The Pancake Lab!
Watch for signs of physical and chemical changes as we make pancakes and syrup.
●Learning Objectives: What will students know and be able to do as a result of this lesson?
●The learning objectives are as follows:
- Students will be able to distinguish between physical and chemical properties and physical and chemical changes.
- Students will follow the scientific method during scientific inquiry, documenting collected data.
- Student will present/publish their lab findings to the class and teacher (for grading).
●Prior Knowledge: What prior knowledge should students have for this lesson?
●Prior student knowledge must include:
- The ability to distinguish between properties and changes.
- Understanding that a physical change does not produce a new substance.
- Understanding that chemical change is usually accompanied by physical change.
- Understanding that chemical change (chemical reaction) does product a new substance.
●Guiding Questions: What are the guiding questions for this lesson?
●Guiding questions for this lesson:
- Compare properties and changes.
- State the similarities and differences between physical and chemical changes.
- Why are physical and chemical changes important to scientists?
●Engage: What object, event, or questions will the teacher use to trigger the students' curiosity and engage them in the concepts?
●Student curiosity and engagement is achieved through making and consuming pancakes during class. Further engagement is gained by permitting students to bring supplies such as pancake mix (specify it must be complete; add water only), chocolate chips, syrup, whipped cream, fruit and other favorite toppings or add-in ingredients.
●Explore: What will the students do to explore the concepts and skills being developed through the lesson?
●During this lesson, students will prepare pancakes with the scientific requirements of pre-planning, organizing, thinking, questioning, and documenting. The follow-up lab report and class presentation will further encourage student organization, thought, and documentation.
●Explain: What will the students and teacher do so students have opportunities to clarify their ideas, reach a conclusion or generalization, and communicate what they know to others?
●The teacher will arrange the student scientists into lab groups, requiring each student to be a participating team member. Student observations, conclusions and generalizations will be discussed between students within the lab group, in the lab report, and during the class discussion (peer review). Decide what roles the students in their groups should have; such as preparer, recorder, cook, etc.
●The class discussion (peer review) may consist of the lab group of students sitting in front of their peers and verbalizing their lab results using notes, shout-outs, questions and answers, etc.
●Elaborate: What will the students do to apply their conceptual understanding and skills to solve a problem, make a decision, perform a task, or make sense of new knowledge?
●Students will utilize the scientific method for all future lab investigations and reports. Students will be encouraged to realize that science is constantly a part of their daily lives; all they need to do is to desire to seek answers to the questions "Why?" or "What if?"
●See what students respond if asked, "What if you did not put enough water in the mix?" or "Why did the liquid turn to a pancake?"
The Pancake Lab!
As you watch and make pancakes and syrup, look for physical changes and signs of chemical changes.
What we are doing / What’s happening.Use chemistry vocabulary. / Physical or chemical change + explanation.Ex. mixing flour and water / Powdery to a thick mixture. / Physical. You could evaporate water to get the flour back again. The gluten protein relaxes and thickens the mixture.
Adding acid lemon juice to milk (or bacteria-produced acid to make buttermilk.)
Mixing baking powder and acid in the soured milk (or with buttermilk)
Melting butter in the pan.
Heating beaten egg protein in the frying pan.
Mixing all the ingredients to make the batter.
Fry 1/4C batter in oiled pan (2-3mins, flip then 1-2mins on other side. Serve.)
Mix 2T of each: white sugar, brown sugar, water and corn syrup + 1 drop vanilla.
Heat water and sugar in frying pan for 3 minutes to make syrup.
Ingredients
●1cupunbleached all-purpose flour
●2teaspoonsgranulated sugar
●1/2teaspoontable salt
●1/2teaspoonbaking powder
●1/4teaspoonbaking soda
●3/4cupbuttermilk
●1/4cupmilk (plus an extra tablespoon or so if batter is too thick)
●1large egg , separated
●2tablespoonsunsalted butter , melted
●Vegetable oil (for brushing griddle)
Instructions
WASH YOUR HANDS AND CLEAN YOUR WORK SURFACE BEFORE YOU BEGIN!!!
1. Mix dry ingredients in medium bowl.
2.Pour buttermilk and milk into 2-cup Pyrex measuring cup.
3. Whisk in egg white
4. mix yolk with melted butter, then stir into milk mixture.
5. Dump wet ingredients into dry ingredients all at once; whisk until just mixed.
6. Meanwhile, heat griddle or large skillet over strong medium-high heat. Brush griddle generously with oil.
7. When water splashed on surface confidently sizzles, pour batter, about 1/4 cup at a time, onto griddle, making sure not to overcrowd. Add chocolate chips into batter if you like.
When pancake bottoms are brown and top surface starts to bubble, 2 to 3 minutes, flip cakes and cook until remaining side has browned, 1 to 2 minutes longer. Re-oil the skillet and repeat for the next batch of pancakes.
Wash all pot/pan and utensils and wipe down your work surface.
Basic Pancake Syrup
●1/2 cup sugar1/2 cup brown sugar1/2 cup corn syrup1/2 cup water1/2 teaspoon vanilla
Boil together and cook gently for 3 minutes.
- List 3 examples of physical changes observed during the pancake lab.
- List 3 examples of chemical changes observed during the pancake lab.