June 10, 2020

The Best Glue For Slime

There are lots of different types of glue. What glue works best for slime? Read the complete blog for tips on which glues work for the different kinds of slime.

What glue works best for creating slime? Do all glues behave the same way?

This is a fun activity for kids. Some glues are better for making a bouncy slime. Other glues work well to make a stretchy slime. Some glues make a softer slime.

Glue is a polymer. A polymer is a repeating long chain of molecules. Think of a paper clip as being a molecule, and you link a bunch of them together. These long chains of molecules can slide easily past each other. This is just like glue sliding and oozing between your fingers. To make it slime, we need to add a cross-linker to link these long chains together. That is where the borax comes in.

Try this recipe that is made for a classroom.

Here are different glues that students find fun.

Please note Kimberly Scott Science is not affiliated with any of these companies.

Elmer's School Glue

This glue is always reliable and classic. It makes a stretchy slime, but with more borax, it will make a good silly putty.

Translucent Glue such as Elmer

Kids love the look of clear glue. We find it makes a decent slime, but you may need to tweak the recipe to get it, so it is not too sticky or solid.

Glitter Glue

This makes a nice slime just like using the translucent glue, but everything is better with a little sparkle.

Tacky Glue

We recommend adding a little tacky glue if you want to make a bouncy slime. Students found that it makes a pretty solid slime, but mixed with some school glue, you can get it pretty bouncy.

Gorilla Glue for School

This was a student favorite. The glue has a soft texture. It stretches well and also, with more borax, would make a good silly putty. It is one we strongly recommend to try. The texture is very good.

There are so many glues to try. Just make sure they are kid-friendly. We never would try wood glue or super glue. That would be interesting.

How about trying: Mod Podge, Puzzle Glue, Maddie Rae Brand, Elmer's Glue-All, generic glues

We use the following unit to take our slime science up a notch. It is memorable and meets the science standards. A perfect classroom unit. It is developed, so students take the lead in their learning. We love it during Halloween or Christmas. It is a great way to get students to think like a scientist.