Mowchan
Shea
Hestmark
Jessica
Wojcik
Kaitie
Seay
The Egg-Speriment
Context
In this experiment, we will put two eggs in vinegar and one egg in water. This must be done two days in
advance. After two days, the eggs in vinegar will have lost its shell and become a naked egg. This is
appropriate for fifth grade because they will make predictions and a hypothesis about what will happen,
name the independent and dependent variables and the controlled variable, as well as explain the science
behind why egg shell in vinegar dissolved.
Extension Activity
We will take one of these naked eggs and then place it into a jar of food colored water. Placing the naked
egg in food coloring shows how the water moves through the egg membrane and affects the entire egg,
not just the outer layer of the egg. A chicken egg is one of the largest single cells we can easily observe. It
contains all the organelles and has the properties of a typical eukaryotic cell. The fact that it is easy to
obtain, easy to handle, and easily measured makes it an ideal cell to study when examining osmosis and
solutions.
Materials
Three Eggs
Three Glasses
Vinegar
Water
Food Coloring
Vocabulary
Independent Variable
Dependent Variable
Controlled Variable
Chemical Reaction
Dissolve
Osmosis
Related Virginia SOLs (5th grade)
5.1
The student will demonstrate an understanding of scientific reasoning, logic, and the nature of
science by planning and conducting investigations in which
c) estimates are made and accurate measurements of elapsed time are made using proper tools;
d) hypotheses are formed from testable questions;
e) independent and dependent variables are identified;
f) constants in an experimental situation are identified;
g) data are collected, recorded, analyzed, and communicated using proper graphical
representations and metric measurements;
h) predictions are made using patterns from data collected, and simple graphical data are
generated;
Jennifer
Mowchan
Shea
Hestmark
Jessica
Wojcik
Kaitie
Seay
i) inferences are made and conclusions are drawn;
j) models are constructed to clarify explanations, demonstrate relationships, and solve needs;
5.5
The student will investigate and understand that organisms are made of one or more cells and
have distinguishing characteristics that play a vital role in the organisms ability to survive and
thrive in its environment. Key concepts include
a) basic cell structures and functions;
Differentiation
In order to differentiate, we would place the class in groups containing mixed intellectual levels so that
the students can learn from one anothers thinking and help explain confusing vocabulary terms. If we
were to do this experiment in a lower level grade, we would not include the extension activity (placing the
naked egg in food colored water to show osmosis) as well as not try and explain independent and
dependent variables.