The volcano

Let’s build a volcano of ideas!

The creative workshop “We build the volcano” is a fun and educational experience for children.
In this workshop, children will have the opportunity to build a volcano using clay, learning the basic techniques to work with this material. Once the volcano is complete, the children will make it erupt with a chemical reaction between vinegar and baking soda.

Necessary materials

• Thick cardboard
• Plastic bottle (with a long neck)
• Modeling clay
• Tempera colors
• Vinegar
• Baking soda
• Red tempera
• A large bowl or plate
• A glass

Performance

1. The base
First, take a piece of beautiful thick cardboard and shape it to form the base of the volcano. You can cut the cardboard into an oval or circular shape to create a realistic terrain.

2. The bottle
Cut the top of the neck of the plastic bottle with scissors. The remaining part of the bottle neck will be the volcano crater.

3. Clay
Take the clay and shape it around the plastic bottle, creating the shape of a mountain that stretches upwards from the crater. The clay should completely cover the plastic bottle. You can add details to the mountain like rocks and crevasses using moldable clay.

4. Colors
Once you have created the shape of the volcano, you can paint it using tempera colors. Choose realistic colors like brown, green and gray for the mountain, and use red tempera for the volcano crater.

5. The lava
In a bowl or a large dish, pour a little vinegar. Add a few drops of red dye to make the vinegar red like lava. In a glass, mix baking soda with a little water.

6. The eruption
Pour the mixture of baking soda and water into the volcano crater. Observe how the chemical reaction between baking soda and vinegar acid causes an explosion of “lava” from the volcano crater.

I look forward to discovering the secrets of the fire mountains together!