Halloween Lava Lamp Experiment

Do you want to try a little spooky science this year? Our Halloween lava lamp experiment is perfect for young mad scientists! Halloween is a fun time of year to try science experiments with a spooky twist. We love science, and we love Halloween, so we have tons of fun Halloween science experiments to share with you. Here’s our twist on a classic oil and water lava lamp experiment.

Explore Density For Halloween Science

Exploring liquid density is the perfect kitchen science experiment because you typically can find everything you need in the pantry, under the sink, or even in a bathroom closet. Often, you can use liquids you have on hand.

We have done several density experiments, including homemade lava lamp and a rainbow in a jar. I thought Halloween would make a terrific opportunity to test out a classic science experiment with a spooky twist.

This lava lamp experiment is a hit all year round, but we can make it a bit creepy for Halloween by changing up the colors and adding accessories. Explore liquid density and add in a cool chemical reaction, too!

What Is The Scientific Method For Kids?

The scientific method is a process or method of research. A problem is identified, information about the problem is gathered, a hypothesis or question is formulated from the information, and the hypothesis is tested with an experiment to prove or disprove its validity.

Sounds heavy… What in the world does that mean?!? It means you don’t need to try and solve the world’s biggest science questions! The scientific method is all about studying and learning things right around you.

As children develop practices that involve creating, gathering data, evaluating, analyzing, and communicating, they can apply these critical thinking skills to any situation.

READ MORE HERE: Using The Scientific Method with Kids

Note: The use of the best Science and Engineering Practices is also relevant to the topic of using the scientific method. Read more here and see if it fits your science planning needs.

Helpful Science Resources To Get You Started

Here are a few resources that will help you introduce science more effectively to your kiddos or students and feel confident when presenting materials. You’ll find helpful free printables throughout.

Best Science Practices (as it relates to the scientific method)
Science Vocabulary
8 Science Books for Kids
All About Scientists
Science Supplies List
Science Tools for Kids
Join us in the Club

Get your free printable Halloween activity guide!

Spooky Halloween Lava Lamp Experiment

YOU WILL NEED:

Jar or beaker
Cooking oil
Water
Food coloring
Alka seltzer tablets or generic equivalent
Spooky Halloween accessories (We used some spooky spiders from the dollar store!)

LAVA LAMP EXPERIMENT SETUP:

Lava Lamp Tip: Set up this experiment on a plastic tray or dollar store cookie sheet to minimize the mess.

STEP 1: Fill a jar 3/4 of the way with oil.

STEP 2: Now, fill up the rest of the jar with water.

Observe what happens to the oil and water in your jar as you add them.

These steps above are great for helping your kids practice their fine motor skills and learn about approximate measurements. We eyeballed our liquids, but you can measure out your liquids.

STEP 3: Observe what happens when you add drops of food coloring to the oil and water mixture. We went with dark food coloring for our Halloween theme.

STEP 4: Now add an Alka Seltzer tablet and check out what happens. You can repeat as desired with another tablet.

Watch out. This can also get messy, especially if the kids sneak in extra tablets.

Did you know that oil and water don’t mix because they don’t have the same density? Read on to find out more.

The Science Of A Halloween Lava Lamp

Quite a few things are going on here with both physics and chemistry! First, remember liquid is one of three states of matter. It flows, pours, and takes the shape of the container you put it in.

However, liquids have different viscosity or thicknesses. Does the oil pour differently than the water? What do you notice about the food coloring drops you added to the oil/water? Think about the viscosity of other liquids you use.

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: Fireworks In A Jar

Why don’t all liquids simply mix together? Did you notice the oil and water separated? That’s because water is heavier than oil. Making a density tower is another great way to observe how not all liquids weigh the same.

Check out what happens with a combination of liquids when you try our spooky liquid density tower!

Liquids are made up of different numbers of atoms and molecules. In some liquids, these atoms and molecules are packed together more tightly, resulting in a denser or heavier liquid.

Now for the chemical reaction! When the two substances combine (tablet and water), they create carbon dioxide, all the bubbling you see. These bubbles carry the colored water to the top of the oil, where they pop, and the water drops fall back down.

More Creepy Science To Try

Printable Halloween STEM Activities Pack

150+ Pages of Halloween-Themed Materials!

This Halloween project pack is suitable for home, school, and group use for kids in grades Kindergarten through elementary but is scaleable for many ages and abilities.

What’s Included:

25+ Halloween theme science and STEM activities with printable sheets, instructions, and useful information all using easy-to-source materials perfect for limited-time needs. Includes a Halloween engineering pack with fun, problem-based challenges for kids to solve!
The skeleton activity pack includes building a skeleton challenge and a coding challenge! Try a skeleton bones bridge-building STEM challenge!
Halloween theme brick printable activities for hands-on learning with math that is perfect for early finishers or home fun and reinforces basic math concepts.
Bonus fun pack includes games and activities to round out your Halloween theme activities such as I Spy, bingo, matching, Would You Rather cards, scavenger hunt, word search, A-Z Halloween hunt, and a coloring page.
Halloween STEAM Pack includes artist-inspired projects by Warhol, Lichtenstein, and more!