Kids Science Experiments - Growing Mold
Reaction Project
Growing Mold
Materials you will need:
• Water
• Some tape
• Some leftover foods (like bread, oranges, lemons, apples, grapes, red peppers, courgettes, cauliflower, cheese or biscuits)
• A Clear Container with a Lid (A big glass jar or a big clear plastic container works best)
*** DO NOT USE: anything with meat or fish in it. After a few days these would start to smell very bad.***NOTE: This is a great project to keep a log or notebook on your findings each day that you check for changes.
Steps:
1. Place the jar on its side.
2. Cut around 3 to 5 different pieces of food into small chunks about 1.5cm (1 inch.).
3. Dip all the different pieces of food into the water.
4. Spread the foods out in the jar so that they are not in a pile.
5. Place the lid on the jar and tape around the outside of the lid to seal it
6. Place the jar where it will not get knocked over or thrown away.
7. Put a label with the date on the jar
8. Keep a check on the food in the jar.You probably will not notice any change in the food for the first few days. However, you should start to see some green, white or blue fuzzy/furry stuff growing there after.
Still keeping a check; after a few more days some of the food may start to rot and look gross. Now you can see how the mould spreads and how the food rots in just two weeks.
NOTE: After the two weeks, DO NOT open the lid. Throw the jar and its contents in the bin and DO NOT reuse the jar.
Molds do not grow from seeds. Molds grow from tiny spores that float in the air. Some of these spores fall onto a piece of damp food and then grow into mold.
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