This hands-on science activity is another of our favorite activities and it has kiddos making ice cream in a bag! It’s a great activity for children of all ages! As with all science experiments, safety is extremely important. Parent supervision is required.
Supplies You’ll Need:
- Milk
- Whipping Cream (Heavy Cream)
- Sugar
- Vanilla Flavoring
- Ice Cream Salt
- Ice
- 1-Quart Ziploc Bag
- 1-Gallon Ziploc Bag
- Measuring Cups
- Spoons
- Gloves
Instructions:
- Measure out 1/2 cup of milk and 1/2 cup of the heavy whipping cream. Pour it into the 1-quart Ziploc bag.
- Next measure out 1/4 cup sugar and 1/4 teaspoon vanilla. Add them to the 1-quart Ziploc bag. Seal the bag securely.
- Next add 2 cups of ice into the 1-gallon Ziplock bag.
- Add 1/2 to 3/4 cups of the ice cream salt to the bag of ice.
- Place the sealed bag with the ice cream ingredients inside the gallon bag of ice and salt. Seal the gallon bag securely.
- Gently rock the gallon bag from side to side. We recommend using paper towels or gloves to hold the bag as the bag will get really cold.
- Shake the bag back and forth for approximately 10-15 minutes or until the ice cream mixture bag has solidified into ice cream.
- When solidified, remove the ice cream bag and rinse it off under a faucet with cold water. You may then open it and enjoy the ice cream.
What is happening?
Ice is considered a solid. In order for it to melt and become a liquid, it has to absorb energy! In this experiment the ingredients that you used to make your ice cream, absorbed energy from the outside environment. This is a process known as an endothermic reaction. In this experiment the outside environment is your hands. You also added energy by shaking the bags.When you added the ice cream salt to the ice, it lowered the freezing point of the ice. This means that your ice cream ingredients had to absorb even more energy simply for the ice to even melt. As a result, the ice becomes colder than it was before and this allows for the ice cream to freeze.
Science Vocabulary:
- Endothermic Reaction – (n.) process describes a process or reaction in which the system absorbs energy from its surroundings.
- Freezing Point – (n.) the temperature at which a liquid turns into a solid when cooled.