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October 5, 2015

Easy Fall Leaf Science Experiment: Exploring Colors & Chlorophyll with Kids

After exploring and Learning About the Parts of Leaves we decided to learn about leaf color and chlorophyll with an easy science experiment.  I found the idea to extract chlorophyll from leaves on Home Science Tools. I thought that it sounded simple enough we could give it a try with a few modifications.  I am so glad we did because the results are beautiful and it helped my kids see and better understand the role chlorophyll plays with changing leaf colors.
 
You will also enjoy our Leaf Chromatography Experiment. Check it out here.
 
 

Before you start this activity the first thing is to go and enjoy the outdoors and gather up some fall leaves. The kids and I feel so lucky to live close to mountains that are ablaze with the beautiful fall colors–one of my favorite times of the year! We went on a little hike, gathered leaves, and other nature treasures and headed home to be scientists.

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Trees, Leaves & Bark (Take Along Guides)Trees, Leaves & Bark (Take Along Guides)Trees, Leaves & Bark (Take Along Guides)Goodbye Summer, Hello AutumnGoodbye Summer, Hello AutumnGoodbye Summer, Hello AutumnTrees, Leaves, Flowers and Seeds: A Visual Encyclopedia of the Plant Kingdom (Smithsonian)Trees, Leaves, Flowers and Seeds: A Visual Encyclopedia of the Plant Kingdom (Smithsonian)Trees, Leaves, Flowers and Seeds: A Visual Encyclopedia of the Plant Kingdom (Smithsonian)Leaf Wooden Jigsaw Puzzles Educational Learning Stem Toys Boys Girls Birthday Gift Colorful ShapeLeaf Wooden Jigsaw Puzzles Educational Learning Stem Toys Boys Girls Birthday Gift Colorful ShapeLeaf Wooden Jigsaw Puzzles Educational Learning Stem Toys Boys Girls Birthday Gift Colorful ShapeSUPLA Fall Tree of Thanks Craft Kit Felt Fall Tree Board with 52 pcs Detachable Autumn Leaf Ornaments Autumn Bulletin Board for Kids Classroom Craft Thanksgiving ActivitySUPLA Fall Tree of Thanks Craft Kit Felt Fall Tree Board with 52 pcs Detachable Autumn Leaf Ornaments Autumn Bulletin Board for Kids Classroom Craft Thanksgiving ActivitySUPLA Fall Tree of Thanks Craft Kit Felt Fall Tree Board with 52 pcs Detachable Autumn Leaf Ornaments Autumn Bulletin Board for Kids Classroom Craft Thanksgiving ActivityWooden leaf fall Lacing Toy Game set Learning toy Threading setWooden leaf fall Lacing Toy Game set Learning toy Threading setWooden leaf fall Lacing Toy Game set Learning toy Threading set

Fall Leaf Science Experiment

Pin me please! 🙂
You can watch our experiment here:
 
Supplies:
Pot of boiling water (adults only)
Rubbing alcohol
Small containers with lids (I used our empty Wilton Test Tube Sprinkle Set-affiliatie link)
Different colored leaves  (We used a green, green & red, yellow, and brown leaves)
Tongs (adults only)
 
Directions:
1.  Place leaves in a boiling pot of water for 5 minutes. While they are boiling, fill up small containers with rubbing alcohol.
2.  When the five minutes are up, use the tongs to remove the leaves and place each one in the rubbing alcohol making sure to sort by color if you are using multiple leaves.

3.  Observe what color the alcohol is. Come back throughout the day and check to see if the alcohol has changed color. We let our experiment sit overnight and in the morning the colors were even darker but the second night resulted in no change.

4.  Discuss experiment and compare differences between the containers. We recently continued our learning with a STEAM Coffee Filter Art Activity to make Fall Leaves that would be a perfect addition to this activity.

 
Pin me please! 🙂

See More: Science Activities Here

See More: Fall Activities Here

 
With this easy science experiment children can see the different pigments found in leaves to help answer the question, "Why do leaves change color?" This activity includes a free printable leaf color chart. (#kidsactivity #science #scienceexperiment #Fall #homeschool)

Leaf Chromatography Experiment

Autumn Leaves STEAM Absorption Art for Kids to Enjoy this Fall: Kids can watch coffee filters magically change colors as they learn about leaves (Preschool, Kindergarten, First grade, Botany, Kids Craft)

STEAM Leaf Art

Fall Tree Crafts

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Filed Under: Fall, Learn, Science, Science Experiment, Video 9 Comments

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Comments

  1. Emma @ P is for Preschooler says

    October 6, 2015 at 1:11 pm

    What a fun idea! I love the hands-on way of exploring the color of fall leaves! #ThoughtfulSpot

    Reply
    • Katie says

      October 6, 2015 at 2:11 pm

      Hi Emma, Thanks so much! My kiddos definitely thought watching the experiment magically change during the day was fun.

      Reply
  2. kewkew says

    October 13, 2015 at 12:10 pm

    This is such a great way to learn about leaves. If I can find some containers, we may just have to do this, even though we finished our leaf unit already. I will be sharing your post with my My Fat'er'hs World Kindergarten group on Facebook , because I am sure there are some moms there that still have to do the leaf unit., and would love to do this.
    Thank you for stopping by and sharing with Littles Learning Link Up. I hope you can stop by again this week. Have a great day!

    Reply
  3. Renee @mendedandblended.com says

    October 13, 2015 at 1:02 pm

    This is a great idea. I have a high-schooler doing Biology dealing with plants, and I have a fourth grader who watches the Biology videos with his sister. This would be great to do along with what we are already doing now! Thanks for the idea!

    Reply
  4. Marie Mack says

    October 13, 2015 at 3:02 pm

    What a great idea! I can't wait for the leaves to start turning here. 🙂 Thank you so much for linking up at the Learn & Play Link Up. Your post is featured this week on Christian Montessori Network!

    Reply
  5. Kristen says

    September 29, 2016 at 4:22 pm

    This looks really cool. My son is only 3 so may do this multiple time as he gets older but I know the color changing aspect of the experiment will be most appreciated by him.

    Reply
    • Katie says

      October 1, 2016 at 1:32 am

      Hi Kristen, Thanks so much! I totally agree, it’s great for any age!

      Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Creative Crafts With Fall Leaves For Kids says:
    August 17, 2016 at 8:49 am

    […] Exploring Colors and Chlorophyll With Kids […]

    Reply
  2. Fall Leaves | Science in Storytime says:
    October 5, 2016 at 10:18 am

    […] A favorite October storytime theme is fall and leaves. This week I started my storytime by sharing a leaf identification guide that showed a few different leaves. You can download it here: http://www.imom.com/printable/leaf-identification-game/#.V_QXq6Knyso […]

    Reply

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