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Simple science activity making Olympic Ring crystals

July 13, 2016 by Kate 9 Comments

Here is an activity your children will love to do in the lead up to or during the Summer Olympic Games. It’s a simple science activity making Olympic ring crystals! It’s very easy to do and your child will be able to observe crystals growing within the hour. 
Simple science activity making Olympic Ring crystals

I’m sure you’ll agree that these crystals are absolutely gorgeous and it’s hard to believe that they can be so easily grown in your home or classroom. This approach to growing crystals does use Borax, which you can ready more about here. Of course you don’t have to make Olympic Rings like we did, you can make whatever shape or word you like using the pipe cleaners.

I decided making crystals was a fun and unique way to talk about the Olympic Rings with Possum (aged 4.5 years) and use this scientific approach to sharing with her why they are so significant to the games. 

Screen Shot 2016-07-09 at 3.14.24 PM

Recommended age for this activity: 5 years + 
(Strict and active supervision is required at all times)

making crystals using borax with kids

Simple science activity making Olympic Ring crystals

To make crystal Olympic Rings you will need – 

  • Boiling water
  • Borax
  • Jar or container
  • Coloured pipe cleaners in Olympic colours
  • String
  • Stick 

Begin by cutting your pipe cleaners in half and moulding them into a circular ring shape. You might choose to link them together (as I did at the end of this post) or make them as individual rings, which I found created larger crystals and was a whole lot easier to do. 

What is important to know about the Olympic rings 

There is lots of wonderful facts about the Olympic Rings that you might like to share with your child and you are the best judge to know which ones they are going to be able to understand and appreciate the most. For young children it might just be to learn that there are Olympic Rings and to show them a picture of what they look like. Here are some more things your child mind find interesting – 

  • 5 interlocking rings
  • Each ring represents the five continents 
  • Colours are blue, yellow, black, green and red. White boackground
  • Uses colours appear on all the flags of the nations that compete in the Olympic Games
  • Designed in 1912 by Baron Pierre de Coubertin, co-founder of the modern Olympic Games

crystal making

Setting up the science activity

I didn’t have any string so I had to be flexible and use….okay, so they are bread ties, but it worked just as well – hahaha. I tied it to the pipe cleaner ring and a paddle pop lolly stick so it hung down into the jar, as you can see above.

Making the solution to grow crystals

I then added 2 cups of boiling water with 1/2 cup of borax powder and stirred it very, very well before adding it to the jars with my hanging pipe cleaners inside. It’s very important that you make sure the pipe cleaner is completely submerged as any parts of the pipe clean not in the solution will not grow crystals. If you don’t have enough liquid to submerge the pipe cleaner then make up the solution again with the same ratio. Topping it up with water will dilute the solution and not create solis crystals.
Olympic Rings in colour crystals

Our crystals began growing within the hour, which made it wonderfully exciting for my girls to observe. For those children who are interested in the science behind how the crystals grow, here is a great description.

Tip

I did remove them after 48 hours and did find that some of them grew so large and had so many crystals on them they were a little hard to pass through the jar opening. It’s a great idea to keep the size of your Olympic Ring small enough so that, once it does have crystals on it, you will be able to remove it. 

large olympic rings

Interlocking Olympic Rings

One of the features of the Olympic rings is the fact that they interlock together, which signifies the 5 continents around the world; Blue (Europe), Black (Africa), Red (America), Yellow (Asia) and Green (Australia/Oceania). I did initially attempt to grow crystals with the pipe cleaners joined together, much like the Olympic Games rings, but it wasn’t as successful. 

The rings, as the crystals grew on the interlocked pipe cleaners, became too heavy and lost their shape, but it was worth a try. 

Crystal science Olympic Rings




 

The Olympic Games is only a few days away and it’s exciting to be able to share with my children some of the key features of the games, such as the Olympic rings. Already I have Possum pointing them out when she spots them on advertisements around our local shops or on the television. Don’t forget to make your own Olympic torch too! 

Are you excited about the Olympic Games too? 

 
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Filed Under: 5 - 10 years, Science, Special Events Tagged With: colours, crystals, Olympic Games, science

Comments

  1. Desire Levenson says

    July 14, 2016 at 12:46 am

    I love love love your ideas. I am the owner of a small playgroup in Johannesburg , South Africa and I have had fun using some of your practical and inexpensive craft ideas.

    Well done!! And thank you.

    Reply
    • Kate says

      July 14, 2016 at 1:51 pm

      Oh Desire, I adore you! Thank you so kindly for your beautiful words. I really appreciate it. Sending you lots of love all the way from Australia. Thank you for your support. X

      Reply
  2. Danya says

    August 2, 2016 at 7:01 pm

    Love this! Your crystals are beautiful!

    Reply
    • Kate says

      August 4, 2016 at 11:30 pm

      Thanks Danya. They turned out quite well. 🙂

      Reply
  3. Alyse Reichardt says

    July 30, 2020 at 11:44 pm

    any sub for borax ?

    Reply
    • Kate says

      August 25, 2020 at 10:42 am

      Hi Alyse. My daughter is currently doing the same experiment but just with warm water and fine table salt. It’s not exactly the same type of crystals, but it’s a close enough effort for when you’re wanting to replace the borax. 🙂 Hope that’s helpful.

      Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Olympics Craft and Activity Ideas for Kids | The Organised Housewife says:
    August 3, 2016 at 5:00 am

    […] OLYMPIC RINGS CRYSTALS – Here is an activity your children will love to do in the lead up to or during the Summer Olympic Games. It’s a simple science activity making Olympic ring crystals! It’s very easy to do and your child will be able to observe crystals growing within the hour. Tutorial available at Laughing Kids Learn. […]

    Reply
  2. 10 Olympics Crafts and Activities for Kids - Learning Liftoff says:
    February 15, 2018 at 3:50 am

    […] create your own. You can stamp, bend, or cut your rings, or make a science experiment out of it by growing crystals on […]

    Reply
  3. 35 Creative Olympic Games and Activities for Students - Teaching Expertise says:
    June 21, 2022 at 7:40 pm

    […] Learn More: Laughing Kids Learn […]

    Reply

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Hello and welcome!
My name is Kate and I am a mum to two little girls, Possum and Boo. We have lots of fun together learning with play at home and are pleased to share some of what we do with you.
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