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Cub Scout Adventures > 
Webelos >
 Earth Rocks! > 
Crystal Shapes
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Webelos – 4th Grade
Earth Rocks!
Elective
Requirement 4

Crystal Shapes

Webelos – 4th Grade
Earth Rocks!
Elective
Requirement 4

Crystal Shapes

Snapshot of Activity

Cub Scouts create their own crystal.

Indoor
3
4
4
If you want to know more about The Adventure Activity Key click here.
  • Pipe cleaners, one for each Cub Scout
  • Plastic or glass cup, one for each Cub Scout
  • 6” of fishing line for each Cub Scout
  • Wooden skewer, one for each Cub Scout
  • 1 ¾ cup Borax
  • 4 cups boiling water
  • Table covering
  • Disposable gloves for each Cub Scout

Before the meeting:

  1. A week before the meeting grow a borax crystal using the directions below. This will allow you to share the finished crystal.
  2. Set up meeting space with room for Cub Scouts to do their project. Cover the table.

During the meeting:

  1. Share with Cub Scouts that they will be making their own crystal. Show them the finished product and then lead them through the experiment.
    • Take the pipe cleaner and make a shape.
    • Tie the fishing line to the pipe cleaner, and then tie the other end of the line to a skewer. The pipe cleaner nest should hang down about an inch.
    • Have an adult stir the borax in the boiling water until it completely dissolves.
    • Pour ¾ cup of the mixture into each cup.
    • Place the hanging pipe cleaner into the cup and lay the skewer across the top of the cup so they hang freely.
    • Leave your pipe cleaners in the borax solution overnight or more.
  2. After one or more days, remove your pipe cleaner from the water and dry on a layer of paper towels. You should have a crystal.

Other Activities Options

You can choose other activities of your choice.

Webelos – 4th Grade

Sweet Crystal

Indoor
3
3
4

Cub Scouts create their own crystal that they can eat.

See Details

Bray Barnes

Director, Global Security Innovative
Strategies

Bray Barnes is a recipient of the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award, Silver
Beaver, Silver Antelope, Silver Buffalo, and Learning for Life Distinguished
Service Award. He received the Messengers of Peace Hero award from
the royal family of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and he’s a life member of
the 101st Airborne Association and Vietnam Veterans Association. Barnes
serves as a senior fellow for the Global Federation of Competitiveness
Councils, a nonpartisan network of corporate CEOs, university presidents, and
national laboratory directors. He has also served as a senior executive for the
U.S. Department of Homeland Security, leading the first-responder program
and has two U.S. presidential appointments

David Alexander

Managing Member Calje

David Alexander is a Baden-Powell Fellow, Summit Bechtel Reserve philanthropist, and recipient of the Silver Buffalo and Distinguished Eagle Scout Award. He is the founder of Caljet, one of the largest independent motor fuels terminals in the U.S. He has served the Arizona Petroleum Marketers Association, Teen Lifeline, and American Heart Association. A triathlete who has completed hundreds of races, Alexander has also mentored the women’s triathlon team at Arizona State University.

Glenn Adams

President, CEO & Managing Director
Stonetex Oil Corp.

Glenn Adams is a recipient of the Silver Beaver, Silver Antelope, Silver Buffalo, and Distinguished Eagle Scout Award. He is the former president of the National Eagle Scout Association and established the Glenn A. and Melinda W. Adams National Eagle Scout Service Project of the Year Award. He has more than 40 years of experience in the oil, gas, and energy fields, including serving as a president, owner, and CEO. Adams has also received multiple service awards from the Texas Alliance of Energy Producers.