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We did a Grinch science experiment. A deflated green balloon with a heart drawn on it, an empty water bottle, baking soda, and vinegar were put on a table. The students were first asked what they thought we were going to do with these items. After discussion, we completed a science experiment to help the Grinch's heart grow.

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Your children will love this Growing a Grinch Heart Science Experiment! It's a fun way to get excited about the holiday season.

I'm sure you're familiar with the classic Christmas tale of How the Grinch Stole Christmas. It's such a great story and movie for this time of year!

It's a classic Christmas story and kids love reading it (and now watching one of the many versions of the movie!).

Why not take your kids' love of this Christmas story into an educational direction?

Try the growing a grinch heart science experiment this holiday break!

It just isn't the holiday season if you don't get to watch "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" a few times here and there. And while we all tend to have a love/dislike with the Grinch, you can't help but welcome him into your hearts by the time that the movie is nearing an end.

We love to cuddle up and watch this show time and time again as it's just part of the holiday spirit. It's one of those Christmas traditions that we look forward to every single year.

Grow a Grinch Heart Science Experiment

This experiment is a fun Grinch-themed twist on the growing a balloon science experiment. The mixture of baking soda and vinegar creates a chemical reaction that releases carbon dioxide gas.

This gas is lighter than air, so it fills the balloon with air, and makes the grinch's heart grow!

Learn how to do the Grinch heart science experiment:

"And what happened, then?

Well, in Whoville they say - that the Grinch's small heart grew three sizes that day.

And then - the true meaning of Christmas came through, and the Grinch found the strength of *ten* Grinches, plus two!"

-Dr. Seuss

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Plate or large tray

Plastic bottle

Red permanent marker

Green balloon

Baking soda

Vinegar

Rubber band

Growing a Grinch heart experiment ingredients:
GROWING A GRINCH HEART SCIENCE EXPERIMENT

For the least amount of mess, you will want to do this experiment on a plate or tray.

We found that it's also best to draw the heart in advance when the balloon is filled with air. Otherwise, the heart shape isn't as visible as it stretches.

So, to not ruin the experiment, an adult should blow up the balloon with air away from the kids and draw on the heart.

Let the heart dry before giving the balloon to kids.

When the kids are present, add about 1/3 of a cup of vinegar to your bottle.

Scoop 1-2 tablespoons of baking soda into the deflated balloon.

Be careful as you attach the neck of the balloon to the top of the bottle.

There are two things that can go wrong:

1. The balloon may burst.

2. The baking soda might drop into the bottle too early, messing up the experiment.

As long as you're careful, however, it shouldn't be a problem.

Once the balloon is securely attached (you may need to secure it with a rubber band), tip the baking soda into the bottle.

Let the kids observe the Grinch's heart grow three sizes!

Ask the kids why they think the balloon inflated and explain the science behind the demonstration to complete the activity.

Have you tried blowing up a balloon with carbon dioxide before?

Also, check out our fun science experiments for kids.

More Christmas Activities for Kids
Bingo Christmas Gingerbread Fact Family Houses Gingerbread Pre-Writing Strips Christmas Color By Number Worksheets Clothespin Christmas Clip Cards

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Growing a Grinch Heart Science Experiment

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This post contains affiliate links, if you click through them I will earn a commission. You can learn more here. Your children will love this Growing a Grinch Heart Science Experiment! It's a fun way to get excited about the holiday season. I'm sure you're familiar with the classic Christmas tale of How the Grinch Stole Christmas.

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We built a fort for literacy week to encourage reading. The students were encouraged to bring in a blanket and a flashlight. The students and teacher collaborated and planned out how we were going to build the fort/s.

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Last week our school celebrated Literacy Week. Our entire school participated in a ton of fun activities including Flat Stanley, a Writers Symposium and an Inuit Storyteller.

But for my class of 6 and 7-year-olds, the hands-down favourite activity was our Friday Pajama and Fort-Building Day. After the forts were built the kids were encouraged to read their favourite books inside. Okay, stop laughing. A few determined souls actually did lie down and read.

The kids all came to school in their jammies, with slippers, stuffies, blankets and flashlights.

All day long they were asking me, "When can we build our forts?"

The happy hour finally arrived at 1:00. Armed with a few simple rules (respect other people's forts and ask before taking something) they were set to go.

