STEM Activity: Shaving Cream Race

Participants will use problem-solving skills to dissolve blobs of shaving cream as fast as they can!

Materials Needed

• Buckets
• Outdoor table
• Spray bottles
• Orange cones
• Shaving cream
• Water

At-Home Instructions

1. Bring all materials outside and fill buckets up to three-fourths full of water.
2. Divide all children evenly into teams and provide each group with a spray bottle filled with water.
3. Have the children on each team form an orderly, single file line.
4. Provide one bucket for each team. The buckets should be placed at the end of each line, and an orange cone placed at the front.
5. Spray one large blob of shaving cream on the table for each team.
6. Explain to teams that their goal is to try to remove the shaving cream as fast as possible using their spray bottles while standing behind their team’s cone. Give each child an equal amount of time to use the spray bottle before passing it on to another member of their team.

What are we learning?

Shaving cream is classified as a colloid — a mixture where one substance of tiny, dispersed, insoluble particles is suspended throughout another substance. In this activity, when water hits the shaving cream, it throws the mixture out of balance and causes the cream to dissolve. With this activity, students get to experience this phenomenon in action while having fun at the same time!

To add an additional challenge to this activity, split your class into groups and have each invent a device that might help protect the shaving cream from dissolving. Begin by asking each team to brainstorm different ways they can “shield” their shaving cream from the incoming water. Next, have them create different prototype designs to see which invention is the most effective. Encourage your students to combine the most successful ideas from their prototypes to create the best possible solution.

Looking for more STEM activities?

The Shaving Cream Race has been one of our campers’ favorite activities at the Camp Invention® program, and we hope you enjoy bringing the fun home with you this summer! Discover more fun and educational science activities by reading our blog or by visiting our Camp Invention Facebook page.