Y5 get digesting

Today Y5 did a digestion experiment.


They took 20 ml of starch solution

And had a spotting tile ready with drops of iodine in each well

Each group added a different amount of amylase enzyme

The enzyme will chemically digest the long chain starch molecules

Cutting them into smaller glucose molecules

When the starch is tested with iodine it turns black

The enzyme is added to the starch

The mixture is agitated with the pipette

The timer is started when the solutions are mixed

Then every 30 seconds a drop of the mix is added to a new well on the spotting tile

If it goes black there is starch left and the enzyme has not digested it all

But when it does not turn black it means the enzyme has chopped up all of the starch and it is turning into glucose.

We keep going until the iodine stays brown
These are the results

The more amylase that was added the quicker the starch was digested

Small amounts of amylase (5ml) took the longest

And large (15 ml) took much less time
#
Each well in the tile corresponds to 30s in time

It was a very successful experiment.

Y8 test the spring toys

All of Y8 got involved in spring toy testing over the last few lessons. This is part of their energy studies.
Spring toys were primed and then the height they jumped up into the air was noted. The Elastic Potential energy was converted into first Kinetic and then Gravitational Potential energy.

 

Which is the spring toy and which the bouncy student?

They used the iPads to record the highest point of the flight.

The App was slopro so they could scrub through the action to find the highest point.

Here is a primed toy ready to spring.

We also need to know the mass so the force can be calculated

Then complicated calculations need a computer

The force x the distance (N x m) gives us the energy in Joules

All tests were conducted in a fair, accurate and reliable manner.

And lots of toys were tested so a good comparison could be made

Most of the spring toys actually appear as a blur on these photos



Sometimes jumping toys come as a bit of a shock, even when you were expecting them!

Y6 meet the maggots

During their investigation into the life processes Y6 checked out whether maggots are sensitive to light.

First shine the light from one side

What do the maggots do?

Then shine it from the other side

What happens now?

Do the maggots always do the same thing?

Now try from overhead. What happens in this scenario?

Re-capture your maggots and reset the experiment each time.

Count how many went which way.

Compare results with your classmates.

And note down the results.

Every group found their fastest maggot

So we could have a maggot race at the end of the lesson. (My money is on lane three)

And then all wash hands before lunch.