Science

Kids Science Making Rock Candy

Kids science making rock candy!

Do you think we can make rock candy from sugar and water? Let’s try an experiment and see!

One of the most effective ways to get kids interested and excited about learning is to do hands-on activities together with them. And focusing the activities around a fun theme like a candy shop makes it easy to capture and hold their attention.

And when the payoff for their hard work and patience looks good enough to eat, they will jump at the chance to do activities with you every weekend.

Kids science making rock candy involves dissolving solids, evaporation and concentration. All you need is some sugar, food colouring, a wooden skewer, 2 pencils, a little blue tak and a glass.

Looking for more fun science activities for kids age 3 – 6? Order your ActivityBox.

What you need:

  • Sugar
  • Wooden Skewer
  • Food Colouring

  • 2 Pencils
  • Blu-Tack
  • Glass or jar

Step 1: Take out your supplies and make solution

  • Unpack wooden skewer and Blu-Tack.
  • Take out 3 cups of sugar, 1 cup of water, pencils, glass or jar, food colouring
  • Have an adult add the sugar to the water and stir as you bring to a boil.
  • What happened to the sugar? (It dissolved!)
  • Remove from the heat and let cool.

Step 2: Prepare your skewer and glass

  • Cut the skewer 3cm longer than the height of the glass.
  • Use Blu-Tack to stick the skewer between the 2 pencils so it hangs straight down.
  • Carefully put the skewer in the glass with the pencils laying across the opening.
  • Adjust the length of the skewer so it is about an 3cm from the bottom of the glass.
  • Pour the solution into a glass and add some food colouring.

Step 3: Observe sugar crystals forming

  • This experiment will take a few days, so be patient!
  • After 24hrs look at the skewer. What do you see? Those are crystals growing from the sugar water.
  • Check each day to see what is happening! Are more crystals growing on the skewer, on the bottom of the glass and around the top?
  • For best results gently pull out the skewer, transfer the liquid to another glass and reinsert the skewer.

Step 4: Take out your rock candy! Yummy!

  • What is happening? The water is evaporating (like when the sun dries rain water).
  • So there is less water in the glass and the sugar becomes more concentrated.
  • The dissolved sugar crystals want to join together and grab onto something (like the skewer and side of the glass).
  • As the water continues to evaporate, the crystals will continue to grow.
  • Science is sweet!