An example of a safe and straightforward chemistry experiment gets your kids investigating how different solutes dissolve. Provide your kids with three identical glass beakers and get them to label each one with the different substance it will contain -- water, rubbing alcohol and vinegar. Have them put one tablespoon of brown sugar in each of the beakers and add five tablespoons of each substance. Your kids should then start a stopwatch and stir the contents of the beaker with a spoon -- be sure that they stir the liquid at the same pace and profile and with the same spoon. Have kids record the length of time it takes for all of the brown sugar to dissolve and compare the different substances.
For the melting ice experiment, have your kids gather first fill an ice tray so that each ice cube produced will be the same weight. They should then take four identical plastic cups and place an ice cube in the bottom of each one. Get kids to line up the cups in order and place one, two and three teaspoons of salt into each one from left to right. The remaining cup is your kids' control and should receive no salt. Kids should place their four cups in the same place, so they receive the same temperature and light conditions. They should observe as the ice cubes melt. Challenge them to think about why the more salt that is added the faster the ice melts.
Have your kids complete this easy chemistry project to assess the differences between hard and soft water. Supply kids with two identical 20 oz. empty soda bottles with caps and have them pour two cups of water into each one. Have them add two teaspoons of epsom salts to one of the bottles and label an asterisk on that bottle with a marker pen. Kids should screw the cap onto this bottle and shake vigorously. Assist kids with this stage of the experiment by removing both caps and adding two drops of dish-washing detergent into both bottles. Get kids to replace the caps and shake both bottles once more. Kids should compare both bottles and think about why the hard water condition (with epsom salts) has far fewer bubbles. Inform them that this is because the minerals that are dissolved in hard water interfere with the detergent's action, so soft water is more effective for cleaning clothes and dishes.
Guide your kids through this chemistry experiment, which involves boiling different liquids to measure their sugar level. Provide kids with 250ml of fresh squeezed fruit juice, fruit juice from concentrate and soda for testing. Kids should first note the weight of the saucepot that they will use for the experiment. Pour each of the liquids into the pot and test them one by one on a stove by boiling liquids until all of the water in it evaporates, leaving only the sugar. Allow the pot to cool and have kids weigh the pot with sugar in. Subtract the pot's original weight; this indicates how much sugar is in each liquid. Have kids work out the sugar content displayed on the drink's label and work out if the label indicates all of the sugar in the drink or the drink's added sugar content only.