Cookies in the Lab
My freshman science class had an enjoyable time working on this "cookie" lab this week. We are learning about energy and different ways that we get the energy we use in our daily life. And so we got to experience "mining" for fossil fuels.
The cookie is your land, raisins = coal, nuts = oil, and chocolate chips = natural gas. The basic idea is to mine out these resources (without looking at the bottom of the cookie for deposits) with a toothpick and to generally try not to damage the land.
Some students were very meticulous in their fuel extraction. Others, not so much. This is what the land can look like after you mine it for coal, natural gas, and oil:
Fossil Fuel Cookies:
Beat together:
1 stick butter, softened
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. brown sugar
1 egg (2 Tbs. water, 1 Tbs. oil, 2 tsp. baking powder)
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. vanilla
Next, add:
1 c. + 2 Tbs. flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
After that is all mixed together, stir in:
1 c. chocolate chips
3/4 c. raisins
3/4 c. chopped walnuts
I was concerned that this wouldn't make enough for my class of 21, until I added all the fossil fuels and the dough grew a lot. (I ended up with 26 cookies)
Bake at 375F for 8 minutes. Cool, then mine away!
The cookie is your land, raisins = coal, nuts = oil, and chocolate chips = natural gas. The basic idea is to mine out these resources (without looking at the bottom of the cookie for deposits) with a toothpick and to generally try not to damage the land.
Some students were very meticulous in their fuel extraction. Others, not so much. This is what the land can look like after you mine it for coal, natural gas, and oil:
Fossil Fuel Cookies:
Beat together:
1 stick butter, softened
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. brown sugar
1 egg (2 Tbs. water, 1 Tbs. oil, 2 tsp. baking powder)
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. vanilla
Next, add:
1 c. + 2 Tbs. flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
After that is all mixed together, stir in:
1 c. chocolate chips
3/4 c. raisins
3/4 c. chopped walnuts
I was concerned that this wouldn't make enough for my class of 21, until I added all the fossil fuels and the dough grew a lot. (I ended up with 26 cookies)
Bake at 375F for 8 minutes. Cool, then mine away!
How clever! I have a feeling that your students will always remember this lab:)
ReplyDeleteI used this but expanded on it- I had one group mining under the watchful eyes of a soil conservation officer so they had to mine very carefully and replace displaced soil, one mining under the pretense that they could mine in one spot only so they had to pick the spot they felt would yield the most and leave the rest and then one group had full access (aka strip mining) but had a limited time in which to do it.
ReplyDeleteDo you have the lesson plan or lab sheet you can share on that?
DeleteIt came from a text book that had a lot of environmental studies lab activities like this, but I can't remember the name of the book. I think, though, that if you look closely at the picture above of the handout for the students, you could probably make your own that was similar.
DeleteIs there a lab sheet to go with it?
ReplyDeleteIs there a lab sheet to go with it?
ReplyDeleteAnyone looking for the lab/textbook: http://www.whsd.net/userfiles/1524/Classes/7398/Activity%2022%20-%20Fossil%20Fuels%20Students.pdf
ReplyDelete