Your Burger and The World

Content Standard F:
Science in Personal and Social Perspectives:
Personal Health

Content Standard C:
Life Science
Populations and Ecosystems

1. Balancing energy input with energy output is important to our personal health.

2. Humans are consumers in food webs.

Students will:

measure the heat energy in food.

determine the relationship between energy input and energy output and one's personal health.

analyze the role of humans in a food web.

Cross-Curricular Connections:

Art:
• Construct graphic organizers, draw cartoons, make a collage, perform a skit, or compose a song.

Health:
• Analyze energy input (nutrition) and energy output (exercise).

Language Arts:
• Communicate through written and oral expression.

Math:
• Measure mass and temperature and determine the relationships between temperature changes and heat energy in foods.
• Organize data and calculate their energy use.

Problem Solving
Analyzing
Inferring
Communicating
Predicting

Materials:

Safety Note: Safety is always a concern in the science lab. Teachers may prefer to demonstrate the use of the calorimeter and assign students the job of reading the thermometer, etc. Accepted safety precautions should be taken when using an open flame, including the use of standard protective eyewear.

Activity 2 Forms:

Student Record Sheet

Data Table

Record Sheet

My Energy Output

Per Student
Paper and pencil
graph paper, graphing calculator, or computer graphing program
Per Group
Food samples including a marshmallow, a nut such as ½ shelled peanut, almond, ½-shelled pecan (larger sizes may take too long to burn)
balance to determine the mass of food samples
purchased calorimeter or one clean aluminum soft drink can
matches
cork
ring stand and clamp
fireproof pad
thermometer
paper clip
water source
graduated cylinder
watch glass or mortar in which to place food sample
standard safety goggles
table - Calories Burned During Exercise Record Sheet

Procedure:

Decision Chart

How to construct a calorimeter.

1. Obtain a clean aluminum soft drink can.
2. Fill the can 1/3 full with water (150 mL).
3. Set the can on a fire pad over a ring stand.
4. Use a ring stand and clamp to suspend a thermometer through the opening of the can. Make sure the thermometer is in the water but does not touch the bottom of the can. The thermometer will measure any changes in the temperature of the water.
5. Straighten out a paper clip. Spear the food to be tested onto one end and stick the other into the cork so that it will fit below the soft drink can as shown.
   

Session 1

1. Introduce the lesson by engaging students in a discussion of energy needs and food chains.
2. Explain how the calorimeter works and review safety precautions. Set up a calorimeter for a teacher demonstration or have the students set up their individual ones. Have each group weigh the recommended amounts of the foods given and record their measurements in grams on the Record Sheet.
3. Fill the calorimeter with the amount of water (mL) indicated by the manufacturer. Read and record the initial water temperature (°C). Light the food and let each type burn for a maximum of five minutes. During the burning observe any water temperature changes. Record the final water temperature (°C) either after the food has completely burned, or after five minutes, whichever occurs first. Record the burning time in minutes. Calculate the temperature difference between the initial and final temperature of the water and record this as change in heat energy. Each group should use a graphic organizer to record the process.
4. Have each group present its data to the class for class discussion.
5. Assign the Record Sheet, My Energy Output for homework. Students are to keep a lunch diary and record their physical activity that occurs over a few days or a week depending on the amount of time available.
6. Ask students to calculate their own energy output as a number of calories per hour that they use during an activity listed in the chart. Some students may be sensitive about their weight and consequently you may choose not to discuss this personal information in class.

Session 2

1. Have students construct a visual representation that illustrates a food chain of which they are a part. These might include flow diagrams, scale diagrams, tree and web diagrams, bird’s eye views, or maps.
2. Direct a class discussion of student findings and interpretations to arrive at a conclusion about the energy relationships among members of a food chain.
   

Suggested Discussion Questions:

Session 1
Have you ever thought of yourself as a consumer in a food chain?
Does eating consume energy or produce energy?
How do you obtain energy and then transform it?
What trophic level of the food chain are you on?
Does your energy input balance with your energy output?
How does eating lower on the food chain compare with eating higher on the food chain?
Session 3
Where are you on the food chain?

Do you eat high or low on the food chain?
How does your trophic level affect the energy transfer through an ecosystem?
Are you balancing energy input with energy output? If you are, what are the benefits? If you are not, what are the consequences?
Do you think your current eating and exercise patterns will affect your health as an adult?

Have the students write a short story or make a collage of their life as they picture it in 10 years. They are to include their predictions about their health as a result of their diet and exercise now. They should make connections between their present health and their career or life-style in the future.

Exercise Physiologist
Nutritionist
Dietician
Home Economist
Farmer
Rancher

Assessment Procedures:

The graphic organizers used for the calorimetric data can be evaluated.
Assessment of measuring and other lab skills is ongoing.
Visual representation, record sheets, short story or collage should be evaluated.