Rocket Science suddenly seems a lot simpler at PS/MS 37 – and our after-school students are only getting started!!! Every October, we celebrate Baking Soda Rocket Day through our partnership with Arm and Hammer – one of the most well-known baking soda brands in the world. Baking Soda Rocket Day is a STEM initiative that encourages grade school students to build and launch homemade rockets, creating the perfect opportunity for lessons in physics and chemistry.
The Science Behind the Launch: Baking Soda & Vinegar (And a little creativity!!!)
The basic mechanism behind the rocket is the chemical reaction that occurs when you mix baking soda and vinegar. The mixture produces rapidly expanding carbon dioxide, which, when trapped inside a cork bottle, pops the cork and propels the container upwards. This is the basic mechanism that allows the rocket to launch, and we encourage our students to enclose it inside a personalized vessel! Students build their own rockets from scratch, often reflecting their interests and personalities as a group. The activity is often a lesson in self-expression as well as a science experiment.
Making Big Concepts Approachable for Young Minds
Something as tangible and frankly, fun as a baking soda rocket is a great first introduction to deeper scientific principles. Kids already have a natural curiosity about the world around them – projects like these help to demystify life’s greatest mysteries and make challenging subjects more approachable. If they can launch a rocket in the schoolyard, then maybe next they’ll tackle the next big thing, like calculus or chemistry.
