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Science Experiments
Rainbow Flowers
You can make a bunch of colored flowers. Ask your mom or dad to help you. This will be messy, so be sure to do it in the kitchen on old newspaper.

YOU WILL NEED

• Glass of water
• White flower or flowers
• Scissors
• Measuring spoon
• Food coloring

HERE'S HOW

1. Pour a half glass of water. Add two tablespoons (30 milliliters) of food coloring to the water.

2. Cut the stem short and stand a flower in the glass.

3. Wait one day. The flower changes color! Try this with different colors.

HOW DOES IT WORK?

The water and the coloring move up the flower's stem to the leaves. All plants drink water. This is called osmosis (oz-MO-sis).

 Photograph shows a white carnation in a glass of blue water. The edges of the petals are turning dark blue
Photograph shows a hand holding a bottle of food color over a glass of water. Drops of food color are spreading in the water.
Photograph shows a white carnation in a glass of dark blue water.
Photograph shows a white flower whose outside edges are turning a dark blue. The rest of the flower is white.
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PARENT TIP: SCIENCE
Promote scientific thinking: Have your child try this experiment using different colors of carnations. What happens? What happens if two food colors are added to the water? Have your child try a combination of red and blue; blue and yellow; experiment with different kinds of flowers.
Photographs by Jonathan Halling (glass); Stockdisc/Picturequest (flower)
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