THE ACTIVITY:
Unwrap the candy canes. You can use whole candy canes, parts of candy canes, or peppermints for this activity. It will have the same results no matter which of these you use.

Sprinkle the bottom of your tray with baking soda. Get the candy canes wet, but don’t get them so wet that the stripes come off. It works best if you use candy canes that have stripes going through the entire candy cane, but you can also use it with candy canes that are painted on, just make sure you only wet them for a couple of seconds.

Place the candy canes in the baking soda, coating them completely. Fill a small container with vinegar. Use a pipette to pick up vinegar, then squirt it onto the candy canes. If you don't have a pipette use a teaspoon to pour on gently.

They will start to bubble and fizz.

Let’s talk about some basic principles of static electricity. Talking about atoms, proton and electrons can be a bit tricky with young kids. Everything we see around us is made of atoms. Atoms have protons, electrons, and neutrons. Protons are positive, electrons are negative, and neutrons are neutral. Everything has the same amount of protons and electrons. When you create static electricity, you change the balance of protons and electrons.

Rubbing two different materials together like a balloon and hair creates static electricity. More negative electrons are transferred to the balloon and the hair has more positive protons. Positive and negative charges attract each other. Negative and neutral charges also can attract each other. The tinsel is a neutral charge so the balloon and tinsel attract each other!

A good example is when you remove your hat. The hat is negatively charged and your hair is positively charged. Since two positive or two negative charges will repel each other, your hairs move away from each other. They literally stand on end! Another good example is when you rub the balloon in your hair. You are about to test that out!

Rub the balloon and test if you can move the tinsel pieces- are the smallest or largest pieces easier to move? Why? Can you make other objects move with the static electricity?