Science Smarts: Finger paint, or finger food?
By Patty Rooks on May 27, 2023.
In my opinion once the long weekend in May has come and gone, summer is here! Summer is always such busy time and if you are like me, you are constantly looking for ideas to keep those little scientists engaged. This week, I have come up with an interesting twist on finger paint… not only is it beautiful and so amazing to paint with, you do not have to worry about those really little scientists eating it – it is completely edible as well. Hmm… art class meets cooking class meets science class. Let’s get started! *Remember to ask an adult before doing this experiment. Materials – Stove – Water – Cornstarch – Sugar – Four flavour extracts (use your favourites) – Food colouring (optional) – Measuring cups – Cooking pot – Four storage containers for the “paint” – Wooden spoon for stirring – Whisk – Paper to paint on Procedure 1. Measure 750 mL (2 ½ cups) of cold water into the cooking pot. 2. Add 125 mL (1/2 cup) of cornstarch and 60 mL (1/4 cup) of sugar. 3. Whisk it up until completely smooth. 4. Have an adult place this on medium heat on the stove. Stir until it comes to a boil and thickens. 5. Remove the mixture form the heat and allow it to cool. 6. Divide the cooled mixture into four separate containers. 7. Add a few drops of flavouring extract and food colouring (if you wish) to each jar. 8. Mix well. 9. Get a piece of paper out and paint away! 10. Wash up when you are done, or perhaps you want to lick your fingers off! Your choice ;)! 11. Place the lids on the jars of paint and store them in the refrigerator for several days. What is going on? If you looked in the pot when you were mixing up all of the ingredients, it really did not look like much. The secret here is when you add heat to the mixture. Heat gets the water and starch molecules moving around really quickly. If you were making great observations, you would have seen that those starch molecules starting to thicken up (rather quickly) as the mixture became hotter and hotter. As a result, you are left with some think and delicious finger paint! Patty Rooks, Senior Scientific Consultant PRAXIS, “Connecting Science To The Community”. Contact Praxis at praxis@praxismh.ca, http://www.praxismh.ca, Tweet or follow us @PraxisMedHat, or friend us on Facebook. We are located at: #12 826 11 Street S. E., Medicine Hat, Alberta, T1A 1T7 Phone: 403.527.5365, email: praxis@praxismh.ca. 32-31
