Holiday Chemistry
Pick a fun science project for the holidays! Prepare a chemistry-related ornament for your own tree or for a classroom “chemis-tree.” Marble paper for gift wrap. Sing a chemistry carol. Decide if you’d like to eat a “variegated disaccharide ‘J’ tube,” and lots more.
- Milk Plastic Ornaments
Ready, set, polymerize! Milk gets moldable with this activity. - Poinsettia Paper Holiday Decorations
Poinsettias lend their pH color changes to these ornaments. - Copper Redox Ornament
Kick off the holidays at the hardware store! Start with iron, finish with a unique copper-plated ornament. - Silvered Test Tube Ornament
Test tubes aren’t just for the lab anymore. Silver the inside with redox, add a ribbon, and decorate. - Borax Snowflake Ornament
Don’t buy your ornaments—grow them yourself instead! All it takes is borax, water, pipe cleaners, and a little time.
- Christmas Bulb Chromatography Ornaments
“Deck the hall with bulbs of color. Fa la la la la la la la la. Made with ink and a solvent water. Fa la la la la la la la la.” - ElementsCubed
Check out the ornaments this Etsy store has sold for inspiration. What does each cube ornament contain? - Crystal Snowflake Ornaments
Forget brewing coffee with those filters—make a beautiful crystal snowflake instead. - Elemental Ornaments
Elements become ornaments! See how these students interpreted the properties of their elements. - Slime Ornaments
Slime on your tree? Yes! Mix up a batch of your favorite oozy goo to put in fillable ornaments. - Shrinky Dink Christmas Ornaments
Start with a bigger idea, then make it mini with shrinking plastic.
- Chemistry Advent Calendar from Compound Interest
2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019
25 chemistry flasks on a Chemist-Tree. 25 days of molecules to get you ready for the holidays. - Lab Equipment Chemis-tree
Ring stands? Utility clamps? Erlenmeyer flasks? Test tubes? No, they’re chemis-tree ornaments! - A Chemical Christmas Tree
Even “grown-up” chemists can get into decorating a chemis-tree. Check out this research center’s trees. - Christmas Tree Elephant Toothpaste
The elephant toothpaste demo goes green—Christmas-tree-green, that is. Color and shape this demo’s foam to look like holiday greenery. - Magic Crystal Christmas Tree
“Grow” a small chemical tree using this variation on the classic charcoal crystal garden. - The Littlest Christmas Tree
Create a tiny Christmas tree with beautiful silver branches—all on a microscope slide. - It's a Christmas Chemistree
This teacher’s tree is a visual reminder of the chemistry his students learn during the year. - What Is Tinsel Made Of?
The long silvery stuff has an even longer history.
- Christmas Tree Periodic Table
118 elements come together to form a colorful Christmas tree. Choose from two versions. - Colour-by-numbers Chemis-tree
Figure out the colors you’ll need to fill in the flasks that decorate this festive tree. - Crystals, Chemistry, and Christmas Trees
A dollar store “grow your own Christmas tree” packet kicked off a round of investigation for this researcher. - Christmas Tree Combustion
Test the flammability of dry vs. fresh needles of a tree such as fir or pine in this holiday experiment. - Sparking a Love for Science
These Christmas trees are going up in flame. But don’t worry—it’s on purpose as high school students learn fire science. - Chemistry Keeps Christmas Trees Alive, for Longer
Fans of real Christmas trees, take note of these tips to keep your tree green through the season. - O Chemistree Competition
Chemists go head to head. Or, tree to tree, in this annual themed competition. - O Chemistree
Thinking of a chemistree this year? Look at these ideas for getting started.
- What's Special About Fudge?
