Science Projects on Bubble Gum for the 5th Grade

Which Bubble Gum Has the Longest Taste?

• To answer this question, you will need at least five brands of bubble gum and a stopwatch. Open one piece of each brand of gum. Chew one at a time and use the stopwatch to record how long the gum lasts before its flavor fades out. Record your findings in a scientific journal so you can compare and contrasts one brand to another. Once complete, you can compare the ingredients of each brand of gum to look for a possible relationship between chemical composition and length of flavor.

Which Bubble Gum Sticks the Longest?

• One of the most notorious elements of bubble gum is its tendency to stick to anything it touches, including hair and the soles of your shoes. You can test which gum has the longest sticking power by attaching some to the bottom of a table or a clean board and then sticking a small, light object such as a soda can or plastic bowl to the gum. Use a stopwatch to time how long it takes the object to fall away and you can determine which specific brand offers the longest hold. It is best to test this question with equal-size pieces of gum for the sake of objectivity.

Which Bubble Gum Supports the Most Weight?

• Much like the “Which Gum Last the Longest” test, this project involves the sticking power of gum. However, instead of testing the duration of stickiness, this project tests the strength of the hold. Line up a few objects of varying weights; for example, a pencil, an empty can, a bottle, a full can of soda and a brick. Chew a piece of gum and stick it to the bottom of a table, then stick the smallest of your objects to the gum. If the object holds, make a note of it and chew a new piece of gum. Keep sticking heavier objects to each new piece until the gum cannot hold the weight, then compare the hold strength of each brand.

Which Bubble Gum Makes the Largest Bubble?

• This is one of the most enjoyable experiments you can do with gum, but also one of the messiest. One of the unique qualities of chewing gum is its ability to form bubbles, but not every gum delivers the same bubble performance. Line up a few different brands of chewing gum and cut each piece so that you are working with the same basic amount of gum. Have a friend chew the gum and blow the biggest bubble he can while you measure it with a ruler. Record the results for several pieces of each brand of gum to determine which brand offers the largest potential bubbles.