Science Experiment: Frost Plate

I borrowed this book from the library (image comes from Amazon.com):

It's a really neat book, with an art experiment on every page. I'm in love (may have to invest in it). So, yesterday we decided to do an experiment.

The Experiment: Frost Plate.

Materials:

Petroleum Jelly

Clear Glass Pie Plate

Freezer

Directions:

1. Smear Petroleum Jelly onto Pie Plate

2. Draw a design on the plate with your fingers

3. Wash Hands

4. Put the pie plate in the freezer for 2 hours

5. Remove the plate and look at the frost designs

"When the petroleum jelly is placed in the freezer, water vapor in the freezer FREEZES and crystallizes on the jelly where it is easily seen in the drawing."

So... I got both the kids a glass something (I only had one pie plate), and I put a smearing of petroleum jelly in them. Then I put both girls in "paint dresses" and told them to draw a picture.

They weren't to sure about the petroleum jelly and in the end, I ended up just writing their initials into the jelly for them. (silly girls)

Then I stuck the plates in the deep freeze. This may have been a mistake. Perhaps you need to put them in a typical, run of the mill, freezer. I wonder this because, though I did see ice crystals in Melanie's "M", I never saw any in Noelle's "N"... and they weren't all too noticeable. This is something a 3 year old is suppose to notice, and I felt like I needed a magnifying glass to see them.

But Melanie still thought it was fun...

And that is all that matters!