Lesson Plan 17
DIY Lava Lamp
Brief description
Students make a simple yet spectacular lava lamp using coloured water,
vegetable oil and a soluble aspirin tablet. They write an instruction manual
with diagrams and a scientific explanation of the observed effect. This activity
is a big hit with kids and adults alike and will impress at dinner parties,
barbecues and staff meetings too!
Duration:
45 - 70 minutes
Year level:
Lower to upper primary
Topics:
Natural and Processed Materials, Energy and Change
Preparation:
5 to 15 minutes
Extensions:
Write a report for the school newsletter / Make an instructional video
for the DIY Lava Lamp / Investigate the invention and history of the
Lava Lamp
Overview
Whole class
Introduce and discuss lesson
(10 – 15 min)
Small Groups
Make and observe DIY Lava Lamps
(15 – 20 min)
In small groups, students make and carefully observe a lava lamp.
You may wish to photograph and video the procedure for the
school newsletter or website – this activity is a big hit with
parents!
Return vegetable oil to the bottle.
Whole class
Class discussion
(5 – 15 min)
Discuss the activity and any extension activities.
Individual
Write a DIY Lava Lamp Instruction Manual
(15 – 20 min)
Students write and illustrate an instruction manual providing a
scientific explanation of the theory of operation.
Lesson Plan 17 – DIY Lava Lamp | Page 1
2008 | ABC Science Online
Materials and equipment
Total Quantity
Description
2 litres
Vegetable oil (200ml – 300ml per group)
1 litre
Water (50ml – 100ml per group)
1
Set of four food colours (to share between groups)
6
Tall drinking glasses (1 per group)
18
Soluble aspirin tablets (3 per group)
1 roll
Paper towel (for spills)
1
Turkey baster (for returning oil to bottle)
1
Bucket (to collect waste water and oil)
Preparation
Purchase vegetable oil, soluble aspirin and food colours from supermarket.
Collect turkey baster, bucket and sufficient glasses for each group.
Objectives
Students’ prior knowledge
No prior knowledge is required or assumed for this lesson plan. The
objectives listed below are suggestions only and may not be appropriate for
every year level.
Science skills
Students will:
• Predict whether oil and water will mix in a glass
• Predict and carefully observe how a drop of food colour
behaves in vegetable oil and water
• Predict and observe how a soluble aspirin tablet behaves
in vegetable oil and water
• Compare their predictions with observations
• Record their observations
Lesson Plan 17 – DIY Lava Lamp | Page 2
2008 | ABC Science Online
Science concepts
• Vegetable oil and water do not mix – substances which do
not dissolve in each other are immiscible
• Vegetable oil floats on water because it is less dense
• Aspirin (acetyl salicylic acid) is a mild acid
• Soluble aspirin tablets also contain a mild base which
reacts with the acidic aspirin when dissolved together in
water to form bubbles of carbon dioxide gas
• The chemicals in soluble aspirin tablets do not dissolve
in, and therefore do not react in, vegetable oil
Positive attitudes
Students will
• Work cooperatively with partners/group members
• Handle all equipment and water carefully and responsibly
• Dispose of waste responsibly (eg pour waste water and oil
onto plants or garden beds instead of down the sink)
Procedure
Discuss lesson – Whole Class (10–15 min)
NOTE: a student worksheet is not provided for this activity because writing
the instructions is a key component of the lesson.
• OPTIONAL: If you or any of your students own a lava lamp, bring it to the class
and discuss how it works (the light bulb heats the waxy substance which
causes it to expand and become buoyant so that it floats – after sufficient
cooling, the waxy substance shrinks and becomes less buoyant again so that
it sinks – the process repeats as long as the lamp is on)
• Write a basic outline of the procedure on the whiteboard and discuss each
step
NOTE: younger students may need supervision or assistance when adding the
water and oil to the glass – if so, groups can prepare materials and await your
assistance for each step
Lesson Plan 17 – DIY Lava Lamp | Page 3
2008 | ABC Science Online
• Ask students to predict what will happen at each step ie:
will the oil and water mix?
how will a drop of food colour behave in oil?
will the soluble aspirin tablet float or sink in the oil and how else might it
behave?
• Assign group jobs and distribute materials required
Make and observe DIY Lava Lamps – Small Groups (15–20 min)
• Equipment Manager collects materials required for activity from science store
• Group members cooperate to make a Lava Lamp – each group member should
have a turn at adding one of the ingredients to glass:
y ¼ fill glass with water
y carefully add vegetable oil until glass is near full
y add two or three drops of food colouring and observe
y add soluble aspirin tablet and observe
y discuss ideas about how the lava lamp works
NOTE: a whole class discussion about the theory of operation may assist groups to
formulate and articulate their ideas at this point
y repeat, observe and revise ideas
• All group members cooperate to clean up
• Equipment manager returns equipment to science store
NOTE: You may want to delay clean up so that early finishers can repeat the
experiment
Discussion – Whole Class (5 – 10 min)
• Discuss the activity and observations
• Discuss how to approach writing and illustration of instruction guide –
students could design a one page illustrated instruction sheet or poster.
Students could also take photographs for their instructions or make a video
presentation (eg for the class BLOG on the school’s website)
Individual – Whole Class (20 – 30 min)
• Students write and draw instructions in the format discussed above – they can
complete their instructions as a homework task if they run out of time
Lesson Plan 17 – DIY Lava Lamp | Page 4
2008 | ABC Science Online
Teacher’s notes
How to make a DIY Lava Lamp
1. Quarter fill a tall glass with coloured water –
alternatively, use clear water at this stage and add a
few drops of food colour after the oil is added.
2.
Holdoil
thetoglass
at an until
angleitand
gentlyfull.
topIfup
the
2. Add
the glass
is nearly
adding
glass with oil
the drop of food colour now, it will sink through the
oil without dissolving. It may take up to a minute for
the drop to burst through the oil/water interface.
3. Add a soluble aspirin (or any other soluble tablet)
and observe what happens.
4. The aspirin does not begin to dissolve until it breaks
through and into the water.
5. The bubbles of carbon dioxide in the water make
buoyant blobs which float in vegetable oil. When the
blobs reach the surface, the bubbles pop so the
blobs of water become less buoyant and sink again.
6. After removing the top layer, use a turkey baster to
return the remaining oil to the bottle for re-use.
Lesson Plan 17 – DIY Lava Lamp | Page 5
2008 | ABC Science Online