Chicken Wing Exploration ............................................................... 1
Overview ................................................................................... 1
Brief Background Information .................................................. 3
Setup ......................................................................................... 4
Procedure .................................................................................. 5
Vocabulary ................................................................................ 7
Sections of a Chicken Wing ....................................................... 8
Chicken Wing Skeletal Structure ............................................... 8
Bones’ Dynamic Duo: Collagen and Calcium .................................. 9
Overview ................................................................................... 9
Brief Background Information ................................................ 11
Setup ....................................................................................... 12
Procedure ................................................................................ 12
Vocabulary .............................................................................. 14
Rubber Bones Observation Log .............................................. 15
2nd – 6th grade
This is a quick lab that students could do at home or in the
classroom.
A chicken wing’s structure and function is similar to that of a
human arm, filled with bones, tendons, ligaments and cartilage.
Bones are made up of hard pieces of bone.
Students may think molecules are hard and heavy in rock, wet and
runny in liquids, invisible and light in gases and that they are like
blueberries in a muffin or the same shape as the matter they
constitute.
Students will explore chicken wings and identify the various parts
including:
 Bones (radius, ulna, humerus, shoulder joint, elbow joint)
 Tendons
 Cartilage
Students will be able to observe the relationships between bones,
tendons, and cartilage.
Students will identify how a chicken wing is similar to that of a
human arm.
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2-PS1-1.
2-PS1-2.
4-LS1-1.
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MS-LS1-3.
Basic Functions (K-2)
Coordination
 People use their senses to find out about their surroundings
and themselves. Different senses give different information.
Laboratory experiences in life sciences
Grades 1 – 13
Modeling is concerned with capturing key relations among ideas
rather than surface appearance
Grades K – 8
 We can learn about the world through modeling
Arguments use reasoning to connect ideas and data
Grades K – 8
 We can learn about the world through argument
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A chicken wing’s structure and function is very similar to that of a
human arm and it has humerus, ulna, and radius bones along with
muscle tissue.
Many kinds of tissues are present in a chicken wing, including
bone, muscles, ligaments, cartilage, and blood.
Ligaments connect bone to bone and can be found at the end
where two bones come together. They look like whitish, ribbonlike structures.
Cartilage is a soft tissue that serves as a cushion between bones
so they don’t rub together.
The body has three kinds of joints: ball and socket, hinge, and
gliding joints.
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One hour to bake chicken plus 45 minutes to conduct lab
Each student, pair or group will need:
 Baking pan
 Chicken wings
 Gloves
 Soap and water
 Paper towels
 2% bleach solution
 Magnifying lenses
 Dissection Tools
You will also need:
 Overhead transparency OR PowerPoint file of Sections of a
Chicken Wing and Chicken Wing Skeletal Structure
 Overhead projector
Raw chicken may be contaminated by Salmonella, a pathogenic
bacteria. If students are working with the chicken before it has
been baked, be sure they keep their hands away from their face
and mouth.
Be cautious when using sharp dissection tools.
Wash hands with soap and water after the activity.
(90 minutes)
Bake chicken wings at 350 degrees for one hour
Note: make sure your chicken wings contain an upper wing, lower
wing, and wing tip – See Diagram.
Make overhead transparency of: Sections of a Chicken Wing and
Chicken Wing Skeletal Structure OR prepare to show the Busy
Bones Post Activity_Chicken Wing Exploration.ppt presentation
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Anticipatory Set:
Ask students if they can think of how birds and humans are
similar. Accept student responses (two legs, two eyes, etc.). If
not mentioned, tell them that the structure and function of a
bird wing and a human arm are very similar. Explain to them
that they will be exploring chicken wings to learn how the two
are similar.
1. Give students chicken wings to examine. Have them identify
the upper and lower wing and the wingtip.
2. Show them how to gently pull off the muscle tissue (meat).
Ask them what they notice (What do you see? Are there
different textures? Different colors?).
3. Clean the remaining meat off your chicken wing with soap and
water.
4. Identify the humerus, radius, and ulna bones. Looking at your
own arm, are you able to identify where these bones on your
body would be found?
