There is a lot of slime in nature and so many animals that use slime in different ways. One of my favorite activities to do with students when learning about these animals is to make Oobleck! It is an easy, fun craft that gets kids immersed into the experience of using slime in their own way. It gives them a hands-on example of how this sticky substance can be useful in nature.
What we call slime, is more accurately referred to as mucus. You may be able to list a few different animals already that use mucus: frogs, snails, slugs. These animals rely on mucus to keep their skin moist and hydrated. But did you know that opossums use mucus too? That’s right! Because opossums are prey type animals, they have a bunch of different methods of self defense. This includes secreting a stinky, slimy mucus from their bottoms to scare off larger predators when threatened.
These are the fun facts I teach my students while I prepare them for their craft. To make slime at home you’re going to need a few items.
Cornstarch
Food Coloring (your choice)
Water
Your proportion is essentially going to be 2:1 ratio cornstarch to water, but I think part of the fun is letting the kids figure out the proportions for themselves. This gives them a chance to learn about balance and the effectiveness of slime being just moldable enough without it being too dry or too wet.
Once you and your little scientist-in-training have completed your craft, come on out to the Sawgrass Nature Center and tour our exhibits. This is a great chance to create your very own scavenger hunt by looking for animals that use their own type of slime! Let us know what you find.
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