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    Kitchen Chemistry: Cool Crystals, Rockin’ Reactions, and Magical Mixtures with Hands-On Science Activities
    Kitchen Chemistry: Cool Crystals, Rockin’ Reactions, and Magical Mixtures with Hands-On Science Activities
    Kitchen Chemistry: Cool Crystals, Rockin’ Reactions, and Magical Mixtures with Hands-On Science Activities
    Ebook209 pages3 hours

    Kitchen Chemistry: Cool Crystals, Rockin’ Reactions, and Magical Mixtures with Hands-On Science Activities

    By Cynthia Light Brown and Micah Rauch

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    About this ebook

    Bring chemistry to your kitchen with a book that offers hands-on science activities that can be done with ingredients from your pantry and the refrigerator!

    What’s going on when you cook in the kitchen? Science!

    In Kitchen Chemistry: Cool Crystals, Rockin’ Reactions, and Magical Mixtures with Hands-On Science Activities, readers ages 9 to 12 discover that the cooking, mixing, and measuring you do in the kitchen all has its roots deep in science—chemistry to be exact!

    Starting with an exploration of atoms and molecules and how they make up the world, Kitchen Chemistry goes on to discuss mixtures, reactions, states of matter, solutions, and more! By using familiar scenarios such as boiling water, baking cookies, and creating slime, kids make text-to-text, text-to-self, and text-to-world connections that deepen their understanding of the world around us and the connection to chemistry to be found in every area of life. This title has been revised and updated to reflect 2020 educational standards and incorporate new scientific discoveries!

    • Kitchen Chemistry brings science to life in ways kids find easy to replicate and fascinating to accomplish.
    • Hands-on projects and experiments, such as making an Alka-Seltzer rocket, building a foamy volcano, and creating crystals, reinforce learning and enhance critical and creative thinking skills.
    • Essential questions, cool trivia, and links to online primary sources all add up to an inspired time in the kitchen learning chemistry!


    About the Build It Science set and Nomad Press

    Kitchen Chemistry is part of a set of four Build It Science books that explore accessible science. The other titles in this set are Climate Change, Backyard Biology, and Fairground Physics.

    Nomad Press books in the Build It series integrate content with participation. Combining content with inquiry-based projects stimulates learning and makes it active and alive. Nomad’s unique approach simultaneously grounds kids in factual knowledge while allowing them the space to be curious, creative, and critical thinkers.

    All books are leveled for Guided Reading level and Lexile and align with Common Core State Standards and Next Generation Science Standards.

    All titles are available in paperback, hardcover, and ebook formats.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherNomad Press
    Release dateMar 20, 2020
    ISBN9781619308855
    Kitchen Chemistry: Cool Crystals, Rockin’ Reactions, and Magical Mixtures with Hands-On Science Activities

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      Book preview

      Kitchen Chemistry - Cynthia Light Brown

      Introduction

      CHEMISTRY

      MATTERS!

      What makes something soft or hard? What makes something a solid, liquid, or gas? Why does water change from solid ice to liquid water to water vapor? Chemistry can tell you! Chemistry is at the heart of how everything works—it’s the science of change.

      You might think that chemists are people who work in labs and wear white coats. But that’s not necessarily true! Chemistry is everywhere and chemistry can be studied everywhere—including in your kitchen, classroom, and backyard. And anyone can explore chemistry with fun experiments and activities. The rule is to keep it safe.

      ESSENTIAL QUESTION

      What is chemistry?

      WORDS TO KNOW

      water vapor: the gas state of water.

      chemistry: the study of the properties of substances and how they react with one another.

      Chemistry is the study of matter and how it changes. Matter is anything that has mass and takes up space. That means everything on Earth, in the solar system, and in the galaxy is made of matter. Including you! What about the book or tablet you are holding? What about your dog? What about the water you’re drinking? What about the air you’re breathing?

      MATTER—

      it’s all matter!

      Matter is made up of atoms and molecules, known as the basic building blocks of matter. Think of a bucket full of water. This bucket contains more molecules of water than there are buckets of water in the entire Atlantic Ocean! Atoms are pretty small.

      WORDS TO KNOW

      matter: anything that has weight and takes up space. Almost everything is made of matter!

      atom: the smallest particle of matter that cannot be broken down by chemical means. An atom is made up of a nucleus of protons and neutrons surrounded by a cloud of electrons.

      molecule: a group of atoms bound together to form matter.

      solid: one of the three states of matter. The particles in a solid are bound together tightly. A solid has a definite shape and volume and does not flow.

      liquid: one of the three states of matter. The particles in a liquid cluster together and flow. A liquid has a definite volume, but takes the shape of its container.

      gas: one of the three states of matter. The particles in a gas are not bound to each other and move very fast in all directions. A gas does not have a definite shape or volume.

      interact: how things act when they are together.

