Creepy Silly Putty

Borax is available in laundry detergent aisles of grocery stores.CopyrightCopyright 2011 Denise W. Carlson, College of Engineering, University of Colorado Boulder

Each group needs:

• 2 plastic containers, for mixing water and glue, and water and borax powder (such as GladWare tall square or deep dish plastic containers, ~ 6 x 11 x 5-in and 6 x 9 x 7-in [L x W x H]; no lids needed)
• 3 disposable spoons
• 3 plastic bags that seal (such as Ziploc sandwich bags)
• 2 ounce (1/4 cup) measuring cup for fluids ($1 at Dollar stores)
• 12-inch or longer ruler
• stopwatch ($3)
• white school glue, 6 ounces
• marker, to label plastic bags
• soap and water, for cleaning containers and hands
• access to computer with Microsoft Excel or similar spreadsheet and graphing application
• Creepy Silly Putty Data Analysis Worksheet (PDF), one per student

To share with the entire class:

• borax, 76-ounce box (aka sodium borate; available at grocery stores)
• 1 set of measuring spoons for solids ($1 at Dollar stores)
• (optional) computer and projector to show the Making Silly Putty Instructions (PPTX) and Creepy Silly Putty Experiment Instructions (PPTX) PowerPoint files