Science6-8
Candy Corn Temperature Lab and CER Guide
By Anghuo S.
A 35–45 minute hands-on lab for 6th graders in which students test how warm and cold water affect how quickly candy corn changes, then write a Claim-Evidence-Reasoning response. It builds skills in variable identification, data collection, and scientific explanation of thermal energy transfer, with sentence starters and a CER template for scaffolding.
Customize for your classroom
Teacher Guide & Tips
- Use as a single class period of guided inquiry, with student teams of 3–4 running both cups side by side and recording observations at each time interval.
- Discussion question: Why do you think the candy corn changed faster in one cup than the other, and what evidence from your thermometer readings supports your idea?
- For struggling readers, provide the variable word bank and sentence starters up front, and let them complete the CER reasoning with a partner before writing independently.
- For advanced students, have them research the particle model of kinetic energy and propose a controlled follow-up test, such as varying water volume or candy size.
- Plan roughly 35–45 minutes total: about 5 minutes for predictions and variables, 15–20 minutes for the timed trials, and the remainder for analysis and the CER write-up.
Science6-8
Candy Corn Temperature Lab and CER Guide
By Anghuo S.
A 35–45 minute hands-on lab for 6th graders in which students test how warm and cold water affect how quickly candy corn changes, then write a Claim-Evidence-Reasoning response. It builds skills in variable identification, data collection, and scientific explanation of thermal energy transfer, with sentence starters and a CER template for scaffolding.
Customize for your classroom
Teacher Guide & Tips
- Use as a single class period of guided inquiry, with student teams of 3–4 running both cups side by side and recording observations at each time interval.
- Discussion question: Why do you think the candy corn changed faster in one cup than the other, and what evidence from your thermometer readings supports your idea?
- For struggling readers, provide the variable word bank and sentence starters up front, and let them complete the CER reasoning with a partner before writing independently.
- For advanced students, have them research the particle model of kinetic energy and propose a controlled follow-up test, such as varying water volume or candy size.
- Plan roughly 35–45 minutes total: about 5 minutes for predictions and variables, 15–20 minutes for the timed trials, and the remainder for analysis and the CER write-up.