Homeschool Zoo Annex: Learning with yeast

Thursday, December 06, 2012

Learning with yeast

One of the things we did as a homeschool family was bake bread. Now, I don’t mean just for something yummy to eat, but for a way to study yeast and how it works.

Yeast is a living animal, which means it reacts to its environment (heat and cold) and it feeds on sugars to grow. It also needs water to help it along. Then, as it feeds and grows, it gives off gases which cause the bread to rise and become the light, airy loaf of goodness you’ve worked so hard to achieve.

Another way to use yeast in a science experiment is by following the instructions on NASA’s Planets in a Bottle lesson plans. These were designed for grades 2 through 4, and are really interesting.

Of course, if you still want to use yeast, flour, water, and sugar to make bread, you could probably bake it in laboratory ovens that may be available in your school science lab. Either way, it’s a lot of fun and a learning experience!