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    Home » Early Years Science » Which solids dissolve in water?

    Which solids dissolve in water?

    November 17, 2011 By Emma Vanstone 21 Comments

    Today’s experiment is very simple but hopefully fascinating for even very young children. We’re going to investigate which solids dissolve in water.

    When a substance dissolves in water, you can’t see it anymore; it’s still there but has mixed with the water to make a transparent liquid called a solution.

    We call substances that dissolve in water soluble. Sugar and salt are examples of soluble substances.

    Substances that do not dissolve in water are called insoluble. Sand and flour are examples of insoluble substances.

    test tubes and sample materials to find out Which solids dissolve in water - science for kids

    You’ll need

    • Transparent containers – test tubes or beakers
    • Water ( warm and cold )
    • Substances to try to dissolve, e.g. sugar, coffee, pepper, sand, flour, salt.
     Test tubes, water, sugar and salt  - dissolving experiment

    Instructions

    Add a teaspoon of whichever solid you are testing to a glass of cold water and a glass of warm water. Stir and observe the difference.

    Watch to see if the solid dissolves in warm and cold water and if one is better than the other.

    Remember to use the same amount of each solid and the same amount of cold and warm water to make the investigation a fair test.

    Can you design a chart for recording your observations?

    Four test tubes in a rack with different mixtures in. Water and washing up liquid, water and sand and water and mud.

    Which solids dissolve in water

    Things like salt, sugar and coffee dissolve in water. They are soluble. They usually dissolve faster and better in warm or hot water.

    Pepper and sand are insoluble; they will not dissolve even in hot water.

    flour and water in a beaker. A child's hand is stirring the mixture to find out if the flour will dissolve in the water.

    Dissolving for older children

    Everything is made of particles which are constantly moving. When a soluble solid ( solute ) is mixed with a suitable liquid (solvent), it forms a solution. This process is called dissolving.

    Two things that affect the speed at which a solid dissolves are temperature and the size of the grains of the solid.

    Caster sugar, made of fine particles, will dissolve quickly, but bigger sugar particles will take longer.

    Solids dissolve faster in hot water; in hot water, molecules move more quickly, so they bump into each other more often, increasing the rate of reaction.

    An example of a physical change

    Dissolving is an example of a physical change. The particles involved are rearranged, but no chemical bonds are changed.

    In a physical change, there is no change in mass. If you dissolved 10g of salt in 100g of water, you’d have 110g of solution.

    More Dissolving Experiments

    Make a naked egg and watch as vinegar dissolves the calcium carbonate of the eggshell.

    Lava lamps work because the effervescent tablet dissolves in water releasing carbon dioxide.

    Which Solids Dissolve in Water - easy science investigation to discover which solids dissolve in water #scienceforkids #chemistryforkids

    Handy definitions

    Solute – the solid being dissolved

    Solvent – the liquid the solid is dissolving into.

    Solution – the solute and the solvent

    Soluble – solute that does dissolve

    Solubility – how much of a solute will dissolve

    Insoluble – does not dissolve

    Saturated – a solution that won’t dissolve any more solute at that temperature.

    More Science for Kids

    Don’t forget we have lots more easy science experiments for kids at home you can try too!

    You might also like our science books! This IS Rocket Science contains 70 fun space experiments for kids, including bottle rockets, film canister rockets, space marble runs and shadow puppets.

    Snackable Science contains 60 tasty and edible science snacks!!

    Contains affiliate links

    Last Updated on January 24, 2023 by Emma Vanstone

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    Safety Notice

    Science Sparks ( Wild Sparks Enterprises Ltd ) are not liable for the actions of activity of any person who uses the information in this resource or in any of the suggested further resources. Science Sparks assume no liability with regard to injuries or damage to property that may occur as a result of using the information and carrying out the practical activities contained in this resource or in any of the suggested further resources.

