Mini-Magic

Materials:
-average sized styrofoam cup
-pressure cooker
-water, enough to fill the cooker with a 1/2 inch of water
-hot plate
-glass cookware dish that fits in the cooker (heat friendly)

The lesson begins showing the students an average sized stryrofoam cup and ask them what do they think will happen to the cup after being in the pressure cooker for 10-15 minutes.

Pour in the water, 1/2 inch up in the cooker. Place the glassware (heat safe) in the cooker. Close the lid tight and screw on the top. Place the cooker on the hot plate. After the pot begins to hiss, start the timer (10-15 mins)

After 10- 15 minutes run the pressure cooker under cold water to decrease the pressure (careful, the pot gets extremely hot) Gather the students and take out the cup. Well la, we have a miniature styrofoam cup. The students LOVE IT and are so amazed. We then go over their responses that were on the board to see if anyone was right or on the right track.

Then it's time to explain what was going on. The gas from the cup starts to escape and the tiny air pockets compress together forming a small little cup. Be careful not to leave the cup in the cooker too long because it can eventually melt.

After explaining, we can use the scientiifc method to try more experiments. How long can we leave the cup in before it actually melts? How small can we get the cup? It's important to let the students come up with the ideas so they can feel that ownership.

I would love to use the Flip cameras on all my science experiments so they can be uploaded to our school website, wiki page and engrade. Then the parents and everyone else can see what we are doing at Lake Michigan Academy thanks to Digital Wish!