Pop Rocks and Soda: An Experiment on Matter

Try this fun science experiment on matter, dissolving pop rocks in a bottle of soda to create a gas to inflate a balloon! 

Experiment questions: 
1. Will a physical or chemical reaction occur if we dissolve pop rocks into soda? 
2. Can we produce a gas by dissolving a solid into a liquid?
3. Can we inflate a balloon with pop rocks and soda?
4. (The old myth) If a human consumes pop rocks and soda, will their stomach truly explode?!

Predict how big the balloon will get when the pop rocks mix with soda. Will it even blow up at all? Draw and label your solid, liquid, and gas.

directions:
1. Pour pop rocks into an empty 9 inch balloon
2. Open your soda (12-16 oz bottle) and attach the balloon (don't let the pop rocks fall in just yet) 
3. Lift up on the balloon and drop all of the pop rocks into the soda. What happened? 

Answer: The balloon doesn't inflate very much. Will you explode if you consume pop rocks and soda? From the results of this experiment- No! So, go on and munch on pop rocks and soda! 

"Mixing Pop Rocks with soda is a physical reaction - not a chemical reaction. Soda dissolves the candy. Most of the carbon dioxide in the balloon came from the soda. Dropping Pop Rocks into soda causes some of the carbon dioxide from the soda to escape. That's the real reason why the balloon inflates." via Steve Spangler