Do you ever find yourself needing a new educational activity for your curious youngsters? With little prep, you can be well on your way to an easy science experiment in your own kitchen. This activity is great for reinforcing science concepts, making memories together, and engaging young minds in something FUN. Read on for a simple experiment anyone can do with their kids, designed for the kitchen by a food scientist.
STEM is happening in the kitchen with our colorful “potions” experiment! Familiarize your student with the terms “acid” and “acidity” while demonstrating fun acid/base reactions!
What’s the “potions” experiment all about?
Understanding acidity is important in food science. The relationship between acids/bases and pH, how pH affects flavor and stability…food scientists think about these concepts every day when developing new food products for restaurants and grocery stores.
By the end of this lesson, your student will understand:
- Why acidity is a key principle in food science
- The pH scale, and where acids and bases fall on the scale
- How the acidity of different ingredients compares
- Additional objectives: use the scientific method to practice STEM skills such as: critical thinking, problem solving, data collecting and interpretation
A sneak peek at some of the background info in this easy food science experiment for kids:
Most people recognize “acidic” ingredients by their sour taste. Vinegar and lemon juice are two common kitchen ingredients that are considered acidic, but the acidity of some ingredients may surprise you! Why is it important to understand acidity?
Acids and bases are at the foundation of food science. When a food scientist makes a new food product, the acidity of that product is important for many reasons. Two major reasons food scientists care about acidity are:
- Acidity affects the flavor of a product. A more acidic product usually tastes more sour than a product with less acidity. Sometimes it’s good if a product tastes sour, and sometimes not!
- Acidity affects the shelf life of a product. (Shelf life is how long a product will last before it “goes bad.”) A product with higher acidity can maintain a longer shelf life (last longer) than a product with less acidity because most harmful bacteria prefer to grow at neutral (or slightly acidic) pH.
A food scientist is expected to develop a product that tastes good, and is safe and stable over time. Help your curious youngster start thinking about food science with this easy experiment!
where to find downloads to the “what is yeast” student experiment and teaching guide:
EXPLORING ACIDITY: STUDENT EXPERIMENT CLICK ABOVE BUTTON
EXPLORING ACIDITY: EXPERIMENT TEACHING GUIDE CLICK ABOVE BUTTON
Does your student have their lab notebook handy?
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