How Do Glow Sticks Work?

Have you ever played with a glow stick? You bend the plastic stick. You hear snaps. You hear crunching. Then, it glows! It’s like magic. But it isn’t magic. It’s science!

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There are chemicals inside the glow sticks. One of the chemicals is inside a glass tube. You bend the stick. The tube breaks. The chemicals mix together. A chemical reaction happens. It gives off light.

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Glow sticks come in many colors. How are the colors made? There are different dyes. The dyes make different colors.

That is some colorful chemistry!

What Can You Do? How can you use glow sticks?

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