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    Home » Science Experiments for Kids » Chemistry » Walking on oobleck

    Walking on oobleck

    July 19, 2021 By Emma Vanstone 2 Comments

    Did you know you can walk on oobleck? A couple of years ago my children took part ina fun race called Mini Mudder. One of the obstacles was a huge tray of cornflour oobleck which everyone loved, so when TTS Group kindly sent us a Messy Play Grab and Go Kit including a giant bag of cornflour we thought we’d try to create a smaller version in our garden. Our giant oobleck tray was SO much fun. We had it out in the garden for ages as it dried in the sun each day so we just had to add extra water to make it fresh and slimy to use again.

    Giant oobleck tray - tuff tray full of cornflour slime ( oobleck )
    Cornflour Slime ( Oobleck ) in a tuff tray

    What is oobleck?

    Oobleck is a mixture of cornflour and water. The funny thing about oobleck is that if you scrunch it up in your hand it feels solid but if you unclench your hand and let it run through your fingers it flows like a liquid. We call oobleck a non – Newtonian fluid as it doesn’t flow like liquids normally do.

    How to make a giant oobleck tray

    To make our giant oobleck tray I poured about 1 kg of cornflour into a large black tray and slowly added water until the consistency was wet, but solid when squeezed. If you don’t want to go large find out how to make oobleck on a smaller scale.

    Walk on oobleck - giant oobleck tray #scienceforkids
    Giant tray of oobleck

    How does oobleck work?

    Cornflour oobleck is made up of molecules arranged in long chains. When the chains are stretched the liquid will flow, but when you force them together they stick together to form a solid.

    Giant Oobleck Tray

    You can see from the photos how much fun we had. It is a lot of cornflour, but I left the tray to try in the sun and then scooped up the dry powder which allowed us to use it over and over again.

    Activities with cornflour gloop. Make a giant tray of oobleck and walk on it. #kitchenscienceforkids #oobleck #cornflourslime
    Giant oobleck tray – cornflour slime tray

    What can you do with oobleck?

    We trying walking, running and even cartwheeling over the oobleck. The children found that if they ran quickly over the surface their feet stayed dry, but if they walked slowly they started to sink!

    Once the big children had finished playing for day we added some plastic fish and turned it into an ocean play tray for the littlest member of the family. He loved it!

    If you enjoyed this activity you might also like our no borax slime recipes!

    The Play Based Mom has some amazing looking rainbow oobleck too!

    Giant oobleck tray - fishy themed sensory activity #sciencefortoddlers
    Cornflour Slime
    Set up a giant ray of oobleck and walk on it! Fun sensory science activity for kids
    Walking on Oobleck

    Last Updated on July 19, 2021 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. Olivia

      January 21, 2020 at 9:57 am

      I forgot all about this! I never knew it had a name but I used to make it all the time as a kid. My children would absolutely love this I can’t wait for summer now!

      Reply
      • Lois Wickstrom

        July 20, 2021 at 8:55 am

        Cartwheeling! I love it! Thank you!

        Reply

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