Weary Parent: Parenting Tweens & Teens

Where Science Meets Yum - Make Your Own Rock Candy

by char on June 11th, 2008

Keeping with our Camp Weary Parent theme of Time Travel this week, let’s combine a quick science lesson with some fun in the kitchen and make our own Old Fashioned Rock Candy.

The basic premise behind the recipe is that as the water from the sugar water mixture evaporates, the leftover sugar will crystalize and attach itself to the string or stick placed in the container. Due to the fact that this activity involves the stove, please ensure adequate adult supervision.

How to:

• In a saucepan, bring 2 cups of water to a boil and then add 4 cups of sugar to the boiling water.
• Stir sugar mixture until the sugar is completely dissolved and the mixture returns to a boil and is clear.
• Pour the mixture in to a glass jar or other tall glass container and cover with wax paper - you can add some food coloring at this point for fun if you’d like. Let it cool.
• Take a string that is not quite as long as your glass container and tie one end to a pencil and tie a washer to the other end of the string.
• Dampen the string and roll it in sugar then let dry.
• Once the string is dry, place the string into the jar washer first so the pencil lays across the top of the jar.
• Cover the jar and set aside where you can check on the daily progress of your sugar crystal growing.
• After a few days, remove rock candy from jar and let dry then enjoy.

For more on the science behind candy and other fun science related activities for kids, check out one of my favorite sites - The Science of Cooking at the Exploratorium.
Don’t miss any of the fun - stop back in tomorrow or visit the Camp Weary Parent page for a complete listing of all the activities to date.

Image: Amazon

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