Soap: Sometimes oil and water do mix!

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In this activity (on page 2 of PDF), learners mix oil and water. Then, they add soap and observe what changes! The activity demonstrates how oil and water don't mix, except when soap is added. This is the basis for how soap removes greasy, oily stuff in water. The background information suggests adding food coloring to see whether it mixes with the oil or water. [Activity is publicly available through a web crawler capture on Archive.org.]

Quick Guide

Preparation Time:
Under 5 minutes
Learning Time:
Under 5 minutes
Estimated Materials Cost:
1 cent - $1 per student
Age Range:
Ages 4 - 11
Resource Type:
Activity
Language:
English

Materials List (per student)

  • Clear Jar with lid
  • Water
  • Vegetable Oil
  • Liquid Soap

Keywords

Subjects

  • Physical Sciences
    • Chemistry
      • Solutions
    • States of Matter
      • Liquids

Audience

To use this activity, learners need to:

  • see
  • touch

Learning styles supported:

  • Involves hands-on or lab activities

Other

Includes alignment to state and/or national standards:

Access Rights:

  • Free access

By:

Rights:

Funding Source:

  • National Science Foundation, ESI-0206403