Tag: Inquiry Based Instruction

Scrambled Eggs: Experimenting with Liquids

by K.Graybill • June 2, 2017 • 0 Comments

A student recently asked me why scrambled eggs tasted different at their friends and relatives houses compared to scrambled eggs made at home. Great question! I decided to let my students conduct an experiment by preparing scrambled eggs with different liquids in order to discover the effects each had on the eggs’ appearance, taste and texture. Not only did this experimental lab get the students into the kitchen to teach them how to make scrambled eggs, but it was a great way to incorporate a little food science into the curriculum as well!

Diaper Cost Analysis Project

by M.Sandoval • January 3, 2013 • 2 Comments

What is the cheapest way to buy diapers? Do subscriptions to Amazon Prime or memberships to wholesale clubs really save you money on diapers? Why not do the math? This is a complex problem but easy enough to understand and develops student’s problem solving skills.

You be the Nutritionist: Food Aliments

by M.Sandoval • April 20, 2012 • 0 Comments

Become a nutritionist for a day! This lesson has students to becoming a dietician for a day. They write an analysis of a particular client’s dietary related aliment as well as plan a week long menu for that client. Client’s aliments include diverticulitis, celiac disease, Prader-Willi syndrome, dairy allergy, lactose in tolerance, emotional eating, type 2 diabetes, and high cholesterol. This is a case study based assignment.

Tourism Lessons

by M.Sandoval • February 3, 2012 • 3 Comments

This lesson forces students to think about the travel & tourism industry as a whole, historically. There are two projects that have students plan a vacation for a specific amount of money. There is also a mini assignment that has students create a timeline of how the travel/tourism industry changed over time in America. Finally, there is an mini-paper assignment about the future of tourism/travel.

Raspberry Cheesecake Cookies

by M.Sandoval • March 13, 2011 • 14 Comments

Reverse engineering packaged foods has been a hobby of mine for a few years now. It is fascinating how “they” come up with these products and to see if I can recreate them to make them taste better in my own kitchen. As many of you know and hopefully have tried by now, Subway came introduced their raspberry cheesecake cookies through a free raspberry cheesecake cookie promotion on Valentine’s Day just a month ago. As soon as I tried it I thought it was excellent and immediately wanted to make them in large quantities at home!

The Effects of Flour on Cookies

by M.Sandoval • February 18, 2011 • 0 Comments

The purpose of this lesson is to see how different types of flour changes a cookie recipe. The ultimate objective is to determine the best flour to use in this cookie recipe and why flours change the cookie.

Fast Food Fanatic Project

by M.Sandoval • January 28, 2011 • 1 Comment

There has been a lot of hype and a nation wide stirring about Fast Food over the past couple years thanks to movies like Super Size Me and Food, Inc.
Most recently Fast Food hit the news again as a photographer startled the world with pictures of “the indestructible happy meal” that looked exactly the same for over six months that it was on her shelf the only difference being that it was hard as a rock. So I ask my students to do a similar experiment decomposing fast food in my classroom window, make their own predictions, take pictures, and finally draw their own conclusions.

Fast Food Comparison

by M.Sandoval • October 15, 2010 • 0 Comments

My students were aghast that the new Five Guy’s Burgers and Fries that opened up in town were selling 800 calorie hamburgers! Apparently one of them had done their research. I wanted to confirm this information for myself hoping it was only an exaggeration so I went to their website. Quite frankly I was surprised at what I found and thought surely not all restaurants were the same. My hunch was correct, not all restaurants and fast food places are the same some were much worse than an 800 calorie burger! Thus a new lesson was born.

Homemade Candy Bars

by M.Sandoval • February 27, 2010 • 3 Comments

Have you ever wondered how they make candy bars? The scientist in me was so intrigued I just had to figure it out. Nothing can get students more excited than the prospect of making candy. They often remark, “you can make your own candy bars?” “Yes” I say, “its magic.” But really all it takes is a whole bunch of problem solving skills-a great way to teach students these skills as they beg you to engage in this lesson.

Make Your Own Cereal Lab

by M.Sandoval • January 3, 2010 • 1 Comment

I always have my students look at cereal labels and compare two different kinds. We’ll this lesson takes it to the next level by allowing students to bake their own cereal, make an accurate nutrition label for their cereal, create advertising, and delve into FDA regulations on food labeling.

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