It was a noisy activity and I felt kind of sorry for the teacher next door, but the sheer excitement, happiness (I heard "This is the BEST day EVER!" more than once) and gazillion benefits that go along with such an activity, made it all worthwhile.

8 REASONS FOR BUILDING CLASSROOM FORTS:

1. Develops PLANNING Skills: Just what IS the best way to maximize the room and comfort of the fort? The kids had to work that out for themselves as there was very little adult assistance. Do they use the desks? The chairs? One blanket or two?

2. Promotes TEAMWORK: The kids started out building their forts either alone or in small groups, but before the end of the day the magic kicked in and they made one big, beautiful, gigantic structure! A lot of negotiation and compromise was needed.

3. Develops PROBLEM-SOLVING Skills: Initially the blankets kept collapsing in the middle so the kids were trying to figure out how to fix that. Tying knots in the blankets? Masking tape? And where is the best spot for that masking tape so that you're not wasting it all?

4. Promotes IMAGINARY Play: How can you help but NOT use your imagination when crawling through tunnels of blankets and chair legs. Jungles, animals, caves, subways, fairy forests ...

5. Can Provide a CALMING Effect: Okay, to be honest, most of the kids were pretty hyped up. But there were actually 4 or 5 who just lay down in a quiet, forgotten corner of the fort and either read or closed their eyes and chilled for a bit.

6. Increases FOCUS: All these kids were extremely focused on accomplishing their common goal. Not once did I have to remind someone to get "on task"! Can you imagine? Haha.

7. Facilitates SPATIAL INTELLIGENCE: In order to build a fort, you need to be able to visualize it (or at least an aspect of it) before beginning. Then it helps to be able to picture the next stage in your mind's eye. While this is going on you're making one quick decision after another.

8. Builds SELF-CONFIDENCE: My kids were absolutely BEAMING whenever they built a new structure, or made the existing fort a little bigger or better in some way. Every change, adjustment, refinement brought a resurgence of pride.

Have you built forts in YOUR classroom? I'd love to hear about it.
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8 Reasons to Build an Indoor Fort in Your Classroom " Grade Onederful

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Last week our school celebrated Literacy Week. Our entire school participated in a ton of fun activities including Flat Stanley, a Writers Symposium and an Inuit Storyteller. But for my class of 6 and 7-year-olds, the hands-down favourite activity was our Friday Pajama and Fort-Building Day.

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divide a piece of paper into sections and give each student a different color marker. Have them draw what they think, see, wonder. You can use a word or number.

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Inquiry Into Literacy- Ask: What do you notice about these? (Use this to teach concepts of print instead of a direct lesson)

Just put books out and ask them what they notice in a center

Kids think of things that books are made of

Books- comics, magazines, picture, informational books, etc.

They can talk to their friends about what they see

Kids share at the end of each center and teacher dictates on an ongoing list

How many of words are in a sentence?

This list is referred to through writing time.

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I learned from Regina that her school has centers for inquiry into senses. The students are at tables where they investigate seeing, hearing, smelling... One table has different types of glasses for seeing; one has different things to smell; one has different bells; cooked spaghetti; etc. The children report their findings.

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This teacher is teaching about the vowel o. It can be used for any other letter. I make a poster with the focus letter. Students work in groups to complete the chart with titles: beginning, middle, and end. They are asked to draw pictures (try to label) things that begin with the focus letter, have the focus letter in the middle, and things that have focus letter at the end.

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Students learned parts of letter writing (heading, body, closing) and the process of sending a letter to a pen pal/friend. In addition,  they learned the importance of knowing their own address.

Technology could be included by comparing and contrasting emailing vs. postal mail.

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During distance learning we did an inquiry based activity every week.  One week we sent a piece of foil and students had to create a boat that would float and see how many pennies their boat could hold.  Each of these activities also had a story we read to go with the activity.  Another was to create a crayon box that would make all the crayons happy.  We also sent home a bunch of construction paper in different colors and students were to create a poster that represented shapes we had learned about.  I forget the story we read first.  There are also a bunch of inquiry based activities based on the book, "What's in the box?"

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Inquiry for How the world works Community 

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Inquiry for How the world works Community 

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Students build a community together, and also build a community helper to go with it. They are given materials and then they create on their own.

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Students work together to make a graphic organizer (usually a circle map) and draw/show different ways to make 7 (whatever the focus number is).