5. Closely examine the joint between the upper and lower wing,
and between the lower wing and wing tip. Ligaments connect
bone to bone and can be found at the end where two bones
come together. They look like whitish, ribbon-like structures.
6. Encourage the students to feel the texture at the ends of the
bones at the joint. This is where cartilage is found. Cartilage is
a soft tissue (protein) that helps give bones their flexibility. It
also serves as a cushion between bones so the bones do not
rub together.
7. Look again at the joints of the chicken wing. Encourage them
to bend and straighten the joints and observe how they fit
together. See if they can discover the three kinds of joints
present:
a) Ball and socket joint (shoulder joint): These joints feature a
connection between two bones where one bone fits inside
the space of another bone (form a fist with one hand and
cover that fist with your other hand…that is what a ball
and socket joint looks like). These joints allow for forward,
backward, and circular motion. Our shoulders and hips are
examples of ball and socket joints.
b) Hinge Joint (elbow joint): They can open and close like a
door. Our elbows are examples of hinge joints.
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c) Gliding Joint (wrist joint): This type of joint features two
bone plates that glide against one another. The joints in
your ankles and wrists are examples of gliding joints. Try
holding your forearm steady while moving your wrist up
and down. Now wave your wrist side to side. That is your
gliding joint at work.
Note: Quite often, the chicken wings (sometimes called Buffalo
Wings) served in restaurants are only part of a chicken wing (the
upper wing or lower wing). If you happen to be using this kind of
wing, see if your students can identify which part of the chicken
wing they are exploring.
Have an adult to cut open the bones to allow students to look
inside. Any soft red material is bone marrow. The marrow is found
inside the spongy bone.
Would a broken chicken wing heal the same way as a human
bone? What evidence have you found to support your answer?
Bring in other bones to compare to the chicken wing (bones are
available at a grocery store). How do these bones compare to the
chicken wings and wings you saw in the Busy Bones lab?
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Bone (bōn/): any of the pieces of hard, whitish tissue making up
the skeleton in humans and other vertebrates.
Marrow (/ˈmarō/): a soft fatty substance in the cavities of bones,
in which blood cells are produced
Cartilage (/ˈkärtl-ij/): a strong but flexible material found in some
parts of the body (such as the nose, the outer ear, and some
joints).
Joint (/joint/): a structure in the body at which two parts of the
skeleton are fitted together.
Ligament (ˈligəmənt/): a tough piece of tissue in the body that
holds bones together.
Tendon (ˈtendən/): a tough piece of tissue in the body that
connects a muscle to a bone.
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2nd - 6th grade
In this investigation, students compare chicken bones that have
been denatured in two ways to show the bone components of
strength and flexibility.
Bones get their strength and flexibility from a combination of
minerals (primarily calcium) and collagen (a protein). The absence
of calcium or collagen affects the strength and flexibility of the
bone.
Students learn about the two main components of bone.
Students learn why collagen in bones is important.
Students learn why minerals (calcium) in bones are important.
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2-PS1-1.
2-PS1-2.
4-LS1-1.
MS-LS1-3.
Basic Functions (K-2)
Coordination
 People use their senses to find out about their surroundings
and themselves. Different senses give different information.
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Modeling across topics such as matter and energy (Modeling is
fore grounded)
Across Grades 4 – 8
 Important aspects of understanding and engaging in using
models, (constructing, critiquing, and revising models) as well
as important aspects of the nature of models (understanding
that models are tools for making predictions and
explanations).
Laboratory experiences in life sciences
Grades 1 – 13
Mass and weight are conserved across a broad range of
transformations
Grades K – 8
 Matter can be transformed, but not created or destroyed,
through physical and chemical processes.
Good measurements provide more reliable and useful
information about object properties than common sense
impressions
Grades K – 8
 We can learn about the world through measurement
Modeling is concerned with capturing key relations among ideas
rather than surface appearance
Grades K – 8
 We can learn about the world through modeling
Arguments use reasoning to connect ideas and data
Grades K – 8
 We can learn about the world through argument
Return to Table of Contents
Bones get their strength and flexibility from a matrix of calcium
and collagen.
Calcium is a mineral in bones that give it hardness and strength.
Collagen is a protein in the bone that gives it flexibility.