Pssst… Let me tell you a secret. The secret of perfect fudge, that is. Find out the chemistry behind the candy, then make your own. - Candy Glass Icicle Decorations
Make sugar “glass” icicles as a decoration (or as a snack!). - Peppermint Cream Wafers
Add these to your holiday sweets recipe box. Chemistry never tasted so good! - Partial Thermal Degradation of Mixed Saccharides with Protein Inclusions
Partial thermal what?? Translate the recipe and figure out what tasty holiday treat you’ll make. - Construction of Variegated Disaccharide "J" Tubes
Everybody loves a good disaccharide “J” tube, right? Make your own with this recipe—can you guess what it is?
- Unraveling the Chemistry of Christmas Cookies
Crispy? Chewy? Cake-like? Pick your favorite and learn the chemistry it takes to get it. - Unwrapping the Chemistry of Christmas
If you’ve finished your orange, don’t toss the peel just yet. Check out this surprising Christmas table demo. - What Chemicals Will We Be Eating and Drinking This Christmas?
What’s for Christmas dinner? Chemicals! Yum! Learn how chemistry makes your meal delicious. - Have Yourself a Deadly Little Christmas
Christmas goodies can have a sinister side. Take a peek at these past cases of treachery. - Christmas Candy Cane Skittles Science Experiment
One candy cane creates another, going from solids to a swirl of red and green.
- Santa Slime Recipe
Why settle for ordinary slime when you can make holiday slime? Try this recipe. - Case #1225: Case of the Christmas Cookie Mystery
Help out the North Pole Bureau of Investigations by identifying the mixed-up white powders Mrs. Claus needs to bake her sugar cookies. - Poinsettia pH Paper
Tired of plain old pH paper? Make your own (holiday style!) using poinsettia plants. - Crystal Frost Window Paint
Either Jack Frost came to visit, or you’ve found this recipe for window paint. Grab some Epsom salt and get started! - Holiday Chemistry Webinar
Take a whirlwind tour of holiday chemistry activities, along with how they can tie into what you’re teaching/learning.
- Chemistry Carols
You’ve never heard “Jingle Bells” and “Deck the Halls” like this. Ready, set, sing! - "A Chemistry Christmas Carol"
“With apologies to Charles Dickens.” Can you find the names of 86 elements hidden in this story? - Creating Colorful Icicles
Live in an area with cold weather? Use a phase change to create a temporary outdoor sculpture. - A Christmas Lantern Project
Use the chemistry of oxidation to turn an empty soda can into a beautiful lantern. - DIY Holiday Bath Bombs
These bath fizzers will fill your tub with scents of the holidays. Make some for a friend!
- Elemental Facts of Santa
Even Santa loves the periodic table. Use it to help tell the story of that jolly red-suited fellow. - A Christmas Elemental Word Search
Find all the elements in this word search, then discover the “Grinchy quote” made by the leftover letters. - Peppermint Oobleck Science Sensory Play
It’s the usual cornstarch oobleck, but with a twist. What happens if you add peppermint candies? - Winning Christmas Card Image
How do these scientists celebrate the holidays? With a Christmas Card Competition centered on science. - Why the Magic of Christmas Is All Down to Chemistry
C is for candles. H is for holly. R is for… And it’s all about the chemistry behind each one.
- Holiday Gift Ideas 2020
The latest gift giving idea from ACS! - Marbled Gift Wrap | Colorful Lather Printing
Amaze friends and family with this beautiful handmade marbled gift wrap. Then amaze them again by explaining how science makes it work. - Gifts That Keep Giving (If Not Exploding)
Chemistry sets then vs. now. What will you find? - Chemistry: The Perfect Gift for Christmas
Looking for activity ideas? Find out about the handmade gifts these students made at a chemistry event. - Chemistry Gift Guide
More gift ideas! ACS ChemClubs adds new items to this Pinterest board (periodically). - The Best Chemistry Gifts
This collection of gifts probably has some you haven’t seen before and may decide you can’t live without. - Holiday Gift Guide for Scientists
Some fun chemistry gifts here to think about for your online shopping cart.
(all sites accessed November 2020)
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