A series of videos demonstrating various simple, fun practicals and demonstrations that you can use to teach about liquids

Each video shows how to carry out the demonstration and explains the science behind it. You don’t need any specialist equipment – all of the demonstrations use things you can buy in a supermarket.

Heavy sugar demonstration video

Investigate this topic with your learners

Use this demonstration as part of a class investigation on dissolving, density and ‘heavy sugar’, with accompanying classroom slides and teacher notes.

To investigate the amount of sugar in a soft drink by comparing its weight with a diet drink.

Rainbow of colours demonstration video

Separate the inks in felt tip pens with a demonstration of chromatography for primary students.

Racing liquids demonstration video

Investigate this topic with your learners

Use this demonstration as part of a class investigation on viscosity and ‘racing’ liquids, with accompanying classroom slides and teacher notes.

'Race' liquids to investigate their viscosity with primary students.

Lava lamp demonstration video

Investigate this topic with your learners

Use this demonstration as part of a class investigation on liquids, gases and the ‘lava lamp’, with accompanying classroom slides and teacher notes.

Make a lava lamp to explore mixing liquids and more concepts in primary science.

Suspended ice demonstration video

Investigate the different densities of water, oil, and ice with primary students.

Intriguing ice demonstration video

Investigate this topic with your learners

Use this demonstration as part of a class investigation on freezing and ‘intriguing ice’, with accompanying classroom slides and teacher notes.

Freeze different liquids to demonstrate the effects with your primary students.

Particle disco demonstration video

Demonstrate the movement of particles, and Brownian Motion, with this primary science demonstration.

Leaky bottle demonstration video

Investigate this topic with your learners

Use this demonstration as part of a class investigation on air pressure, gases and the ‘leaky bottle’, with accompanying classroom slides and teacher notes.

Investigate gases and atmospheric pressure with the Leaky Bottle experiment.

 

Additional information

From the Catalyst Primary Science series. Presenters: Sue Halliday & Lorelly Wilson.

For more information, you can watch our introduction to the video series. Or you can watch Alan Heaton introduce the background to series, and thank the presenters.

Primary science video demonstrations