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Elephant Toothpaste

Have you seen this around? Elephant toothpaste. I know Austin thought I had finally lost my mind when I told her what we were making. Then she asked where the elephant was, looking around our small back yard. You know, because I could easily hide an elephant. This is just one of our favorite activities.

Elephant Toothpaste

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I’m so glad I had everything laid out ahead of time and know what to do without thinking about it. A preschooler and a toddler, a plastic bottle, and bowls of things are just too temping.

Brookland couldn’t keep her hands off the plastic bottles and Austin was ready and eager to start mixing.

I’m not entirely sure why this is called elephant toothpaste. When I think toothpaste I think thick, something with substance, not fluffy bubbles. But considering there is nothing to give it that substance I don’t know why I was thinking that there was.

I {kind of} had everything on hand for making this. We ended up using brewers yeast as I forgot to pick up some baking yeast, besides the smell difference I don’t see how it could have made a difference.

How to make Elephant Toothpaste

Mix the yeast with the water in a small bowl, give it a stir and wait a few minutes for the reaction.

Elephant Toothpaste

You might want to have a pan with higher sides, a cookie sheet might not be high enough.

While you are waiting on the yeast, pour the peroxide into the bottle, add some food color and the dish soap.

Get ready and add the yeast. We made a mess before we even got to adding the yeast to the bottle, but once we got it there watch out. One second nothing.

Elephant Toothpaste

One second bubbles sliding ever so quickly out and down the side of the bottle.

The kids didn’t know what to make of it at first. They wanted to touch it, but didn’t dare.

Elephant Toothpaste

Elephant Toothpaste

Active Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 5 minutes
Difficulty: Easy

Make simple ingredients flow out of the top of a bottle in a thick toothpaste like foam.

Materials

  • 1 tsp yeast
  • 2 tbsp warm water
  • 1/2 cup peroxide
  • food color
  • squirt of dish soap

Tools

  • a small bottle
  • a pan to set the experiment on to catch the mess

Instructions

    1. Mix the yeast with the water in a small bowl, give it a stir and wait a few minutes for the reaction.
    2. You might want to have a pan with higher sides, a cookie sheet might not be high enough.
    3. While you are waiting on the yeast, pour the peroxide into the bottle, add some food color and the dish soap.
    4. Get ready and add the yeast. We made a mess before we even got to adding the yeast to the bottle, but once we got it there watch out.
    5. One second nothing. One second bubbles sliding ever so quickly out and down the side of the bottle.

*photos have been updated

If you and your kids really liked this science experiment make sure to check some others that we’ve done and enjoyed, you can find them on my Kids Activity page.

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