Ninth Grade Advanced Science

Introduction: What do gemologists look for when trying to determine whether a diamond is real or fake? Why
do some minerals sparkle while others are dull? What makes some rocks so hard that they can be used for
constructing buildings while other rocks are easily crushed and are soft enough to be used as baby powder? The
answer to these questions rests in the way that the atoms of rocks and minerals are arranged. When the atoms of
a mineral are arranged in a definite pattern, crystals are formed. In today’s lab you will make some simple
crystals and learn about crystal growth and it gives me the opportunity to see how well you work in groups.

READ ALL DIRECTIONS BEFORE YOU BEGIN AND THEN DECIDE ON WHO WILL DO WHAT.
Possible jobs could be reader, collector, mixer, recorder…
EVERYONE SHOULD BE AN ACTIVE PART OF THIS LAB.!
1. Look at the crystals of table salt under a stereoscope and describe their shape.
2. Measure 10 ml of salt and pour it into a small beaker.
3. Get 10 ml of WARM water from me and then quickly pour it into the beaker to dissolve as
much of the salt as possible.
4. Add 10 ml of liquid bluing. BLUING WILL STAIN YOUR HANDS AND CLOTHES.
5. Add 3 ml of ammonia and stir the mixture.
6. Place 5 pieces of sponge into a plastic petri dish.
7. Place the petri dish on a paper plate that you have labeled with your names and pour the mixture over the
sponges.
8. If you would like the crystals you grow to have color instead of clear you may add a few drops of food
coloring.
9. Place your plate where you are told to separate it from other classes. The plates need to be left undisturbed so
that atoms of salt can align and form bigger crystals.
10. CLEAN UP AND RESTORE THE LAB TO THE WAY YOU FOUND IT!
11. Read the information below concerning the materials that you used and answer the questions on a separate
sheet of paper. Place the lab title, your name, and the date on your paper.

Using the web site: http://www.mrsstewart.com/pages/explanation.htm and any other sources, answer the
following:

1. Why do you think salt crystals were used?

2. Why can warm water dissolve more salt than cold water?
3. Why was ammonia used to help grow crystals?
4. Why was Mrs. Stewart’s Laundry Bluing used to help grow crystals?
5. Why were sponges used to help grow crystals?
6. Why is the formation of crystals considered to be a physical and not a chemical change?

NEXT DAY (or next observation)

7. Describe the amount of crystal growth (for example, none, 10% of the petri dish had crystals,
crystals overflowed dish and plate…).
8. Compare your crystals with some groups who had more crystals AND some groups who had less.
Provide some reasons as to why you had more or less crystals than some other groups.
9. Why were you asked to read directions before you began?
10. Describe the process of how you grew crystals include the materials used and what purpose each
served.
11. What could be done within your group or within the class to increase your success in this lab?