The absence of calcium or collagen affects the strength and
flexibility of the bone.
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Prepare Bones:
Rubbery Bones:
Brittle Bones:
approximately 75 minutes
daily observations for two weeks
1 class period
For Rubbery Bones:
 Cooked chicken legs/drumsticks (or wing bones)
 Pot of water for boiling
 Quart (liter) jar with lid
 White vinegar (5%)
For Brittle Bones:
 Cooked chicken legs/drumsticks (or wing bones)
 Dish detergent / degreaser
 Pan or Cookie Sheet
 Paper towels
 Access to an Oven
Each student will need:
 Soap/Moist towelettes/Hand sanitizer to wash hands,
paper towels and sanitizing wipes
 Safety goggles
 Rubber Bones Observation Log
(75 minutes)
Put chicken bones in a pot of water and boil for 30 minutes so any
remaining meat falls off.
Remove the bones and let cool or rinse them under cold water.
Pull as much meat off the chicken leg bone as possible.
Note: Students may create the rubbery or brittle bones, or, the
teacher can make them ahead of time.
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Anticipatory Set:
Ask students what they think of when they hear the word,
“matrix.” Possible answers may range from a popular science
fiction movie to video games, etc. Explain to students that a
matrix is like the ingredients of something. For example, ask
them to list the ingredients of bread (flour, sugar, oil, yeast,
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salt). Explain that each ingredient serves an important
purpose in making the bread. Tell the student that the lab
they are about to do involves learning about two important
parts our bone matrix, collagen and calcium.
Part I: Rubbery Bones
1. Have students examine the flexibility of the bones by gently
trying to bend them with their fingers. Note how hard the
bone is. Like our bones, chicken bones contain a mineral called
calcium, which makes them hard.
2. Put the bones in the jar and cover with vinegar.
3. Secure the lid on the jar.
4. After 24 hours, remove the bones from the jar and examine
the flexibility. Have students record their observations. They
can use the Rubber Bones Observation Log.
5. Replace the bone in the vinegar.
6. Examine the bone for flexibility each day for 14 days. Ask
students to record their observations daily using the Rubber
Bones Observation Log.
Results
The flexibility of the bone increases daily. At the end of the
test period, the bone feels very rubbery.
Why?
Vinegar, which is a mild acid, reacts chemically with the bone.
It removes (dissolves) the calcium compounds in the bone.
Once the calcium is dissolved, there is nothing left in the bone
to make it hard. All that is left is soft bone tissue (collagen).
Part II: Brittle Bones
1. Test the texture of the bone by scratching the bone with the
edge of their thumbnail (hands should be washed afterward).
2. Put half of the cleaned bones on a pan or cookie sheet and
bake for 4 hours at 275 degrees. Bake the remaining bones for
4 hours at 325 degrees. (Note: you may want to open a
window for ventilation as hot chicken bones smell until they
cool)
3. Remove the bones from the oven and let them completely
cool before touching them. Test the texture of the two groups
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of bones by scratching them with the edge of a thumbnail
(wash hands afterward).
4. Wearing safety goggles, have students cover bones in paper
towel and bend them or step on them. (Note: be careful
touching broken bone as it can be sharp).
Results
The baked bone becomes brittle.
Why?
Heat breaks down the flexible collagen fibers found in the
bone and leaves only the hard minerals (primarily calcium).
Baked bone is still stiff because of the minerals present, but is
no longer flexible. It can be scratched with a fingernail and will
break easily if bent or stepped on.
Have students describe and summarize their observations and
chart what they noticed.
Why do you think the collagen and calcium of the bone matrix is
important?
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Bone Matrix (bōn/ /ˈmātriks/): The intercellular substance of
bone tissue consisting of collagen fibers, ground substance, and
inorganic bone salts
Collagen (/ˈkäləjən/): the main structural protein of the various
connective tissues (skin, tendons, cartilage, bone, and connective
tissue) in animals. It is often considered to be the "glue that holds
the body together".
Calcium (/ˈkalsēəm/): A mineral found mainly in the hard part of
bones, where it is stored. A substance that is found in most plants
and animals and that is especially important in people for strong
healthy bones.
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Name: ______________________________
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