Turn a science experiment classic into the ultimate Halloween science for kids experience! More Halloween science fun for kids at the end of this post.
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Recognize this post? I’m sharing it again today along with other fun hands-on Halloween activities for kids from friends!
Ghost Balloons! Halloween Science for Kids
Ghost balloons make easy Halloween science for kids! – all you need is a water bottle, balloon, Sharpie pen, vinegar, and baking soda! This is a fantastic Halloween science experiment for groups – check out the group photo from enjoying this experiment with my son’s second grade class below! Last year a friend and I ran this experiment for at least 100 kids as part of the kids’ noon science program at school.
Draw a ghost face on the balloon, and fill it with about 1 Tablespoon of baking soda. Fill the water bottle with about half a cup of vinegar. Attach the balloon to the top of the water bottle, lift the balloon so that the baking soda falls into the water bottle, and watch the magic happen!
This activity is a great one for large groups of kids! My son’s second grade class made these fun ghost balloons.
How Do Halloween Ghost Balloons Work?
The two household chemicals, baking soda and vinegar, create carbon dioxide when mixed.
These process photos were taken using a pink balloon for three-year-old Lily. The pink-ness makes it a particularly friendly ghost, I think. :)
Emma used our small camera to capture the entire thing on video:
Which we’ve uploaded to Youtube! Enjoy!
Here are some fun twists on this activity:
- Inflate-a-monster by Artsy Momma
- Magic Jack-O-Lantern by I Can Teach My Child
- Spooky Pop Rocks and Soda Ghostly Hand by Lemon Lime Adventures
More Hands-on Halloween Science Activities for Kids
- Fluffy Zombie Slime by Little Bins for Little Hands
- Discovering a Pumpkin: STEM Investigation by Share it! Science
- Spider Science Activities for Kids by Growing With Science
- Static Electricity Ghosts by The Homeschool Scientist
- Halloween Rock Painting for Kids using Physics by From Engineer to Stay at Home Mom
- Robot Spider Craft by Inspiration Laboratories
- Edible Candy Corn Slime by Teach Beside Me
- Halloween Peeps Candy Ghost Experiment by JDaniel4’s Mom
- Bubbling Pumpkin Experiments by Preschool Powol Packets
Do you have a favorite Halloween science experiment? How about a favorite Halloween activity or craft? Check out this post featuring Halloween Activities for Preschoolers.
MaryAnne lives in Silicon Valley with her Stanford professor husband Mike and their four children. She writes about parenting through education, creativity, and play. Mama Smiles - Joyful Parenting is a space to share crafts, hands on learning activities, and family outings that enrich lives and bring families together.
Kelly at Little Wonders' Days says
Ha! This is a fun Halloween experiment!
maryanne says
I was so excited when I thought of it! :)
Anonymous says
Hey, this is coolllll!!!!!!
Jen says
What a fun project for the kids!
Ticia says
You know for all of the baking soda experiments we’ve done, we’ve never done this one. I should remedy that.
joy h says
What a great experiment! I think we’ll try this next week.
maryanne says
My kids loved it!
Katherine says
Ahahahahahha that is a great variation!
Jenny says
That looks so fun!
Megan @ CoffeeCupsandCrayons says
Coolest ghost experiment ever! I love that I already have all of the supplies so can set it up at a moment’s notice. :)
Two Chicks and a Hen says
We’ve done this experiment, but not in a long time, and *certainly* not as a ghost. My kids are going to love this!
Elisa | blissfulE says
How fun! Great video! :)
momandkiddo says
This is very cute!
Mud Hut Mama says
My girls will love this – will definitely be trying it soon.
Ann says
Wow, it happens really fast! Cool!
Allison says
I love the pink friendly ghost. :)
Susie B. Homemaker says
That looks fun and super easy to do. My oldest is 7 years old and loves doing science experiments so I know she’d enjoy this one. :)
sherri says
This is so awesome!!!
I have to pin this for next Halloween!! :)
maryanne says
It’s super easy and fun!
Carolyn @ Pleasantest Thing says
Adding the ghost idea to the self-inflating balloons is a great idea! Tell your daughter that my favorite is also the pink ghost. ;)
Jessica says
Awesome idea! It’s been a year since we did this experiment (non-ghosty), so it’ll be fun to see J’s excitement for the experiment again and have something new, Halloween related (that’s not messy or sugary). I might steal the idea for a Halloween post. I’ll link back up to you, for sure.
maryanne says
Go for it – glad you liked the idea!
Kendall says
That is awesome! I am going to have to do this with my 3.5 year old!
Carrie says
Oh, how fun!! We should have done this with our ghost crafts the other day! Thank you for sharing at Sharing Saturday!!
Natalie says
Love it – Anna did a very similar experiment in her Mad Science class lately.
Debs says
Clever idea mama! I’m featuring it this week on Tuesday Tots so if you collect featured buttons, you’re welcome to grab one of mine. Thanks so much for linking it up :D
maryanne says
Thank you, Debs! I’ve added your feature button to my “featured on” page :)
Emma @sciencesparks says
These are amazing! :-) and your balloon blowing up worked much better than ours!
Jenny @ The Brick Castle says
Such a brilliant way to make a science experiment more fun – we’ve made so many volcanoes I think everybody is bored of them now, balloons are a top idea :)
MaryAnne says
The balloon was is neat, because it’s so unexpected for kids the first time round, even if they have done dozens of volcanoes!
Mia Wenjen says
LOVE this so much! Will share!
MaryAnne says
Thanks, Mia!
Ticia says
I apparently did not comment the first time around. I agree the pink makes it a particularly friendly ghost.
OneLuckeyWife says
This will be so cool to do for Halloween! I can’t wait.
Natasha says
Fun idea!
Kristen says
How awesome! Pinning so we can try later in October!
Hope says
We aren’t big Halloween people, but my son is strangely obsessed with all the ghosts and skeletons he sees. I see him loving this project!
Karla Cook says
What a neat idea for October. Cute and fun… we won’t tell the children that it’s actually educational!