I did some desperately needed direct instruction about cells, cell theory, etc. (I still need to do cell transport.) We did do an introduction to enzymes with The Need for Speed—A Look at Enzyme Activity. This is our first discussion about enzymes. This activity took the class about 45 minutes; they didn’t finish the questions. The hand is the enzyme and the pennies are the substrate.
Thermometers can be expensive. I like to have a set of plastic or metal backed thermometers to Science Camp or Outreach events. If you have a TI 84 graphing calculator, you can use Easy Temp and make a digital thermometer. The Go!Temp thermometers plug into the USB connector on any laptop or Chromebook. Do you want to use your laptop near a lab experiment? Below are a variety of prices for a wide range of thermometers, all useful for lab.
Tomorrow is Halloween. I love candy labs! Everyone is engaged! The mini-bags are terrific for samples. Be sure to call dibs on some of your kids’ Halloween candy for labs: Skittles Percent Composition lab, Floating Letters, Dancing Raisins, Candy Corn Science, Reece Pieces, M&M Experiments, M&M Math, Candy Sink or Float, Candy Pumpkin Catapult, Exploding Peep Geysers, Mechanics with Candy, Growing Gummy Bears, Invisible Licorice, Test Halloween Candy for Glucose, and Testing Candy Strength. Yes, the Algebra I class is doing the M&M lab tomorrow. Fun, right?
I’ve taught Physical Science many times. Sound is one of those units that seems daunting. Start with simple labs. Start here. These lab stations are just a series of simple, sound activities, such as playing a tune with glasses of water. Here is an elementary level intro using a tuning fork. This tuning fork lab suggests putting a little food dye in the water, which helps. Now, try Sound, a series of ‘Snacks’ from the Exploratorium, such as Bee Hummer, which the kids did at Science Camp. Try Organ Pipe; the apparatus can be used to measure The Speed of Sound, which is really more of a Physic lab. One more tip. Sometimes, when you’re plowing through an unfamiliar topic in Physical Science, you, your husband, or your kid might not get the concept entirely. Fall back on some of the simpler labs and concepts. For example, you might understand that a siren is an example of the Doppler effect and struggle to define it. Try a few more hands-on labs and then move on! Things may become clearer when you teach the next kid.
Update: I won’t get to this lab until next week. I have to do some direst instruction, show kids how to graph data in a spreadsheet, and check up on lingering assignments.
I have a larger Co-op class with younger kids: four older teens and ten eighth or ninth graders. Consequently, I’m doing more prep for lab. Thursday I want to do a Catalase Lab with hydrogen peroxide to demonstrate enzyme activity. Usually, the kids enjoy making Gel Beads or sodium alginate spheres. This group is easily confused. So, I had to research whether or not the spheres can be prepared in advance. This page recommends taking out prepared spheres and string them in tap water in the fridge for two days before class. It recommends against storing beads in the calcium acetate (or calcium lactate) solution—which was my original plan. I’m hedging my bet. I’ll make up extra solutions of both sodium alginate (and yeast) and calcium lactate to use in class if the beads dissolve. I’ll let you know how things work out on Thursday.
Add a little fun with these two labs: The Science of Popcorn and The Chemistry of Making Ice Cream. Kids love making ice cream! Be prepared to shake the bags for a loooooong time. Have a blast!
Instead of making a volcanoes, try making puffer fish. Yes, it’s the same Baking Soda and Vinegar Reaction. But, Mark Bette used balloons to make puffer fish. Take a look!
Next week I’m going to try The Need for Speed-A Look at Enzyme Activity. (We’re doing the Catalase Activity and Elephant’s Toothpaste labs, too. But, I need an introduction to enzymes.) The Need for Speed lab uses pennies, masking tape, and a marble. This lab is part of a series of videos and labs, Bond…Enzyme Bond. You might want to use the Amoebas Sisters Enzyme video, which is part of the lesson. I’ll let you know how the lab goes. Right now I need to see if I have 210 pennies.
Good Will online frequently has LEGO deals. Our local Co-op has a LEGO club. Does yours? Did you know LEGO has free teacher resources? Yes: LEGO Education, WeDo, WeDo Curriculum, STEAM Lessons, Robot Trainer, and MINDSTORMS. Many of the kits come with instructions. Our family built and programmed with LEGO Boost kits. One summer, we enrolled Paul in a LEGO camp at the community center led by a Sylvan instructor. She brought educational kits and read from the manual. I’m betting you can do a better job. BTW, if your club just wants to build with LEGO bricks, that’s time well spent, too.
Today we completed the Water Bead and Diffusion labs. The kids ok forever to weigh their beads. I am so happy I made the concentrations of salt water solutions in advance. The teens weighed their beads after about 45 minutes and will weigh them again on Tuesday. Take a look! The kids will calculate the percent change Tuesday. Look at the photo below. You should see a big change after two days soaking water beads in solution. The cornstarch in the iodine bath turns black.
Today, the Algebra I class did the Hypsometer lab. The Hypsometer is also a Clinometer. One student made all the Hypsometers for class. Take a look!
This week is a good time to book mark resources. Today is Mole Day. A mole has 6.02 x 10^23 units, atoms, or molecules. Here is a good Mole Day lab using household items.
Years ago, ACS decide to make this week National Chemistry Week (NCW). Start at NCW Educational Resources. Many of these resources are available through AACT with a subscription. Take advantage of these while they’re free. Save them in a digital folder. Flinn has Five Topics and Videos as part of NCW. (Take a look at the Catalyst Info Graphic. The yeast version for Elephant’s Toothpaste uses catalase, an enzyme in yeast, in place of NaI.). Flinn’s videos and info graphics are terrific! Otherwise this year’s NCW celebration is rather muted. Some years the Mole Day and ACS themes generate more interest than this year.
Today we built the cell models described in the Build a Membrane post. Most of the kids are bringing home their models to complete. I did get two models. Take a look.