      These atoms and molecules interact in different ways. The interactions decide what kind of matter those atoms and molecules will be. And, of course, that can change—remember, chemistry is the science of how things change. We’ll learn more about atoms and molecules in Chapter 1.

      THE MIND OF A SCIENTIST

      Scientists have a special way of looking at the world, and you can, too. Here’s what you do. Notice things. Pay attention. Look around. Be curious. That’s it. That’s the secret to being a scientist.

      If Benjamin Franklin (1706–1790) hadn’t noticed how the water changed behind ships as they sailed, he wouldn’t have experimented with oil and water (see Chapter 5 to learn more). If you notice what’s going on around you, you’ll see all kinds of things to explore.

      Water as a solid, liquid, and gas

      credit: Ajith Kumar (CC BY 2.0)

      WORDS TO KNOW

      expand: to spread out and take up more space.

      substance: the physical material from which something is made.

      volume: the amount of space inside an object.

      carbon: a kind of atom that is the building block of most living things, as well as diamonds, charcoal, and graphite.

      Water EXPANDS as it freezes, which is different from most other substances. An ice cube takes up about 9 percent MORE VOLUME than the water used to make it.

      If you see something you don’t understand or that doesn’t make sense, find out more about it. That may involve some research in a library, but it might also involve trying an experiment, which is another important—and even more fun—way to investigate. Ask questions such as Why? and What would happen if…?

      After you try an experiment or a project in this book, you can also change the experiment a bit to see what happens. Note that if you want to use new materials, though, check with an adult first to make sure the experiment will be safe.

      Here’s the important thing about making changes in a project: Only make one change at a time. Otherwise, you won’t know which of your changes made a difference in the results.

      Boiling water freezing almost instantly

      credit: Alfredo Ristol (CC BY 2.0)

      Watch a video about the buckyball! We’ll learn more about carbon later in the book. Is it surprising to you that major scientific discoveries are still being made? In fact, there are incredible breakthroughs in science every day. Maybe you’ll be the next person to make one!

      Scishow buckyball

      Believe what you see, not what you think you should see. If Erasto Mpemba (1950– ) hadn’t believed his own eyes, he never would have figured out that boiling water can freeze faster than warm water (read about him in Chapter 7). When you try an experiment or make a change to one you’ve already done, try to predict what might happen next.

      Even if your results aren’t what you expected, you can learn something. If something doesn’t work the way you thought it would, maybe you made a mistake. For example, you might have put in too much of one ingredient. But maybe your results show you something new. Scientists make new discoveries all the time based on mistakes.

      Share and compare. Scientists often work together to solve problems. If Harry Kroto (1939–2016), Richard Smalley (1943–2005), and Robert Curl (1933– ) hadn’t worked together as a team, they probably would not have discovered the buckyball or won the Nobel Prize. You’ll read about them in Chapter 1.

      WORDS TO KNOW

      environment: everything in nature, living and nonliving, including animals, plants, rocks, soil, and water.

      agriculture: growing plants and raising animals for food and other products.

      Keep track of your results and share them with others. Maybe together you can figure out why your project or experiment turned out as it did.

      Today, scientists are using chemistry to improve our daily lives. Through chemistry, we can make products such as food, clothing, and construction materials even better. Chemists are also working to protect the environment, improve agriculture, and find new sources of energy. It’s an exciting time to be a chemist!

      HOW CHEMICALS

      CHANGE

      Humans use chemicals every day. That’s because everything is made of chemicals—including us! You’ll read later about how chemicals react and form new ones and how their properties can change. For now, let’s work on noticing different substances that change.

      ›Make a list in your science journal of different substances that you see changing. Maybe it’s a liquid that changes into a solid or gas, or vice versa. Maybe you see something change color, shape, texture, or temperature. Here are some ideas to help you think of places or types of items where you might find substances that change.

      *Food or other items in your kitchen

      *Your fireplace

      *Your backyard

      *A nearby pond or woods

      *A houseplant

      ›Check on your substances every day for a week or two. Make drawings or take notes in your science journal. How do they change? Do they grow bigger or smaller? Do they rot or grow? Do they get smelly? Do they change color?

      ›As you read through this book, go back to your list and try to identify whether the changes you saw were from a chemical reaction or because of changes in the surroundings, such as changing temperature. Were there any surprises?

      Think About It

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