Name ____________________________________
Date __________________________
Candy Corn Pumpkin Lab
Objective: How well will candy corn pumpkins dissolve in room temperature water, vinegar, oil, and isopropanol?
Hypothesis (5 parts, 1 for each liquid plus the pumpkin left on the table):
● No liquid:
● Water:
● Vinegar:
● Oil:
● Isopropanol:
Independent variable (include levels!):
Dependent variable:
Constants (at least 3!):
Control setup:
Materials:
● 4 clear cups
● 4 graduated cylinders
●
●
●
●
Triple beam balance
4 Weigh trays
5 candy pumpkins (DO NOT eat!)
Paper towels
● Timer
Procedure:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
● Ruler
● Solutions (all room temperature):
○ 75 mL water
○ 75 mL isopropanol
○ 75 mL white vinegar
○ 75 mL soybean Oil
Gather 4 clear cups and 4 weigh trays
Label the cups and trays Water, Vinegar, Oil, and Isopropanol
Pour 75 mL of each solution into its appropriately labeled cup (1 cup per solution)
Record qualitative and quantitative observations of each pumpkin
a. Mass: weigh 1 tray, record it in the table, weigh the candy pumpkin in its tray, then subtract the weight of
the tray to know the weight of the candy pumpkin
Put 1 candy pumpkin in each solution and leave 1 on your table
Record observations every 5 minutes (use a timer!)
After 10 minutes, remove each partially dissolved candy pumpkin from its cup, dry it with a paper towel,
and put it on its corresponding tray
Record new qualitative and quantitative observations (new mass, volume, density) of the pumpkins and
the solutions
Answer the questions in complete sentences using your data
Clean up your table: put materials away, dry tables, throw away trash
Write a conclusion that restates your hypothesis and explains why each part was or wasn’t correct
Data Table:
Qualitative and Quantitative Observations at Each Time Point
Solution
None (leave the
pumpkin on the
table)
Water
Oil
Vinegar
Isopropanol
0 Minutes
Describe 1 pumpkin and weigh it
before you put it in the cup
5 Minutes
Qualitative observations of pumpkin
and liquid
10 Minutes
Qualitative observations of pumpkin
and liquid
Questions (Answer in complete sentences!):
1. How has each pumpkin changed (appearance and mass)?
2. How has each solution changed?
a. If there is orange dye in the solution, where is it located?
b. If anything else is in the liquid, where is it located?
3. What can you infer about the density of the orange dye and sugar mixture based on the location of the dye in
each cup?
Conclusion:
On a separate sheet of paper restate your hypothesis, explain 1) whether it was right or wrong for each solution, 2)
use your data to support your inferences, 3) explain any experimenter error that could have affected the results
Candy Pumpkin Lab:
Quantitative and qualitative observations to be written in your data table
1. Mass (g):
2. Starting volume: 1.8 cm3
3. Density = mass (g) / volume (cm3)
4. Write a description of each pumpkin before you put it in the liquid
5. At 5, 10, and 15 minutes, write down observations in your data table
a. Describe any changes to the pumpkin
b. Describe any changes to the liquid
i.
Is there orange dye in any of the liquids?
ii.
Is there anything else in the liquids?
6. At 20 minutes remove the pumpkin
a. Describe any qualitative changes in the pumpkin
b. Measure a new:
i.
volume:
ii.
Mass:
iii.
Density (g/cm3):
c. Describe any changes to the liquid
i.
Is there orange dye in any of the liquids?
ii.
Is there anything else in the liquid?