    These activities are designed to be carried out by children working with a parent, guardian or other appropriate adult. The adult involved is fully responsible for ensuring that the activities are carried out safely.

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Smallgood

      November 17, 2011 at 2:07 pm

      For some reason, I struggled to understand solids dissolving in liquids. It was probably until I was in high school and taking Chemistry before I really got it. 😉 I like the little experiment.

      Reply
      • ScienceSparks

        November 23, 2011 at 10:34 pm

        Glad you like it, we aim to please. xx

        Reply
    2. Ali

      November 18, 2011 at 12:16 am

      what simple experiments, my little one will be fascinated by this.

      Reply
      • ScienceSparks

        November 18, 2011 at 9:17 am

        Thanks, My 4 year old loved trying all the different things! x

        Reply
        • Ana

          December 15, 2019 at 6:51 pm

          I just needed to get this information for my butterfly garden but after Reading this i will try to do this when i have a science project

          Reply
    3. Beth

      November 20, 2011 at 8:32 pm

      Very fun & simple enough for my little ones! Welcome to TGIF LInky Party. Thanks for linking up. Don’t forget to grab the TGIF button for your post or sidebar so others can find the party & link up too. Thanks & see you next week,
      Beth =-)

      Reply
      • ScienceSparks

        November 23, 2011 at 10:33 pm

        Thanks Beth. x

        Reply
    4. maggy,red ted art

      November 23, 2011 at 7:46 pm

      You do really come up with fabulous experiments to do at home 🙂

      Thank you for joining Kids Get Crafty!

      Maggy

      Reply
      • ScienceSparks

        November 23, 2011 at 10:31 pm

        Thanks Maggy, glad you liked it. x

        Reply
    5. Mom to 2 Posh Lil Divas

      November 29, 2011 at 3:00 am

      I am fascinated by this & want to try it! Thanks for linking your idea to the Sunday Showcase last week. Hope to see you this week!

      Bern
      http://momto2poshlildivas.blogspot.com/search/label/Sunday%20Showcase

      Reply
      • ScienceSparks

        November 29, 2011 at 2:40 pm

        Yay, so glad you like it, let us know how you get on. x

        Reply
    6. mo

      February 19, 2013 at 5:59 pm

      simple but effective

      Reply
    7. mo

      February 23, 2013 at 3:35 pm

      Had so much fun doing this for homework, you basically saved me in a desperate situation, simple but very effective ;0)

      Reply
    8. Terry-Ann Loney

      February 26, 2013 at 4:36 pm

      do all solids dissolve in water?

      Reply
      • Anonymous

        April 26, 2017 at 8:52 am

        not all of them

        Reply
    9. Afrah

      April 30, 2016 at 2:43 pm

      what other solids dissolve?

      Reply
    10. Victoria (Cherry Bomb Bakery)

      February 12, 2017 at 9:12 am

      Loved this experiment – My daughter is nearly 5 and she loved setting up and carrying out the experiment 🙂 We wrote about it first a nd then after we wrote our findings down and then the sciency part too – She has to practise her sentence writing for school (she is in YR R) and it’s not a secret that my daughter loves to write. I wanted to give her a reason to write so experiments are a great way so I don’t have to pluck a random sentence out of the air on demand – THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!

      Reply
    11. Austin

      August 30, 2017 at 7:15 pm

      So cool!
      most coolest thing i have ever seen

      Reply
    12. Yeetboi

      May 08, 2018 at 3:23 pm

      Yeet

      Reply
    13. Anoonamoose

      May 08, 2018 at 3:23 pm

      Yeet

      Reply
    14. Mellowninga8

      September 04, 2019 at 3:50 pm

      Was a very fun experiment and also very fun to do…

      Had a fun learning experience with the simple ,little experiment… during theory classes I wasn’t able to understand until I got to do this experiment..the for coming up with the idea.

      Wish u luck for upcoming experiments. Love .MELLOW

      Reply

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