Mad Science Monday: Magic Shamrocks!

   Happy St. Patrick's Day!!!
   We are back with Mad Science Monday this week!
   The little munchkin came home from school today, so very excited about St. Patrick's Day. It was a huge deal in her classroom, and they went on a hunt around the school to find the sneaky leprechaun a who left a glittery mess in their classroom, and found some gold coins (chocolate candy) along the way. She wouldn't stop talking about it the whole ride home.
    Then she said,  " Mommy, we have to go home and find the leprechaun in the house." I was like - Uh oh! I hadn't planned anything like that!
    I am so glad that I made these Magic Shamrocks last night- a FABULOUS idea from Crystal Underwood, over at Growing a Jeweled Rose.  She has SO many fun learning and play activities on her blog, that are awesome!
    Anyhow, I told the munchkin that I was at work all day so I wasn't sure that the leprechaun came into our house but we could look for him. And what she "found" instead were the Magic Shamrocks on the counter and it was easy to convince her that the leprechaun had left them for her.

    This was another fun science/sensory activity, using simple ingredients once again. (One note though was that it needs at least 24 hours to dry.)
    Here is what you would need:
-Baking Soda
-Water
-Green Food Coloring
-Shamrock muffin pan (or cookie cutters would work too)
-Vinegar
-Any little treasures/toys
   Directions:
(Click here to see more detailed directions w/photos at Growing a Jeweled Rose blog)
-Put the desired amount of baking soda in a bowl and slowly mix water in it. You want the texture to be moldable and not too wet. Add green food coloring and mix it all.
-Place half of the mixture in the Shamrock muffin pan, then place treasures/toys in them and cover them up with more of the mixture. (I only had enough to fill two.) Pack it all in and allow 24-48 hours for it to dry, Once they are dry, they are easy to pop out of the pan.
-Place vinegar in a cup and use spoons to even plastic droppers and have fun watching the shamrocks come apart and reveal the treasures inside!

   Once the little munchkin was done, we placed some water into the muffin pan and she placed the little treasures inside the molds to clean them off.
    Here are some of the little treasures she found:

Another successful Mad Science Monday! 

(I can't wait to try this out in other forms, as suggested by Crystal-- Magic Rocks and/or Magic Easter Eggs!)