SANTA ANA : Science Offers Up a Brew for Witches

Using a mix of science and sorcery, Candice Romero, 8, conjured up a witch’s brew of fake blood and ectoplasmic slime as her classmates looked on and giggled.

Clearly enchanted with the experiment, she announced later that, “I like the slime. It’s gooey and sticky.”

Candice was one of 28 students from Greenville Fundamental School who took part in an unusual celebration of both Halloween and science on Thursday. The students gathered at the Discovery Science Center’s Launch Pad at South Coast Plaza to learn about bats and blood and skeletons and slime and other facts that relate to the holiday.

The students’ activities were a preview of the Launch Pad’s “Scientifically Haunted Halloween,” which will run Saturday and Sunday at 11 a.m., 1 p.m. and 3 p.m., spokeswoman Pam Shambra said.

During Thursday’s event, children mixed polyvinyl alcohol, borax and water to create small cups of clear, gelatinous goo. They also mixed red food dye with corn syrup to create fake blood.

Children assembled a skeleton and watched a slide show about bats and how they help humans by eating insects, pollinating plants and fertilizing crops.

However, the activities may have created a monster or two. Several children said they now planned to create slime and fake blood to trick--not treat--others, as befits the season.

“I’m going to trick people. I’m going to tell them that I’m bleeding,” said Jacob Long, 8.

Samantha Cadwell, 8, said she planned to use her homemade slime to scare her siblings: “Maybe I’ll put some on my little sister and throw some at my older sister, but I have to lure her into the kitchen because my mom wouldn’t like it on the carpet.”

For reservations for the “Haunted Halloween,” call (714) 540-2001.