. I let each child make it erupt, so they were very excited. I was just glad it worked!!