I can’t believe that is butter

As I was driving to the office this morning, it really hit me that autumn has arrived. I may have been in denial after all of the hard work I put into my yard this year; sadly, watching it wither away as the temperatures cool down … but today I truly did notice the beautiful array of colours surrounding me. Of course, this changes my thinking about science entirely as now I have to start preparing for Thanksgiving science and Halloween science. Since Thanksgiving is creeping up on us rather quickly, we had better start with a fun Thanksgiving Food Learning Lab. This activity is a bit different from my normal ones, but the learning and science discovery are all the same. Let’s get started.

*Remember to ask an adult before doing this experiment.

Materials

small clear glass jar with tight fitting lid heavy whipping cream measuring cups science notebook pen/pencil salt (optional) crackers (optional)

Procedure

1. Measure 250 mL (one cup) of heavy whipping cream and pour it into the glass jar. Place the lid on tightly.

2. Make some observations of what is in front of you and write them down in your science notebook.

3. Shake the container for two to three minutes. Set down.

4. Record your observations in your science notebook.

5. What is going on now?

6. Shake, shake and shake some more. You need to shake until you see a solid substance form in the jar.

7. Make your observations and record them. What is going on?

I know it is really fun to do a science experiment and we all look forward to the end result because this is where the most “fun” is for some of us. This week, I want to stress how important it is to stop along the way and make observations and even record them in a science notebook. This allows us to dig deeper into the science behind the activity.

Hopefully all of my young scientists out there made great observations. To start with, you should have observed that this experiment allowed you to see the three states of matter: liquid, gas and solid. The first observation being that the jar was half full not just with a liquid (cream) but also air. As you shook it up for a few minutes, the cream changed in appearance again. As you mix some air into the liquid, it changes and begins to look a bit “fluffy”. Continue to shake and now the cream changes mostly to a solid — butter. Just like the butter you buy at the supermarket. Go ahead and try it out. Add a pinch of salt and spread on a cracker to enjoy.

If we dig a little deeper, this experiment is a good start to understanding the processes involved in the scientific method and perhaps going one step further and beginning a science fair project ... if you are interested in doing science fair this year please send me an email and I would be more than happy to get you or your class started.

Patty Rooks, Senior Scientific Consultant PRAXIS, “Connecting Science To The Community”.

Contact Praxis at praxis@praxismh.ca, www.praxismh.ca, Tweet or follow us @PraxisMedHat, or friend us on Facebook. Email: praxis@praxismh.ca.