When i saw this experiment in the September 2012 issue of Parents magazine I just couldn’t wait to try it. With just a few modifications it made a perfect and fun learning experience for my kids.
First make a few hard boiled eggs. I used five. Tip: to hard boil eggs easily place eggs in muffin pan in preheated oven at 325 for 25-30 minutes. They will peel much more easily! While the eggs are cooking set up five containers with different liquids. We chose to use water, milk, coffee, iced tea and red wine. When the eggs are done place one in each container and let them soak for eight hours. If you plan on eating the eggs after be sure to put the containers in the fridge.
After eight hours was up we took the eggs out of the liquids and observed the following:
Water: no change
Milk: no change
Coffee: brown
Iced tea: pink
Red Wine: reddish brown
I explained that the shell of each egg was porous, therefore allowing the eggs to absorb the liquid into the shell and change color. My kids shouted “like Easter Eggs!”.
Brush the eggs with a toothbrush. Observe and record any changes.
Educational Connections:
- Critical Thinking: How do the eggs represent our teeth?
- Art: Use natural dyes to dye cloth or eggs.
Cute experiment! Hard boiled eggs in the oven are a great tip. That’s the only way I make them now.