Food Science Fair Projects To Use As A Demonstration
These are the kind of quick and easy science projects that can be fun to do!
A Demonstration Science Fair Project is different than what you commonly think. For one they usually are classroom experiments and not one of many projects set up in a gym. Many schools will only have an in- class science fair or a grade level science fair. Others still have a big science fair, but there during the year will also be in-class demonstrations. Here is a review of one of the Watch This! quick and easy science projects that are designed to be a demonstration.
The Yeast Beast Review
This is one of the fun food science fair projects that will make a fun demonstration. The best part is you don’t have to deal with recipes, you are only dealing with a key ingredient (yeast), but you can still hand out food which classmates like.
What is The Yeast Beast?
This demonstration project has two parts to it, the demonstration and the explanation. The guide has a step by step directions for demonstration on how yeast is an alive organism. By putting together a yeast based liquid mixture and then using balloons to see the results, you create a visual picture of something you really can’t see. (carbon dioxide).
How does the Yeast Beast experiment work?
Basically you have a group of small bottles, and one by one using colorful funnels you add the ingredients to make a yeast based mixture. Put the balloons over the bottle tops and voil! you will immediately see the balloons filling with CO2. While the student is doing this, they will be explaining some yeast facts, and history. Once the balloons fill, they explain the chemistry behind this type of food science fair projects. When they are finished they can have yeast bread ready to hand out as an example of yeast at work.
Sound good? You can get this example of food science fair projects right now with this link
The oral presentation is really important!
In order to do a demonstration the students have to have the facts at hand. This guide include both some research they did on the subject, and links to other resources to use. So no matter what grade the child doing the demonstration is in, they have the chance jump in and get the all the information they need that best suits their age/grade level. The facts a first or second grader will use might be centered simply on what carbon dioxide is and an 8th grade might discuss yeast infections. The links are included as part of the project, so it makes it a huge time saver.
What I like about this example of food science fair projects is …
… that they use common every day ingredients that you should already have at home. I hate it when the stress level goes sky high by me running around to all the stores looking for that one ingredient.
….that it includes a sample oral presentation to use as a guide in writing your own. As a teacher I know that kids need a guide, a framework to work with. By including a sample, they see how it all is supposed to fit together, they they will go off and make it their own. Cleverely, they don’t include everything in the sample, just enough to show how it works along with some advice on what to do and what not to do.
Read more about demonstration quick and easy science projects on this blog!
Nothing is perfect as we know and as a parent and a teacher I know that looking at the downside to something is just as helpful as all the good stuff, so here are a few things you to keep in mind…..
- Balloons can be a bother for adults to work with when you are just using them, so for a child standing in front of the class, this could be frustrating.
- The key will be trying a couple different KINDS of balloons to see which ones stretch the best.
- The second thing is to follow the advice in the experiment for prepping the balloons, practicing ahead of time and bring spares.
- Although liquid is common in a demonstration, it can be a problem if the prep work is not done well or if there just is not enough room on the area given to the student in front of the class.
- In this case, you need the same amount of liquid in multiple bottles, so the advance prep and measuring is something to pay close attention to. They have simple solutions!
- Any time you do a demonstration, the make or break piece is the oral presentation.
- If the demonstration is not practiced to the point they can do it in their sleep, then the oral presentation goes down the drain.
- There are science concepts that need explained and if you do not practice how to work the oral part in with the demonstration part, it will be awkward.
- That is why quick and easy science projects are the way to go, make the experiment simple, and let the explanation get into the nitty gritty science.
The best thing about food science fair projects is handing out samples when you are finished…..!
