4th of July Crafts for Kids
- Paint fireworks with rockets
- Make a confetti popper
- Cook up homemade smoke bombs (!Caution!)
- Shoot off match rockets
- Design a firework zoetrope
Nothing spells quintessential summer quite like 4th of July. That means no time for school – but the 4th of July opens up a whole bunch of fun crafts for kids that you don’t even have to use as lessons. They will serve as great activities that you can talk about when the science comes up in their curriculum. There is a lot of chemistry and engineering in these projects – I hope you enjoy them!
1. Paint fireworks with rockets
Learn about acid-base reactions and phase changes as you blow paint rockets sky high. You don’t need too much for this activity, a few ingredients you likely have on hand (like baking soda, paper, and paint), and some easy to find ingredients (like film canisters and citric acid). The painted explosions look just like fireworks and the popping rockets are sure to delight.
2. Make a confetti popper
This is a fun 4th of July craft for preschoolers. In a perfect introductory engineering challenge, little hands can make confetti poppers using toilet paper tubes, pom poms, and balloons. It also opens the door to talk about the physics as they explore forces and the conversion of potential to kinetic energy.
3. Cook up homemade smoke bombs (!CAUTION!)
Making a DIY smoke bomb is sure to delight older kids, and is a great introduction to the power of chemistry. Kids, with parental supervision, will very carefully cook sugar and potassium nitrate together. Lab safety measure should be in full force for this activity – tied back hair, safety classes, closed toe shoes, etc). The payoff is huge once they can light their smoke bombs.
4. Shoot off match rockets
This activity is much safer than the DIY smoke bombs and is sure to delight kids of all ages. All you need is foil, matches, a paperclip, and a launch pad. The match rockets will fly somewhere between 10-30 feet depending on the design. The rocket casing made of foil can be retrieved (with a glove) to reuse, allowing kids to practice engineering and design principles.
5. Make a firework zoetrope
This is a fun activity that blends science and art together. Kids will learn how to make a short firework animation that comes to life when it is spinning in a zoetrope!