REACT
A Coke and Mentos experiment
REACT KIT
REACT is an explosive bottle of fun!! This kit includes the materials to try out the famed Mentos/Diet Coke fizzing reaction.
Go ahead and take your class outside for this one! Once your students see the Mentos drop in the Diet Coke, they are sure to get a thrill from watching the Coke fizz up rapidly causing a huge geyser spewing up to ~30 feet in the air!
So what’s the lesson in all this? Experimental variables! How does the number of Mentos used affect the height of the geyser? What happens when we change the nozzle shape? Test out some of these variables and see what their effects are!
Provided Materials
- 5 Two-Liter Diet Coke’s
- 1 Two-Liter Regular Coke
- 1 Two-Liter Sprite
- 1 Roll Mentos (14 Count)
- 1 Garbage Bag
- 3 Plastic Ponchos (2 Kids, 1 Adult)
- 3 Pairs of Safety Glasses (2 Kids, 1 Adult)
- Sanitizing Wipes (For the safety glasses)
- 1 Tape Measure (5ft)
- 1 Altitude Finder
- 1 Steve Spanger Science “Extreme Geyser Tube” Kit
What you NEED to Provide
- A pen/pencil
- At least one worksheet or spare paper to write on
- A notebook/clipboard
- Phone or Camera to take pictures
- Phone or Calculator to calculate plume height (4-function calculators are fine)
What you CAN provide
NOT REQUIRED!!!!!
- Tums (to compare it against Mentos)
- Extra Soda, Mentos, or Tums/Alka-Seltzer to try more experiments
- Any resources listed on this page below
RampUp Kit Resources
REACT Kit Guide
Teacher Curated Lesson Plans
All Lesson Plans
What’s the Cause? Learning about Cause and Effect (Grades K-1)
What a Reaction! Classifying States of Matter Using a Coke and Mentos Experiment (Grade 2)
Experimenting with Variables Using a Coke and Mentos Activity (Grade 3) Adapted from a Lesson Plan by Ms. Erin from Julian Harris Elementary School
Physical or Chemical? Identifying Reactions with a Coke and Mentos Experiment (Grades 3-5) Adapted from a Lesson Plan Ms. Heather from Leon Sheffield Magnet School
What's the Cause? (Grades K-1)
What’s the Cause? Learning about Cause and Effect (Grades K-1) Anonymous Author
Digital Materials:
Books
- If You Give a Mouse a Cookie by Laura Numeroff | Read Aloud Video
Videos
Handouts
Games
What a Reaction! (Grade 2)
What a Reaction! Classifying States of Matter Using a Coke and Mentos Experiment (Grade 2) Anonomous Author
Digital Materials:
Videos
Experimenting with Variables (Grade 3)
Experimenting with Variables Using a Coke and Mentos Activity (Grade 3) Adapted from a Lesson Plan by Ms. Erin from Julian Harris Elementary School
Digital Materials:
Videos
Physical or Chemical? (Grades 3-5)
Physical or Chemical? Identifying Reactions with a Coke and Mentos Experiment (Grades 3-5) Adapted from a Lesson Plan Ms. Heather from Leon Sheffield Magnet School
Digital Materials:
Videos
Handouts
Supplementary Materials
Hands On Activities
Handouts
Books
NOTE: The following books have not been pre-screened.
Grades PK-3:
- “Every Day, Chemistry”
- “Pete the Cat and the Supercool Science Fair”
- “Perkin’s Perfect Purple: How a Boy Created Color with Chemistry”
- “The Princess and the Petri Dish”
- “The Mystery of the Monarchs”
- “Mad Margaret Experiments with the Scientific Method (In the Science Lab)”
- “11 Experiments that Failed”
- “If You Give a Mouse a Cookie”
Grades K-3:
Grades 1-4:
Grades 2-4:
Grades 2-5:
- “Incredible Experiments with Chemical Reactions and Mixtures”
- “Chemical Reactions!: With 25 Science Projects for Kids (Explore Your World)”
- “How Do Molecules Stay Together?: A Book About Chemistry”
Grades 4-6:
Grades 5-6:
Videos
Book Readthroughs:
Grades PK-3
- Every Day, Chemistry by Julia Sooy (~5 minutes)
- Pete the Cat and the Supercool Science Fair by Kimberly and James Dean (~4 minutes)
- Cece Loves Science! (~10 minutes) – Learn about the Scientific Method with a young girl named Cece!
Grades K-1
- If You Give a Mouse a Cookie by Laura Numeroff (~3 minutes)
Other Videos:
- Science Max: Chemical Reactions (~12 minutes)
- Fizzy Soda Experiment! (~4 minutes)
- What are Chemical Reactions? (~9 minutes)
- The Great Elephant Toothpaste Experiment! (~6 minutes)
- Scientific Method BrainPOP Jr. (~4 minutes)
- Cause and Effect for Kids (~6 minutes)
- Cause and Effect Lesson (~7 minutes)
- States of Matter for Kids – What are the states of Matter? Solid, Liquid and Gas (~3 minutes)
- Yes, Putting Mentos into Any Soda Can Make it Explode (~3 minutes)
- Verify: The Science Behind Why Mentos Makes Soda Explode (~1 minute)
- Coke and Mentos Science Experiment For Kids | Science experiments for kids | Sema’s Lab | Super Sema (~2 minutes)
- Physical and Chemical Changes – BrainPOP Jr. (~5 minutes)
Educational Sites
RAMP UP is supported by the Missile Defence Agency. All materials are free.