An Easy At-Home Science Experiment To Teach The Grandkids About Chromatography (2024)

I’m so excited to share with you a really fun and easy science experiment that we can do with the grandkids! It’s all about this fascinating process called chromatography, and the best part is, we can do it using some common household items that we probably already have lying around the house.

First, let’s talk about what we’ll need to gather up. The main things we’ll be using are some good old M&M’s – you can use the plain ones or the peanut ones, whichever you and the grandkids prefer. We’ll also need some coffee filters, a little bit of water, and a few cups or jars to set everything up in.

Okay, now let’s dive into the steps! The first thing we need to do is cut those coffee filters into long, thin strips. Each strip should be about 1-2 inches wide and 6-8 inches long. This is going to give us plenty of surface area to work with, which is really important for the chromatography to work its magic.

Next, we’ve got to carefully separate all the M&M’s by color. You can use your fingers or a pair of tweezers to do this – just take your time and make sure to keep each color nice and separate. This is a crucial step because we’re going to see how the different colored dyes in the M&M’s behave in really fascinating ways during the chromatography process.

Now, let’s set up the experiment. We’re going to place those coffee filter strips into the cups or jars, making sure that the bottom of the strip is just touching the water. The water should soak up the filter, but it’s important that it doesn’t go above the middle of the strip. This is what’s going to create the capillary action that makes the chromatography work.

Alright, time for the fun part! We’re going to take one color of M&M and place it at the very bottom of each coffee filter strip. Make sure the M&M is touching the filter paper, because that’s how the color is going to transfer from the candy to the filter.

Now, just sit back and watch in amazement as the water travels up the coffee filter, carrying the color from the M&M with it. You’re going to see the colors start to separate and spread out, creating this absolutely beautiful rainbow-like pattern. It’s just the coolest thing to see!

Let’s try this with all the different colors of M&M’s, using a fresh coffee filter strip for each one. That way, we can compare how the different dyes behave and separate at varying rates. It’s going to be so fascinating to see the differences!

Isn’t this just the neatest science experiment you’ve ever seen? Chromatography is this really complex scientific technique, but we can do it right here at home with some simple, everyday supplies. The grandkids are going to be absolutely mesmerized watching the colors spread out and seeing how they separate.

Now, let’s talk about some of the key lessons we can teach the grandkids during this experiment:

1. Separation of Mixtures: The chromatography process is all about separating a mixture (the M&M colors) into its individual components. We can use this to explain how different substances can be separated based on their unique properties.
2. Capillary Action: The way the water travels up the coffee filter is a great example of capillary action, which is the ability of a liquid to flow through narrow spaces without the assistance of, or even in opposition to, external forces like gravity. This is a fundamental scientific concept that the kids will find fascinating.
3. Solubility and Polarity: The different dyes in the M&M’s have varying degrees of solubility and polarity, which is why they separate at different rates as the water travels up the filter. We can use this to talk about the chemical properties of different substances.
4. Scientific Observation: Throughout the experiment, we’ll be encouraging the grandkids to carefully observe what’s happening and make predictions about the outcomes. This will help develop their scientific thinking and problem-solving skills.

I can’t wait to try this out with my own grandkids. It’s going to be such a fun and educational activity that we can all enjoy together. If you have any questions at all, please don’t hesitate to ask. I’m here to help in any way I can. Happy experimenting, my fellow grandmas!