Mix candy and science! You bet because candy, much like baking, is part science! Whether you are at home or in the classroom, simple science experiments are one of our favorite things to do! This list of candy science experiments below is also a great way to use up the extra holiday candy stashed in the drawer for months.
What is Candy Science?
Can you do experiments with candy? You bet! Is it hard? Nope! These are perfect to try after any holiday or special occasion where you are left with a ton of extra candy!
What do you need to get started? A trip to the pantry! Make a grocery list and prepare to rock snack time this week!
Here are some easy candy experiments for kids that are doable and make sense to try! Plus, I have even more food activities that are super popular.
Science doesn’t have to be boring or the same old thing! If your kids are into candy (which I am sure they are), they will be into candy experiments with a little taste testing!
Who wouldn’t want to play with candy for science? Science you can eat is one of our favorites, including ice cream in a bag.
Plus, you’ll find a complete list of edible science activities here, including all the favorite candy slimes. Sometimes, all it takes is a trip to the kitchen to get kids into science.
These science activities for kids work well with many age groups, from preschool to elementary and beyond. Our activities have also been readily used with special needs groups in high school and young adult programs! More or less adult supervision depends on your kids’ abilities!
Free Printable Candy Science Worksheets
Also, grab our free candy science worksheets below which shares the science process in a fun and digestible way for young kids as well as a journal page you can pair with each activity for the older kiddos.
Click here to get your FREE Candy Science worksheets
Colorful Candy Experiments
Click on each link below to see the supplies list and setup, as well as quick science behind the activity.
Grab some simple candy supplies, and let’s get started!
DISSOLVING CANDY LAB
There are so many options to try with a dissolving candy lab from types of candy to types of liquid. Hard candy, soft candy, mints, lollipops.
Alternative Option: Why not make art with candy? If you have a good assortment of colored candy, you can set up a color-mixing candy lab with cups of water. Check out our paint a color wheel with skittles paint!
Dissolving Candy Fish
Dissolving Jelly Beans
Dissolving Peeps Experiment
Dissolving Candy Canes
GROWING GUMMY BEARS
Can you make the gummy bear grow? Using different liquids (water, salt water, juice, soda, etc.) observe how gummy bears expand, or don’t, in a variety of solutions, and determine why that is. Don’t forget to measure and record the size of your gummy bears before and after!
SKITTLES EXPERIMENT
Create a rainbow of colors from skittles, but why don’t they mix? Did you also know that you can do this classic candy science experiment with m&m’ss?
LOOK: M&M Candy Experiment
FLOATING M&M SCIENCE PROJECT
The floating m experiment is a classic science experiment, deceptively simple, and fascinating for kiddos to watch.
CHOCOLATE TASTE TEST
Quite a few mini chocolate candies look the same unwrapped, but their insides tell a different story. This is a great candy science experiment to set up with all of the leftover Halloween candy loot!
BUILDING CANDY STRUCTURES
Building activities with candy are always a hit. Our favorite candy to us with toothpicks is either mini marshmallows or gumdrops! Gumdrops come in various shapes and colors for holidays too!
Gumdrop Structures
Gumdrop Bridge
STARBURST ROCK CYCLE
Don’t eat just any rocks! Make your own edible rocks with Starburst. This candy experiment will take your kiddos through each step of the rock cycle all while using a favorite candy!
If you have enough candy, make this Starburst slime as well!
CANDY DNA MODEL
DNA might sound fairly complex to share with your early elementary age kiddos, but the basics are not too hard to explain, which is what we do here with candy. They’ll learn more in-depth material later in life, but for now, building a candy DNA model is fun!
MARSHMALLOW SLIME
Marshmallow is a wonderful stretchy base for candy slime. We have a few options here including a S’mores marshmallow slime and a marshmallow fluff slime! Of course if you also want to make gummy bear slime or starburst slime, we have those too!
Oh, and if you have Peeps leftover, they make a fun playdough like slime too!
LOOK:
POP ROCKS
Pop Rocks are a fun way to explore chemistry and the 5 senses with two different activities that can be done together! First, use the Pop Rocks candy to explore the 5 senses and then introduce various liquids to explore and observe the chemical reaction. Both activities include fun science and free printables!
SNOW CANDY
When the weather turns cold and the snow falls… make snow candy!
EDIBLE GEODES
Perfect for a geology unit! Making edible geodes is a fascinating look at cool rocks and food chemistry!
More Fun Science Projects
Need more science projects for home or in the classroom that are actually do-able? Check out these fun and easy science ideas below. Make sure to download the science worksheets as well!
SCIENCE IN A JAR
What kind of science can you do in a jar? All kinds! Plus, all you need are simple kitchen ingredients.
SCIENCE YOU CAN EAT
Can you eat science? You bet! Kids love tasty, edible science, and adults love inexpensive and easy to set up experiments!
More Fun Ways to Explore Science
You’ll find hundreds of science activities to keep the learning going all year round. For easy access, join us in the Library Club and grab instant downloads whenever needed!
- Geology Activities for Kids
- Weather Activities for Kids
- Space Activities for Kids
- Physics Activities for Kids
- Chemistry Activities for Kids
- Science Worksheets for Kids
Science Experiments By Age Group
We’ve put together a few separate resources for different age groups, but remember that many experiments will cross over and can be re-tried at several different age levels. Younger kiddos can enjoy the simplicity and hands-on fun. At the same time, you can talk back and forth about what is happening.
As kiddos get older, they can bring more complexity to the experiments, including using the scientific method, developing hypotheses, exploring variables, creating different tests, and writing conclusions from analyzing data.
Turn It Into A Science Project
Science projects are an excellent tool for older kiddos to show what they know about science! Plus, they can be used in all sorts of environments including classrooms, homeschool, and groups.
Kids can take everything they have learned about using the scientific method, stating a hypothesis, choosing variables, making observations and analyzing and presenting data.
Want to turn one of these experiments into an awesome science fair project? Check out these helpful resources.
More Helpful Science Resources
Here are a few resources that will help you introduce science more effectively to your kiddos or students and feel confident yourself 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
Printable Science Projects For Kids
If you’re looking to grab all of our printable science projects in one convenient place plus exclusive worksheets and bonuses like a STEAM Project pack, our Science Project Pack is what you need! Over 300+ Pages!
- 90+ classic science activities with journal pages, supply lists, set up and process, and science information. NEW! Activity-specific observation pages!
- Best science practices posters and our original science method process folders for extra alternatives!
- Be a Collector activities pack introduces kids to the world of making collections through the eyes of a scientist. What will they collect first?
- Know the Words Science vocabulary pack includes flashcards, crosswords, and word searches that illuminate keywords in the experiments!
- My science journal writing prompts explore what it means to be a scientist!!
- Bonus STEAM Project Pack: Art meets science with doable projects!
- Bonus Quick Grab Packs for Biology, Earth Science, Chemistry, and Physics