Huwerl Thornton, Jr.
Foam, Foam Everywhere!
Objective: Students will be able create a foam (whipped cream) using heavy whipping cream and understand the principles that determine a foam.
Students will be able to read and follow directions to completion (with adult assistance) to make foam (whipped cream).
Materials: 6-10 mixing bowls (preferably metal), 6-10 whisks, heavy cream or whipping cream, powdered sugar, measuring cup, clear plastic cups, ice (optional for ice bath)
Procedure: Students working in groups of four will make observations and write what they think the criteria of foam are on chart paper. Their observations will be compared to the actual standards of foam. Students will then follow the directions to make whipped cream by hand using the whisk and a frozen metal bowl and observe if it follows the standards of foam. After successfully making whipped cream, students will use the whipped cream as topping for the JELL-O® they made previously. Students will talk about characteristics of liquids versus solids.
Something to beware of: The metal bowls should be placed in the freezer at least one hour before attempting this. Ideally, while whipping up the whipped cream, it is easier if the metal bowl is sitting in ice. This may be difficult to do with a large class. Whipped cream requires a lot of energy to make by hand. If the metal bowl warms up, it becomes even harder to make. All four students will have to pitch in to successfully make whipped cream. I did this myself and I really thought my arm was going to fall off! The cream must stopped being whipped when there are stiff peaks. They look like mini mountains.
Here is a picture of what that looks like from my own personal experience:
There are videos online on how to make whipped cream. Care has to be taken that the whipped cream does not turn into butter. For once the whipped cream has turned into butter, it cannot be undone.
Additional lessons:
Make mayonnaise as an emulsion. This lesson also requires a lot of energy to make mayonnaise. The ingredients are corn oil, egg whites, and lemon juice. Salad dressing can also be made.
Put flour or dirt in water and make a suspension. There are other interesting experiments you can do with corn starch. At low concentrations, corn starch can be used to make gravy. Corn starch can also be used to make "oobleck," the green rain from the Dr. Seuss book Bartholomew and the Oobleck. It is made with cornstarch and water. When it is held it feels like a solid, but a person's body temperature quickly turns the suspension into a liquid. There are many lessons that can be found online that incorporates the book with the science experiment.
