Candy Chemistry
With this activity, students will explore basic chemistry concepts by testing the solubility of substances in water.
Lesson Plan: Some of the key concepts that we will cover today,
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Solubility: The ability of a substance to be dissolved in water
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Ex: Sugar cubes added to tea/coffee
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Diffusion: Movement of molecules from higher to lower concentration
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Ex: Tea bag in hot water
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Surface Tension: Barrier formed on the surface of water caused by a force called cohesion. It also holds the material together
Steps:
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Take a plate and put Skittles on 4 sides of the plate.
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Add warm water and observe the colors.
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Get a new plate or clean your existing plate for the next activity.
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Repeat the same steps with 4 M&MS and observe.
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In the next activity, we will race Skittles and M&M on the same plate
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Line M&M's on on side of the plate and Skittles on the opposite side.
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Add warm water and observe the colors. Which candy will reach the center first, skittles or M&M's?
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Who won?
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Type of coating
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Dye concentration and solubility
Key concepts learned and observed today are:
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Solubility: M&Ms and Skittles were able to dissolve
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Diffusion: Dye was able to spread from candy to water
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Surface Tension: Colored coating dissolves but doesn’t mix w/ water → separation of colors because of high surface tension
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Temperature: Warm water → dye can dissolve and spread faster
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Stratification= layers w/ differences
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Dyes and sugars mixed with/ water
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Colors dissolve at different rates
Some dyes can be denser or react differently with water. This leads to layers where certain colors are more concentrated
Creates stratification: Layers of water have different amounts of dissolved substances → differences in density
Activity 1: Skittles
Activity 2: M&M
Racing Skittles and M&M
Next