The Science of Ice Cream
Science, Innovation and Entrepreneurship through Project-based Learning
The Science
Resources for teaching the science of ice cream.
Innovation
Procedures to incorporate with the Engineering Design Process to Create an Ice Cream Prototype.
1. “How do we create a better ice cream?”
The following slides will take you through steps 2-7. Part of the communication will be the entrepreneurship piece of the project.
Start the Engineering Design Process by asking the question:
“Why do we recreate products that have already been invented?”
Other questions that you can ask are:
“What does a Food Engineer do?”
“What companies might employ someone who has studied Food Engineering and what do they make?”
Collecting Data and Organizing Data
Have your students collect data from family members and friends about likes and dislikes when eating ice cream. They can collect data remotely by using Facetime, putting a survey out on Flipgrid or using other social media tools. Be sure to include words that include sensory science (taste, color, texture). Then have them organize their data by creating a graph of their results.
Real World Connection:
In the business world they call this type of data collection, Market Testing. Your students are testing what flavor of ice cream would be most viable in their market.
Research
Using the data that they collected, have your students begin to research what type of ice cream they want make.
They will need to do additional data collection. For example: if they want to create chocolate ice cream they need to ask deeper questions about why people like chocolate ice cream. They might also want to look into what people don’t like about chocolate ice cream. Have them be brand specific too. Are there specific brands that are more popular and ask questions about why. Questions about cost may also be important data so that when they go to price their ice cream they know what works for their target market. They will also need to research various ingredients for making their ice cream.
Planning and Costs
A big part of planning when becoming an ice cream entrepreneur is understanding what your costs are. This is great for working on math skills as well. Have your students create a cost sheet with various supplies they plan on using and the cost of each supply. This doesn’t only mean how much it will cost to purchase the ingredient, but they need to figure out how much of that ingredient they will need and the specific cost per unit for that ingredient. For example: if a recipe calls for 3 cups of cream and they will need to purchase a quart and divide the cost into 4 units (cups). Then they will have to multiply the units by 3 to figure out the cost of that ingredient as it pertains to their product. For younger students you can do an estimate as well.
Planning and Costs
Another factor to discuss when creating a recipe is the quality of products or the use of alternative products (dairy-free, organic, etc.). For example, do they want to invest in something like an emulsifier to create a smoother ice cream, or will a more traditional recipe work for their market. These factors will also play a part when they go to market their product. If your students use a high quality vanilla they can relay that message to the customer in their advertising and possibly demand a higher cost for their product.
Development
As students begin to work their way through developing a delicious ice cream prototype they may discover that it’s not as easy as they thought it would be. During the development process they will want to make smaller batches to reduce waste while creating prototypes. Here are some essential skills to keep in mind while working through the process:
Testing and Revisions
Now it’s time to get some prototype feedback. Your students should go back to the same test market they used to collect their original data first. It might be difficult to get feedback from those they contacted virtually, but this might spark some creative ideas for collecting more data.
Using feedback about their prototypes they can determine what revisions need to be made, or if their prototype is ready for the marketplace which ice cream solution (recipe) they want to use.
Entrepreneurship
During the Entrepreneurship part of this project, students will take the prototype/product they have created and design a way to get it to the marketplace. This is where Math meets ELA standards and the communication piece of the Engineering Design Process.
Pricing and Profitability
Once your students have decided what ingredients they want to use and how much it will cost to make their product, they need to set a price. This can be a difficult concept (for younger students especially). Social Entrepreneurship is also another concept that you can discuss with your students. Don’t be afraid of discussing taking donations rather than setting a direct price (sometimes people are more generous when they are not told what to spend). Students need to use their cost sheet from their planning and factor in the costs for their final ingredients and materials purchased to determine how they will set the price for their ice cream product.
Pricing and Profitability
Talking about the cost of time with older students can also be an interesting lesson. This will also help students to make realistic goals for determining profitability. It’s a great time to talk about fair market value and what people are willing or not willing to pay for a product such as ice cream.
Your students should be able to use all of the information from their pricing sheet to understand what it will take to become profitable (how much ice cream they will need to sell to cover their costs). Older students can create charts to create a projection for the time and sales needed before making a profit.
Getting Your Ice Cream to the Marketplace
Once your students have determined what ice cream they want to sell they have to decide how they will get it out into the marketplace. During their initial research they should have collected some good data. Students should use that information when creating their marketing plans. Simple ways to market their product can be:
It is important that students use descriptive words and persuasive language to share with their audience why they should purchase their ice cream.
Making Connections
This project can easily align with math standards that students are working on in the classroom or through distance learning. Key Ideas include:
You many also have your students provide details and information about what they learned through Informative/Explanatory Writing. This could also be used as part of a rubric in understanding the depth of knowledge gained from this project.
Additional Resources
Cohesion Education is a great resource to help support standards that connect with this project and their videos are fantastic!
Two great ways to share your product/prototype are Buncee and Flipgrid
BrainPOP has engaging videos to explain complex concepts
The Library Voice tons of library and digital media information from Shannon McClintock Miller
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Send me pictures of your project and tell us about what you learned!