Mad Science Week has been all about messy, gooey FUN
& you can't celebrate messy, ooey, gooey fun without
whipping up a batch of Flubber, or maybe you know it as Gak.
Whatever you call it -
FLUBBER! or GAK!
is FUN!
What You Need:
8 oz glue (we used Elmer's)
Borax
water
food color (optional)
bowl
teaspoon
measuring cup
I am going to give you our step by step approach
but I initially got my "recipe" from Steve Spangler Science
What To Do:
1. Gather all your materials -
this is a quick process so having everything on hand is best.
2. Pour 8oz of glue into a large bowl
I used two 4oz bottles so that both Lil Divas could enjoy pouring freely.
3. Fill the empty bottles with water & shake to help get all the glue out
4. Pour the glue/water mixture into the bowl with the glue
5. Mix well
6. Add food color to your mixture.
This is optional but it's so much more fun to play with colored flubber!
7. Mix well
8. Add 1 teaspoon of Borax to 1/2 cup of warm water & mix
9. Pour Borax mixture into your glue mixture - a little at a time
10. Mix - the flubber forms quickly so once you see it has initially formed dig in and mix well with your hands, adding water as needed until you get the consistency you prefer.
Note: The Lil Divas dumped all the Borax mixture into the glue at one shot
- we had excess water after mixing ( see photo below)
I just dumped it out & we were left with fun squishy flubber.
Now you get the PLAY!
The Lil Divas enjoyed stretching the flubber
It's amazing how stretchy it is!
So how did the Lil Divas explore & play with their flubber?
They cut it,
they made handprints,
don't you LOVE those precious little hands?!
they made some snowmen -
do you see him?
They played with cookie cutters
and even made some quirky "masterpieces"
We took some time to study the flubber under magnifying glasses,
amazed at all we could do with it
but above all -
the Lil Divas just had lots of FUN playing!
FLUBBER/GAK is AMAZING stuff!
Store your Flubber/Gak in a ziplock bag for continued playtime fun.
Have fun flubbering!
(yes, I totally made up that word but I like how it sounds!)
Bern
Have fun flubbering!
(yes, I totally made up that word but I like how it sounds!)
Bern
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I finally found Borax here in Canada - so now I get to make this!
ReplyDeleteyay! enjoy!
DeleteI love your "Mad scientist" theme you are doing! I think I'll have to copy you one week this summer, my kids would love these experiments!
ReplyDeleteIt has taken on a life of it's own over here! The girls can't get enough. I see lots more fun science in our future. This would be a fun theme to do over the summer! That's what I originally had in mind & we never got around to it and the girls kept asking about it so we just went for it! :) We are having a blast!
DeleteSo fun! I'm so going to do this when my girl is older... though... I wonder where I can find Borax in Singapore. :)
ReplyDeleteI just wanted to say that I've fallen in love with your blog and I've only been reading through it for a few minutes. The activities you do with your girls look so fun! I've been getting a lot of great ideas for things to work on with my daughter- so thank you!
ReplyDeleteYou have seriously just made my day! :) What an awesome comment to read & I thank you for taking the time to tell me that & for joining us here. It's lovely to have you with us! More fun ahead!!!!
DeleteOh I just love your educational resources! I would love for you to share your stuff on my site via my weekly homeschooling on the cheap linky: http://3boysandadog.com/deals/2012/homeschooling-on-the-cheap-january-12-2012/
ReplyDeletethanks for the invite! I will check it out.
DeleteThis is just too cool! I'm pinning it for future reference.
ReplyDeleteOh I remember this from my childhood. Didn't know you could make it at home. Great!
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing on Kids Get Crafty!
Maggy
A few months ago we spent $ on silly putty and it was a smidgen of the stuff. We have a ton of it now - much more economical & fun since we made it ourselves! It's amazing what you can replicate at home! You must do it with your cutie pies!
DeleteI loved doing this as a kid!!! Would you please share this with our readers for Fun Stuff Fridays? http://www.toysinthedryer.com/2012/01/fun-stuff-fridays-6.html
ReplyDeleteIsn't this gooey stuff just fun! thanks for reminding me to link up - I'll be over! :)
DeleteLOVE it! Funny enough, I just made some Gak yesterday at school and was planning to make it this weekend for my own boys! For a new spin, try clear glue...the Flubber becomes translucent. Also, for those who can't find Borax, a 1-to-1 mix of liquid starch and glue will provide similar results.
ReplyDeleteThanks for all your great ideas!
we will have to try the clear glue next time! Thanks for the Borax tip - we had some overseas friends asking about that!
DeleteO WOW that looks like fun!! You come up with funnest activities!!! We are trying this too!!! Thanks for linking up to TGIF! See you next week,
ReplyDeleteBeth =-)
Looks like you had a ton of fun with Mad Scientist week! We are enjoying your posts. Love the imprints and your twist on making Gak.
ReplyDeleteI pinned this under Science on my Pinterest site and people went crazy pinning it. Very cool.
ReplyDeleteGreat idea for older youth to relax after doing regimented homework-type activities.
ReplyDeleteIsnt borax toxic? Ive been trying to source some in the UK and somebody mentioned on a forum that it isnt sold here as it is too toxic!!
ReplyDeletehttp://uk.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20100731125623AANZl4B
ReplyDeleteWe had SO MUCH FUN. Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.flickr.com/photos/43688713@N08/6843997389/in/photostream
My son and I made the flubber yesterday. I looked at your recipe as well as Steve Spangler's but, for some reason, our flubber was not stretchy. Any idea why?
ReplyDeleteWhen I made mine, I didn't mix my borax/water mix into the glue mixture. I just pour it in, let it sit, then reached in and pulled out the globs of flubber. We did work it for a few minutes and it turned out great. Hope this helps!
Deleteyou can use liquid starch instead of borax which is toxic as i was going to do this and was asked by my boss to risk assess and this is how i found out but the liquid starch is safe hope this helps dont want to be a party pooper sorry
ReplyDeleteI will have to try the substitution and see how it works out. Thanks for the tip.
DeleteMy grandson and I just made this with a no name glue that we got from the $ store its really cool but wont stretch like your flubber, it breaks easy but will go back in place after a few minutes. when you leave it awhile and come back to it,it is one big piece again and very smooth and shiny.he loves the texture and being able to flatten it and break it and put it back together but the next time we will make it with Elmer glue and hope that we get the stretchy flubber :)Thanks so much for posting this we loved making it....then I put him in the tub with glow sticks in the water and turned the lights off and he was in his happy place...it was another thing I saw on Pinterest :)
ReplyDeletewhat a fun time you had with your grandson - what a lucky boy! The elmers definitely works best in my experience. Glad to see that you enjoyed it enough to give it another go!
DeleteBTW, glow sticks in the tub are the BEST! A huge hit in our house too! FUN!!!
I am doing a science party for about 16 children. How many times would you duplicate this recipe so that each child has enough to play with and take home at the end of the afternoon?
ReplyDeleteI am in new zealand and don't have these brands. What is Borax? Can you use cornflour instead? Is PVA glue alright?
ReplyDelete