Growing+Salt+Crystals

=Growing Salt Crystals =



**You will need: **
a glass jar about 1 cup water about 1/2 cup table salt or rock salt food coloring a pencil string a paperclip stove You will need to use the stove for the first part of this experiment, so make sure you have adult supervision.

=Directions = =media type="youtube" key="Pj8iPEYXVIQ?fs=1" height="295" width="487" =

1) Boil the water.

2) Pour the water into the jar.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">3) Stir in the salt, a little at a time. Don't go too fast.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">4) Keep adding salt until it's not mixing in well and there is a little at the bottom

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">5) If you want colored crystals, add a couple drops of food coloring in whatever color you like.

=<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> = = = <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">6) Tie one end of the string around the middle of a pencil. Tie the paperclip to the other end of the string.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">7) Lay the pencil over the jar so that the paperclip hangs in the water, about an inch from the bottom.

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<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">8) Sit the jar somewhere where it will not be moved.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">9) After at least 24 hours, check the jar. You should see crystals growing on the paperclip!

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=<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">The Science of Salt Crystals =

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">When you dissolve the salt in water, you are not actually changing its chemical properties. The molecules of salt are simply pulled apart, which is a physical change. As the hot water begins to cool, there is less and less space between the molecules. As the molecules get closer and closer together, the salt is slowly pushed out in a solid state. This causes crystals to start forming.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">As water evaporates, the molecules are pushed even closer together, forcing more salt out of the water and into a solid form. This is what causes the crystals to grow larger.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">If you leave your jar for longer, the crystals will get bigger. If you start to see crystals growing on the sides of the jar, move the pencil and paperclip to a new jar of boiled water with dissolved salt. If you leave your crystals in a jar with crystals on the side, the two sets of crystals will compete, making them both grow slowly.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Sources <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">[] <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">[] <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">[]