How To Make "GAK"

#HowToTuesday Cub Scouts love to cover their hands with sticky, gooey stuff... and then touch your couch and curtains, or rub it into the carpet.  GAK is a fun science experiment that satisfies those needs to have gooey stuff in you hands and produces a fun toy for them to take home (and rub into the carpet at their own homes). You will need the following items per boy:

• 8 oz of white school glue (like Elmer's, but any brand works great)
• 1 tsp Borax (found in the laundry detergent isle)
• 8 oz of hot water
• 4 oz of cool water
• Mixing bowls
• Measuring Cups
• Food Coloring (optional)
• 1 tsp Spoon
• 2 spoons (use separate spoons during the first steps of mixing)

Lets start mixing!

Empty out the glue into the mixing bowl. To make sure that we get all of the glue out I like to fill the bottles 1/4 full of cool water (2 oz) from the tap and shake out the rest.  This is where the 4 oz of cool water comes into play. You should now have 8 oz of glue and 4 oz of water in your mixing bowl.  Place a few drops of food coloring in and start mixing until all ingredients are completely incorporated. Next, measure 8 oz of hot tap water in your measuring cup and add 1 tsp of Borax. Mix these two ingredients together until the Borax dissolves in the water. Don't worry, the water will be a little cloudy and its alright if there are a few particles of Borax floating around in the cup. This next step is when the magic happens.  Pour the Borax water into the mixing bowl of the glue/water mixture and start mixing together.  Instantly as you combine the two mixtures you will see the reaction beginning.  Eventually it will become to thick for you to mix with the spoon... time to get your hands dirty. Complete the mixing process by squishing the mixture with your hands and fingers. Store your newly created slime in a zip baggy for the boys to take home.  

Tips:

If you have been mixing for ever and there seems to still be a large amount of water at the bottom of the bowl. Remove your GAK and pour out the water into the sink. Place your GAK back into the bowl and mix again until it is a smooth / rubbery consistency. Repeat if needed.

Optional food coloring... I would suggest using the food coloring. Especially if you have a large group of scouts.  The boys will recognize which GAK is theirs based on the color they used or even better, what color they created with multiple colors.

Wash your hands after use. Borax has been known to irritate your skin if left on too long.

Keep it away from the carpet. It is somewhat easy to pick it off the carpet... unless someone has stepped on it.  Also, do not let it sit on your clothing.  It will adhere itself to any fibers and will actually try to travel through the fabric (found this one out the hard why with my daughter and her t-shirt).

Most of all - HAVE FUN!

Foam Sword

This #HowToTuesday we are making a fun Foam Sword

Items Needed:

• Foam Pool Noodle
• 3/4" PVC Pipe
• 3/4" PVC End Cap
• Piece of Leather / Vinyl / or Heavy Fabric

Step:

1. Cut the PVC pipe to the desired length of your sword (this example is 12 inches)
2. Cut the Foam Pool Noodle 2 inches longer than the length of the PVC pipe you just cut.
3. Cut the fabric into an oval shape and cut circles on both ends so you can feed it onto the pipe. (this example is 8 inches long)
4. Place the PVC end cap onto one end of the PVC pipe (this is now the bottom of the sword)
5. Feed the pvc pipe through the wholes in the fabric (this is your hand shield)
6. Slide the foam pool noodle onto the PVC pipe

Make different colors for team competitions

The sword can be any length. Just be sure to cut the pool noodle a minimum of 2 inches longer than the PVC pipe.

Cub Scout Lava Lamp

Items Needed:

• An inexpensive bottle of cooking oil
• Empty Cup
• Cup of Water
• Food Coloring (you can choose any color)
• Effervescent Antacid Tablets

Baggie Greenhouse Printable

Click Here for your printable.

Item List:

• Sandwich baggie with a zipper
• Seeds / Beans
• Coloring items (crayons, color pencils, markers)
• Greenhouse Printable
• Sharp Knife (Akela to cut out the window on the printable)
• Water
• Tape and a Home Window

This little greenhouse can be used to start any seeds.  For my Wolf's we used beans since their germination time is quicker than most seeds.  By the time next den meeting rolls around each boy should show some type of growth.

Have the boys personalize their greenhouse and have an adult use a knife to cut the window out of the middle.  I used half page shipping labels so I could stick the greenhouse onto the sandwich baggie.  Using regular paper and taping the outer edges to the baggie works very well also.

Get your paper towel damp and fold so that it will fit within the bottom of the greenhouse. Place your beans/seeds in the last fold and make sure that the sprout will have an exit path within the paper towel. Seal the sandwich baggie and tape your new greenhouse up in your window with the paper greenhouse facing you.

Make sure to check your greenhouse each day a record what you see. What is forming on the side of the baggie? Has anything sprouted? 

Kool Aid Play Dough

#HOWTOTUESDAY

Great project to complete with your cubs. Use safety precautions around the hot water.

Items needed:
1 cup flour
1/4 cup salt
1 packet kool aid
2/3 cup water
1 Tablespoon oil

Combine the water and oil together and bring to a boil.
While waiting for the water and oil to boil, mix all the dry ingredients together in a separate bowl.
Combine the wet and dry ingredients and mix until thick enough to start kneading. (it will be a little warm to handle for a few minutes) Place in a zip lock bag to preserve moisture.

Total cost: roughly 30¢