Crystals, Candy, and Clinker workshop—online

This workshop will introduce teachers of middle school science, chemistry, earth science, geology and environmental science to materials sciences. A review of 9 labs will help students see various applications of materials in everyday life.
Participants will:
– observe how thermal processing impacts metals
– discover how metals and glass react to annealing and quenching
– create composite materials to test

Activities will include:
Hot or Not? Heat a brick on one side without heat affecting the other side.
Candy fiber pull: Heat Jolly Ranchers and see how sugar fibers resemble the fibers of glass.

Glass bead on a wire: Identify metals using borax and heat.
Engineered concrete: Mix cement and composite materials to see which is strongest.
Piezoelectric materials: Discover materials that generate an electric charge with applied pressure.
Shape memory alloys: Observe alloys that return to their original shape after heating and bending.
Thermal processing of bobby pins: Experiment with annealing and quenching to see the effect on metal.

Thermal shock: Determine the differences in glass materials when heated and cooled.
How strong is your chocolate? See if your favorite candy bar can stand up to weight.

Participants will hear from industry experts about careers and real-world applications during lunch. Addresses standards in chemistry, physical science, environmental science and physical geology.
All participants will receive a materials science classroom kit ($250 value) and .7 CEUs, as well as the opportunity to apply for replacement supplies through a kit grant option.