Think you have seen flying ghosts? Well maybe you can with this easy flying tea bag experiment. All you need are a few simple supplies for a fun floating tea bag science experiment with a Halloween theme. We love science and we love Halloween, so we have tons of fun Halloween science activities to share with you!
FLYING TEA BAG EXPERIMENT
HOW DOES THE FLYING TEA BAG WORK?
Why does the ghostly tea bag float? Well, as the tea bag burns, the air density on the inside of the tea bag will change, resulting in a lift of the final pieces.
Be aware that some tea bags lift higher and faster than others. Some may burn all the way down before blowing. The humidity in the air may also change the flight of the tea bag.
As the air molecules inside the tea bad heat up, they begin to move around more quickly and spread out. This helps to open up the tea bag into its ghostly floating shape.
The heated air molecules inside the tea bag are less dense or tightly packed together than the molecules in the cold air outside the tea bag. Hopefully, the difference in density between the warm and cold air causes the tea bag to turn to ash and float upwards, but it may go very quickly!
Read on to try this flying tea bag experiment for yourself. All you need are a few simple supplies to make your own ghostly floating tea bag.
CLICK HERE TO GET YOUR FREE HALLOWEEN SCIENCE PROJECTS!
FLYING TEA BAG EXPERIMENT
SAFETY NOTE: Adult Supervision and Assistance Required. Adults should handle the lighter and kiddos should stay back. Please be aware of the area around you and place this demonstration on a non-flammable surface.
SUPPLIES:
- Flat tea bags
- Black permanent markers
- Lighter
- Non-flammable surface
INSTRUCTIONS:
STEP 1. Cut the top from the tea bag, creating a straight edge.
STEP 2. Unfold the tea bag and empty the contents.
STEP 3. Draw a face towards the bottom of the tea bag.
STEP 4. Shape the tea bag into a cylinder and stand it on a non-flammable surface in a draft-free location.
STEP 5. Light the top of the tea bag on fire and watch what happens!
MORE FUN HALLOWEEN SCIENCE EXPERIMENTS
Check out our complete list of spooky Halloween science experiments for kids!
Halloween Art Activities
Go ahead and add some of these favorite Halloween art activities to your countdown!
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 helpful 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 bone 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, such as I Spy, bingo, matching, Would You Rather cards, scavenger hunt, word search, A-Z Halloween hunt, and a coloring page.
- The Halloween STEAM Pack includes artist-inspired projects by Warhol, Lichtenstein, and more!
