Science Fair Projects on Molding Wheat & White Bread
When trying to design a science experiment for elementary school students, it helps to use a phenomenon that they have likely already observed, such as mold growth on bread. Performing a simple and entertaining experiment on how mold will gather on different types of bread demonstrates what happens when bread goes bad. White and wheat bread differ in ways beyond taste and color, and a science project can reveal if these differences contribute to the accumulation of mold.
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Research
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The term "variable" refers to something you can change in an experiment to see how it makes a difference. In a science experiment, you want to control as many of the variables as possible. In an experiment involving bread mold, differences in the ingredients of white and wheat bread become the variables, assuming the loaves are prepared and cooked in the same way. By having as few differences as possible between the two types of bread, you can ensure that it's the different ingredients affecting the mold growth, and not something else in the environment.
Hypothesize
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To move forward with an experiment, you must draft a hypothesis -- a testable statement that your experiment attempts to support. Based on prior observations and research, your hypothesis acts as a prediction of what you think will happen in your experiment. "White bread will grow mold faster than wheat bread at room temperature" is an example of a hypothesis. After learning about the different breads and factors that cause mold growth, you can make an educated guess -- written as a hypothesis -- about what your experiment will show.
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Perform the Experiment
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The simplest way to perform an experiment about mold accumulation on different bread types is to leave the different breads in controlled conditions and see how fast mold grows on each. Controlling the environment means keeping the bread in a place where nothing else can interfere with mold accumulation.
Science experiments also need documentation as the project progresses. In this case, that involves taking pictures or notes of what the bread looks like at regular intervals. Observing the breads at the same time proves critical, allowing you to note when mold first appears and how quickly it spreads. It likely won't take longer than a few days.
Conclusion
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A conclusion serves to summarize what you've learned from the experiment, explaining the results and whether they supported or rejected your hypothesis. If rejected, scientists attempt to determine where they made a mistake and correct it. If the results support the hypothesis, scientists might get ideas for new experiments to expand their understanding of how mold grows on bread. Potential new variables include changing the temperature at which you store the bread, adding moisture to the bread and changing the recipe.
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