Materials Needed:

For the engagement demonstration:

• a selection of various types of balls (tennis, racket, golf, super, baseball, etc.)
• A variety of other round objects to drop such as a metal ball bearing, wooden bead, ball made of clay, styrofoam ball, or a marble
• Meter stick

For all other sections:
At least several of the following

• Cooking Oil - small bottle
• Talc - about 250 g. Talc can be obtained unscented from chemical supply houses or from talcum or baby powder available in grocery and drug stores
• Calcium carbonate (powdered chalk) - about 250 g - can be obtained from chemical supply houses (finely ground blackboard chalk will work)
• Mineral oil - 1 bottle
• Moisturizing lotion (be aware of any odor if sensitive students are in the class)
• Corn starch - 1 box
• Flour - 1 to 2 cups
• Plastic wrap
• Rubber bands
• Other common items that might be suggested by your groups (if they are readily available in your classroom)

 

For all groups

• A glue (such as Elmer's Glue All) (300 mL for each group)
• Water
• Food coloring - optional
• Laundry borax (sodium tetraborate) - 1 box - available in the laundry aisle of grocery stores or from chemical supply houses
• 3 oz plastic cups - at least 10 per group (disposal bathroom cups)
• Recloseable sandwich bags - at least 10 per group
• Permanent markers - 1 per group
• Craft sticks - at least 10 per group
• 10 mL graduated cylinder - 1
• 100 mL graduated cylinder - 1
• Meter stick - 1 per group
• Small plastic spoons (each spoon is about 1 tsp or 5 mL)- several for measuring and mixing
• Goggles
• Graph paper - optional
• Computers with spreadsheet programs - optional

Note: A saturated solution of laundry borax in water is needed for the activities below. To make a saturated solution add the borax to warm water while stirring. Keep adding the borax until no more powder dissolves, and the borax starts to settle out on the bottom of the container or dissolve 20 g of borax in 500 mL of water.