One of our recent after school activities was to be "Chicleros". Using the sap of the Sapodilla tree we made our own chewing gum. The sap is called Chicle. The Sapodilla trees grow in the rain forest and the sap is tapped out of the tree annually for 4 or 5 years.
To make our sticky mess we melted chicle and added corn syrup, confectioners sugar and tutti frutti flavoring.
We continued to work in the confectioners sugar and flavoring until we could roll it out and then cut it into chicklet size gum squares to be enjoyed by all. Most gum today is made by synthetic gum bases and other chemicals so this chewing gum kit was a clever glimpse into the past and fun way to help the rainforest.
2 comments:
wow! Now that's ambitious - cool!
oh my gosh, thanks for posting this! This would be a great gift for my 7 year old nephew!
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