Have you ever seen a video or photo of a tornado? They are so beautiful but so very dangerous. If you can’t go out and observe a tornado, how do you teach your children about one safely? You make a tornado a jar of course.
This experiment is so much fun and very affordable. All you have to do is look around your house for these items and you’ll be making a tornado in no time.
Materials:
1 L bottle or a large glass jar
Water
Liquid Dish Soap
Food coloring
I tried this experiment a few times with different materials before I settled on the best things to make the clearest looking tornado to observe inside your jar.
If your child is old enough, allow them to help you with the steps. If they aren’t, they will have just as much fun watching you do it.
Step 1:
If you are using a 1 L bottle take off the label so that you can see clearly through the bottle.
If you are using glass make sure it’s clear so that you can see what is happening.
Step 2:
Fill the bottle 2/3 to 3/4 full of water.
Step 3:
Add 1 drop of liquid dish soap and 1 to 2 drops of food coloring of your choice (this gives good contrast so you can see the tornado more clearly).
Step 4:
Place the lid back on the bottle or jar and make sure it is on tight!
Step 5:
Swirl the bottle around as quickly as you can to make a large vortex.
Depending on how old your children are, you can choose to have just a fun experiment for them to see, or you can go further into the science behind wind. How there are currents, pressure systems, and even how flour mills were once powered by wind.
Finally, enjoy watching your little one’s amazement as they watch the water swirl around. I did this with my little ones and they were in awe. It was priceless.
