Instant Slushy Magic

For Potions this week, the Hogwarts Students get to make Instant Slushies in the Kitchen. All you need is your freezer and your favorite bottle of soda! 

Here are the instructions from Chemistry.About.Com. 

Any soda or soft drink works for this. The slushy project works especially well with 16-oz or 20-oz carbonated soft drinks, since the fizz fluffs up the ice. It's also easiest to use a plastic bottle.

1. Start with a room temperature soda. You could use any temperature, but it's easy to get a handle on how long it takes to supercool the liquid if you know your approximate starting temperature. 
2. Shake up the bottle and place it in a freezer. Do not disturb the soda while it is chilling or else it will simply freeze.
3. After about 3 to 3-1/2 hours, carefully remove the bottle from the freezer. Each freezer is a little different, so you may need to adjust the time for your conditions. Handle it carefully without jarring or shaking the bottle which could result in premature freezing. 
4. Gently open the bottle, releasing pressure slowly, and pour the soda into a chilled cup. This will cause it to freeze into slush while you pour. 

Isn't this magic trick awesome! I first came across this idea as an object lesson that can teach some pretty cool lessons. 

For example: This instant slushy can illustrate what happens when kids make bad choices. They might start lying to their parents or smoking or drinking alcohol. You may not notice a visible difference in them right away. But we shouldn't be tricked. The consequences are real for making bad choices and will show up eventually. Take to your family about some of the consequences of making bad choices while you enjoy your delicious instant slushy. 

To find more about this Object Lesson go here.