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Celebrate the end of the school year with your own fireworks!

A little background: You are going to do a chemical experiment to make your own “fireworks!” Below is the chemical formula of baking soda and vinegar. Mixing vinegar and baking soda together leads to an acid-based chemical reaction. Vinegar, also known as acetic acid, has the chemical formula CH3COOH. Baking soda is a base, also known as sodium bicarbonate. It has the chemical formula NaHCO3. This chemical reaction produces sodium acetate (C2H3NaO2.) Sodium acetate is made up of one sodium ion, two carbon atoms, three hydrogen atoms, and two oxygen atoms. The two other products include water (H2O) and carbon dioxide (CO2). Carbon dioxide is the gas that causes bubbling during the chemical reaction.

Chemical Formula of Baking Soda and Vinegar

C2H4O2 + NaHCO3 -> NaC2H3O2 + H2O + CO2

vinegar + sodium bicarbonate -> sodium acetate + water + carbon dioxide

Have you ever watched Home Alone, where the kid gets the bad guys by building traps and Rube Goldberg Machines? With your parents or guardians’ help, you can build your very own by using items around your house! Check out this video for inspiration!

Gather with your friends or family and divide yourselves into three teams. One team will build a house made from sticks. Another will build a house made from small straws. And the third team will build a house made from index cards.

Follow these instructions for the challenge:

In my experiment, I tested different types of liquids like vinegar, orange juice, or milk to see if they could conduct electricity. You could try something similar, too!

With your parent or guardian’s help, you can design your own circuit! Here are a few different ideas!

Watch this video to learn more about electricity. Make sure to ask an adult to help you so you can do your experiment safely!

SWE Blog provides up-to-date information and news about the Society and how our members are making a difference every day. You’ll find stories about SWE members, engineering, technology, and other STEM-related topics.

Allison Osmanson is a Materials Science and Engineering PhD student at the University of Texas at Arlington. She holds a Master’s degree in Materials Science and Engineering from the University of North Texas and she earned her Bachelor’s degree in Materials Science and Engineering from Washington State University. She plans to graduate in December 2021, after which, she will be a Microelectronics Packaging Engineer at Texas Instruments in Dallas, Texas.

All Together is the blog of the Society of Women Engineers. Find stories about SWE members, engineering, technology, and other STEM related topics. It’s up-to-date information and news about the Society and how our members are making a difference everyday.

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