This skittles experiment is easy, low cost and provides lots of investigative opportunities. Try using different temperatures of water, white vinegar or even lemonade to discover what happens.
Colourful Skittles Experiment
What you need:
A plate or container – preferably white
Skittles, other coated sweets work too
Water
Instructions
Place your skittles or sweets into a white container, try to alternate the colours.
Carefully pour water into the container, if the skittles move, just push them back into place quickly.
Watch what happens..
Why do the colours spread?
Skittles are coated in food colouring and sugar. When you pour water over the skittles the coloured coating dissolves spreading through the water.
The colour and sugar dissolve into the water and then diffuse through the water, making it the colour of the skittle.
Extension ideas
Can you time how long the colours take to reach the centre of the plate using cold and warm water? Which do you think will be faster?
Try using other sweets, can you find any that work as well as skittles?
Questions to ask and think about
Why do you think the colours don’t mix?
Can you spot the ‘S’ from the skittles? What happens to it?
How could you speed up the reaction?
More science investigations you might like
Bob
April 24, 2017 at 3:18 pmHi
bob
April 17, 2018 at 7:58 pmcool
pleng
August 15, 2017 at 2:29 pmso cool
Ashley
January 8, 2018 at 10:09 amThis project is very cool but my brother has one day to return his project which is the same
bob
April 17, 2018 at 7:57 pmwhy does he have to return it
people
August 8, 2018 at 5:05 amThis is school I’m doing this for a science fair thanks
Sury
October 29, 2018 at 1:32 pmthis project is very cool thank you for the idea i am doing for my science project.
naomi
November 1, 2019 at 5:10 pmthis is ever sick I’m doing this for my science fair project with a friends