Looking for a fun and educational STEM activity to do with your kids? Why not try making crystal egg geodes (aka dragon eggs)? This easy tutorial will show you how to complete this fun and engaging dragon STEM activity.
Not only are these crystal egg geodes really cool looking, but the crystals inside the eggs are also fascinating to observe. So gather up some supplies and let’s get started!
Feel free to enjoy this STEM project as part of your Chinese New Year celebrations, as a fun homeschool STEM lesson, or even a rainy day activity! The possibilities are endless and no matter what the reason, your kids are sure to enjoy this fun and unique science project.
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A Brief Overview of the Crystal Egg Geodes (Dragon Eggs) STEM Project
This project is going to take you through growing your own homemade Borax crystals. These crystals will be growing on the inside of eggshells so when you’re done they will look like homemade dragon eggs or crystal egg geodes.
You can also do this project with other crystals such as salt crystals or sugar crystals. However, we will be using Borax. If you choose to use salt or sugar, the instructions are essentially the same but your growing time might be a bit different.
Growing crystal geodes is a great way to show how mineral-rich water deposits minerals into new places. Additionally, it shows how some minerals will grow in a crystal formation.
Study different crystals and crystal shapes before you start this project so that you know what you are looking for as you grow these crystals. This can take you into all kinds of areas including cave formation, rock creation, and even special things like diamonds.
Making Your Crystal Egg Geodes (DIY Dragon Eggs)
Follow these instructions and soon you’ll be well on your way to making your very own crystal egg geodes (dragon eggs).
DIY Crystal Egg Geodes (Dragon Eggs) Tutorial
Your kids are going to love growing crystals inside of eggshells with this fun and engaging DIY crystal egg geode (dragon egg) STEM project!
Materials
- Eggs (just the shell is needed but larger pieces are best)
- Borax (we started with a brand new 4lb. box but we made a really large batch)
- Water
- Pot
- Stirring spoon
- Stove
- Mason Jars or other clearish glass
- Cardboard or paper plate lid (this is just to help the solution cool slower)
- Glue
- Paintbrush (for spreading glue)
- Drill bit or large needle (if you are going to blow your eggs)
- Food coloring (optional)
Instructions
Note - if you are working with younger kids, you might want to prep the eggshells beforehand. Additionally, be sure you have a place prepared where your crystals can grow undisturbed.
- Get eggshells ready. This can be done by poking holes in each end then scrambling the inners and blowing it all out into a bowl or garbage. Or if you don't want to blow out your eggs, just crack the eggs like you would if you work cooking and go from there.
- Carefully remove the membrane from the shell. Be sure you get 100% of the membrane or your crystals won't grow!! The membrane is multi-layered, so make sure you scratch up the inside of the shell until it all feels like the outside of the shell. Remember - if you don’t get all the membrane, it will prevent crystal growth.
- Paint a thin layer of glue on the inside of the eggshell and sprinkle on some Borax powder to give your crystals a starting grow location.
- Get enough water to cover up your eggs in solution inside your jars. (Keep in mind some will evaporate off when you’re boiling so make sure you plan on extra.)
- Put the water in your pot and get it to boiling.
- Put about a half cup of Borax into boiling water and stir until the water gets clear again.
- Repeat the previous step until the solution is supersaturated.
- You will know you have reached supersaturation when your boiling water will not go clear again or takes a really long time to do so.
- If you want color, now is the time to add this to the solution. Alternatively, you can add different colors to each jar for multiple colors.
- Place fully prepped eggshells in jars and pour in the solution until fully covered.
- Cover the jar with cardboard or a paper lid and place in your safe place.
- Check every hour and pull out when crystals are the size you want. (2-4 hours).
- Don’t wait too long or your eggshells may get stuck inside the jar.
- Pull the shells out and let them dry completely.
- Observe as needed.
Notes
Tips, Tricks, and Notes For A Successful Crystal Egg Geode STEM Project - Follow these tips for the most successful DIY Dragon Eggs possible
TIP #1 - If you let your crystals grow too long and your eggshell gets stuck, here is what you do:
Empty your jar of the Borax solution and then add new clean water. Place your jar in a double-broil system and boil your jar until the Borax dissolves enough to get your eggshell out, but not so long that you have no crystals left.
This can take quite some time if you left the shells in the solution for a long time (like 5 hours...ask me how I know).
TIP #2 - You do not have to blow out eggs to get empty eggshells. The only reason to do it this way is to get larger pieces of shell (theoretically).
If you need this to be a faster project, crack open the shell as if you're cooking and then just take your half-shells and get all the membrane out without taking all the time of blowing out an egg or two.
TIP #3 - If you really want to challenge yourself, blow out the egg and remove the membrane while keeping the egg's shell whole and then grow crystals inside. We were going to do this originally but the extra time was not available to us.
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Follow Up Questions to Keep The Learning Going
After observing your eggshell geodes, ask your kids the following questions. Encourage discussions and critical thinking in relation to the project you have just completed.
- Are there other crystal shapes?
- Why do the crystals form?
- Are crystals formed in nature the same way? Give someexamples of natural forming crystals.
- Do we eat any crystals? Are all crystals edible?
Related Follow Up Activities For Older Students (Tweens and Teens)
- Make multiple crystals to compare their shapes. (Baking soda, salt, and sugar can all be turned into crystals and are easy to get a hold of.)
- Grow crystals on something else. Do the crystal shapes change depending on the surface it grows on?
- Study crystals in nature. Do a research project on crystals. Where to do they naturally occur? What circumstances must be present for crystals to occur in nature?
- Go on a field trip to a place with natural crystal formations and enjoy further discussions and learning opportunities.
The Science Behind The Crystal Dragon Eggshell Geodes
When you make your water solution (in this case water and Borax) you are creating a super-saturated solution.
A supersaturated solution (or super-saturated) is a solution that contains more of the dissolved material than could be dissolved by the solvent under normal circumstances. This can happen when a saturated solution is kept undisturbed for a long period of time and some solute molecules attach to others and form larger particles called nuclei, which make it harder for solvent molecules to fit into the spaces between them.
When this happens, it causes some of the solute to precipitate, or fall out of the solution.
For example, adding sugar to water and heating it up produces a saturated sugar solution. If this is kept undisturbed, some of the sugar crystals will dissolve over time and make it more difficult for other sugar molecules to dissolve.
This causes the solution to become supersaturated. As a result, the sugar crystals will recrystallize and appear in the bottom of your pan. We learn more about this in our Rock Candy Science Experiment but the concept is the same with this Borax and water solution.
In the case of our Borax and hot water solution, as the hot water cools, it is no longer able to hold as many minerals and they begin to fall out. When this happens, because the Borax is a crystal, crystals start to grow.
The longer the solution is given to grow, the larger the crystals get as the crystals grow layer by layer, grabbing onto the previous layer and making the layer, and therefore the crystal, larger and larger.
More STEM Resources for Kids (Including A Free Printable)
If you liked this activity, you are going to love the STEM Made Easy Digital Subscription. Each month, you receive a project pack that includes 5 fully planned STEM project guides along with worksheets and instructions for how to make them fun and engaging for kids ages 3-19.
Want a free project sample? Sign up to get a complete 39-page project guide sent to you so you can see exactly what’s inside each of the STEM Made Easy Digital Subscription project pack.
I’ve also got this ultimate list of STEAM and STEM activities for kids of all ages if you want to take a look.
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