Title image credit: Maurice Snook, ACS (2011).

Why not try some Christmas chemistry with your science and chemistry students during the last week before Christmas? The easy-to-do Christmas experiments in this article can be used to shake things up a little just before you break up for turkey roast and minced pie. With the instructions come suggestions about what previous knowledge can be discussed together with these experiments.

1 Orange Peel Flamethrower

This experiment is very easy and can be done by the students or as a demonstration. It is suitable for ages 11 to 16. It can even be done with or demonstrated to primary children if you trust them with candles.

All you need is a candle and some orange peel. First, you have to light the candle. Then fold your orange peel, the shiny, orange side should face the candle. As you squeeze the peel, oils from…