EASY Static Electricity Balloon Experiment

Everyone knows that rubbing a balloon on your hair or on the carpet will create a static electricity charge, but how can you show kids that it is actually there? Kids may have a hard time understanding something that they can’t see. Although we used a red balloon and valentines day glitter to make this static electricity balloon experiment a valentines day science experiment, this static balloon experiment can be used any time. This is such a fun Valentines Day activity for toddler, preschool, pre-k, kindergarten, first grade, 2nd grade, and 3rd grade students too. 

Static electricity balloon experiment

This Valentine’s Day Balloon Experiment is the perfect way to help children understand and visualize static electricity. You’ve probably tried use the static charge on a balloon to make your hair stand up, but now with this static electricity balloon experiment you can SHOW kids static electricity a different way. This simple Valentine’s Day science is perfect for toddlers, preschoolers, kindergartners, grade 1, grade 2, and grade 3 students too. Whether you use this as a valentines day theme idea or at some other time as an easy science project for kids, this is sure to be a hit. 

Whether you are a parent, teacher, or homeschooler you will love this Valentine science experiments with kids at home or in the classroom.

Plus don’t miss love potion science experiment, easy valentine balloon experiment, and cute valentine activity

Valentines Science Experiments

To set up this Valentine’s Day Balloon Experiment, you only need two simple materials that you probably already have on hand. Plus it is such a super simple procedure it is a snap to prep! Grab the following materials:

• A Balloon
• Glitter, we used two colors

Valentines Day Activity

Set this up first by blowing up the balloon. We chose pink, because the store didn’t have red and we were doing this with a Valentine’s Day theme. Any color of balloon will suffice, though.

Pour glitter on a surface. We chose a paper plate for easy clean up, but anything will work.  You can use any glitter you have on hand; we used two different colors of glitter to see if the weight of the glitter made a difference. The red pieces were a bit thicker and chunkier than the silver, which was a fine grain of glitter.

Valentines Day Science

Rub the balloon on your hair or on the carpet. We did both and they worked about the same.

Once there is static on the balloon, put it near the glitter. At first, don’t touch the balloon to the glitter. You will see the glitter literally jump to the balloon from the plate. It was the coolest thing. When the static started to decrease, we put the balloon closer to the plate and eventually touched the balloon to the glitter. In all levels, the glitter connected with the balloon. It was as if we literally painted glitter onto the balloon.

When we were done, I asked my daughter to tap the balloon to see what happened. It disrupted the electric charge and the glitter fell. That was a mess I wasn’t necessarily prepared to clean up, but I should have known. It wasn’t that bad, honestly.

Valentines day activity for kindergarten

This activity is the perfect way to harness the static electricity into one place that will turn the electricity, that is normally not seen, into a visual example.

Although kids learn best through exploring cause and effect and making observations at this age, try having them walk through the scientific method for kids as you perform the kindergarten science experiment. So what happened, rubbing the balloon onto your hair or floor adds electrons to the balloon and causes the balloon to become negatively charged. Opposite charges attract so the glitter will be attracted to the charged balloon.

Valentines Day Activities for Kindergartners

• Practice counting to 20 and tracing numbers as you prepare the mail in this Valentines Day Math
• Count and Trace Valentines Day Worksheets with conversation hearts
• Cute Find the Letter Valentine’s Day Worksheets with alphabet candy in the cookie jars
• Valentine’s Day ABC Hole PunchingActivity – kids will strengthen hand muscles while working on letter recognition
• Pencil Valentine Printable – super cute free printable “looking sharp” Valentine for kids
• Valentines Day I Spy Printable – this is a fun valentiens day activity that also works on counting and visual discrimination at the same time
• Color by Hundreds Chart Valentines Day Worksheets
• Valentine sight word coloring pages – kids will have fun reading and gaining fluency with key sight words while revealing these mystery pictures
• Rhyming Valentines cut and paste printables – these heart workshets are a fun way for kids to practice identifying rhyming words
• Sneak in some fun writing practice with these Febraury Writing Prompts Calendar
• Valentines Day Math Clip Cards – practice counting numbers 11-20 with these cute, low prep clip cards
• Our kids favorite tradition! Print out these Valentines Day Printables and leave love notes for each other to read on February 14th!
• Valentiens Day Symmetry for Kids – kids will have fun learning about symmetry with these drawing prompts.
• ABC Valentines Day Worksheets – kids will have fun learning new vocabulary and practicing tracing upper and lowercase letters as they make their very own alphabet book.
• Valentines Day Color by Odd and Even Numbers Worksheets
• Color by Hundreds Chart Happy valentine’s day mouse activities

