Yummmmm, mitochondria and golgi bodies never looked so good!


I’m a firm believer in less textbook and more hands-on when it comes to science for grades K through 8th.  When my son started his ninth grade science text this year, I did so kicking and screaming!  I knew it was the best course of action for him, given his college and career aspirations, but I was going to miss his regular concocting and mixing on the kitchen table.  Oh, and there was the semester we did Backyard Ballistics as our science!

I still look for hands-on activities to enhance his text and occasional labs.  This week's fun? We’re making cells out of glelatin and candy…what a great way to learn about mitchondria!

A number of recipes abound for gelatin cells, but this is what we mixed up in our kitchen lab. 

Needless to say, this is a terrific activity for all ages.  Even a buddying three year old scientist will enjoy poking a gum bull (nucleus) into the gelatin!

This week we made our moulds and gathered our candies. In addition, we completed a vocabulary sheet which included the terms below. We’ll begin assembling our cells later this week.

Gelatin Cells

1 small package lemon or light colored gelatin
1 small envelope Knox gelatin
1 cup boiling water
1 cup cold water

Pour two gelatin packets into a bowl.  Add 1 cup hot water. Stir thoroughly.  Stir in 1 cup of cold water.  Stir well.

We used two shapes for our moulds.  Spray the moulds with a non-stick cooking spray.  This will make removal easier.  First, we selected a square freezer container, so we could “stack” cells to look like plant cells. 

A plastic cup was also used to make a more rounded cell.

Note:  I recommend doubling this recipe so you can make 3-4 thicker cells.

Next, we gathered candies for different cell parts:
gum ball .for the. Nucleus
4 raisins  for  Vacuoles       
green m and m’s   or Skittles for  Golgi Bodies
             red m and m’s  or Skittles for  Endoplasmic Reticulum
             1 teaspoon of round cake sprinkles  for  Ribosomes
            4 .red Hot Tamales or white Good N Plenty  for. Mitochondria
           
 
Assembling the cell:

Remove the gelatin from the mould.  If your moulds are thick (you doubled the recipe),
Cut the mould in half horizontally.  If your moulds aren’t very thick, then your child will just insert the cell parts directly into this one piece.  Do not push candies directly into the gelatin, or it will crack and break.  Have them carefully make a slit in the gelatin with a spoon. Then, gently push the candy into the gelatin.


If you were able to cut the cell in half, your child can insert cell parts on both halves, then put the two halves back together.

Thanks for visiting.  See you next week on The Porch!

Michelle


Michelle and her husband have been homeschooling for 10 years.  They are the owners of Treasure Box Press.  Michelle holds a Master's degree in Child Development and Family Studies. She serves as the Judge Advisor for the North Carolina FIRST (www.usfirst.org) Lego League and a judge for the www.FIRST.org World Festival.  She is the author of numerous Sam's Science Adventures, including "RIC: Robots in the Classroom", all available through www.TreasureBoxPress.com.  She spent 15 years in the biotechnology industry before turning her heart toward home.

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