• Valentine’s Day Math Craft – students will have fun practicing addition and subtraction within 10 while making this super cute cut and paste math craft
• Valentines Day Color by Number – students will reveal hidden pictures as they color by number and work on number recognition
• Snap Cube Valentines Day Worksheets  – with two levels of difficulty these cards help kids practice using logic and spatial reasoning
• Dancing Hearts Science Experiment is a fun and simple science experiment that will delight kids of all ages!
• Roses are Red Poem Rhyming Puzzles – Valentines rhymes for kids
• Valentines Alphabet Activity – students will have fun getting valentines ready to “mail” while matching upper and lowercase letters while working on phonemic awareness and beginning sounds.
• Super cute Valentines Day Activity sorting mail by parts of speach!
• Practice spelling with this fun, engaging and FREE Printable Valentine’s Day Spelling Activity
• A-Z Valentine’s Day Worksheets  is fun for kids to practice making capital letters using conversation hearts!
• Free Valentine’s day math worksheets – kindergartners will have fun practicing numbers to 100 while they reveal hidden images with these Valentines Day coloring pages
• CVC Words Valentines Day Worksheets– students will have fun practicing the sounds letters make while building CVC words with alphabet conversation hearts
• Chocolate Shape Valentine Playdough Mats – kids will have fun practicing forming shapes with these chocolate shape playdough mats.
• Lock and Key valentine matching game printable – kids will have fun working on color recognition with this fun, Valentine’s Day matching game
• Alphabet Valentines Day Worksheets – with a free printable alphabet worksheet for each letter from A to Z, help kids work on letter recognition while decorating these heart cookies
• Practice a variety of math and literacy skills with these Free Valentine’s Day Worksheets!

• Love Potion – Valentines Day Science
• Tic-Tac-Toe Printable Valentine Cards
• Conversation Heart Ooblek – FUN Valentines Day Activity for Kids
• Salt Painting Valentines Day Activity
• EASY Skittles Valentines Day Science Activities
• Happy Slime-tines – Free Printable Valentines Day Cards
• EASY Static Electricity Balloon Experiment
• Practice shapes with this hands-on Valentines Day STEM Activities
• Fizzy Heart Science Project – Valentines Day Activities for Kids
• Add some Valentines Day Science with this super cool and EASY Dancing Hearts Experiment
• Try these FUN Valentine Science Experiments for kids of all ages
• Salt crystal hearts Science Experiment perfect for February

• Plus don’t miss these fun Valentines Books to cuddle up and read this February
• Heart Fish Craft for Valentines Day – kids will have fun cutting and pasting lots of hearts to make this adorable fish craft
• Fingerprint Hearth Tree Valentines Day Craft is super cute and such a precious keepsake craft
• Bear treat cup Valentines Day Craft  is cute and practical too
• Red Hot Valentines Slime is so pretty and fun to play with!
• Try this EASY Chocolate playdough recipe to make your creations look like valentines day candy!
• Beautiful Valentines Art Projects – Matisse Style heart craft for kids
• Super cute Heart Mobile Valentines Day Craft for Preschoolers
• Cactus valentine craft – this is such a fun cut and paste Valentines Day Craft for kids
• 30 February Crafts for Kids – so many fun, clever crafts to fill the whole month of February
• Don’t miss these fun February activities for kids

Science for Kids

Looking for lots more fun, science experiments for kids? You’ve GOT to try some of these outrageously fun science experiments for kids! We have so many fun, creative and easy science experiments for elementary age children:

• 100 Amazing Food science experiments for kids – arranged by type of science
• Colorful Capillary action science experiment (also known as walking water)
• Amaze kids with these 12 Hands on Science experiments with batteries
• 24 Epic Solar system science projects to try this week
• Fun Water balloon science experiment that explores density
• 50 Fun Preschool science experiments the whole family will want to try
• Red White and Blue Science Project
• Salt Crystal Hearts
• Egg Density Experiment
• Simple Galaxy science project
• Easy and Fun Dancing Raisins Experiment
• Learn about weather as you find how to make a weather vane
• Eye opening Eye science experiments
• Fizzing Christmas Science Experiment
• Easy-to- make Air pressure science project
• Amazing POP rocks science experiment is one of our all-time favorite science experiments we like to do during the summer are
• Stunning Chromatography Flowers are so pretty you’ll forget it was as science project!
• How to Make a Lava Lamp – super easy and SO cool!
• 30 Simple machines science projects kids will want to try
• Easy, fascinating, and colorful project answering Why do Leaves Change Color Experiment

Balloon Craft Ideas

Looking for more fun ways to play with balloons this summer?

• 25+ Water Balloon Games for Kids
• Drop & Paint – Water Balloon Painting Activity
• Roll & Paint – Outrageously FUN Balloon Painting Activity for Kids
• Balloon Paint Art Project for Toddlers and Preschoolers
• Learning the Notes on a Staff with a FUN Music Activity for Kids
• EASY Static Electricity Balloon Experiment
• Balloon Matching Shapes Worksheets – Kindergarten Math Activity
• Water Balloon Experiment for FUN summer science
• Educational Balloon Games
• FUN Lego Ballon Car that is simple to make
• Epic Ideas for Water Balloon Painting
• Pop Rocks Balloon Experiment