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Type
science_lab
Pre Lab
Background: Have you ever looked at the side of a cereal box and noticed that iron is listed as a nutrient? That iron is not just a chemical compound — it is actually tiny particles of **elemental iron**, the same metal used to make nails and car parts! When manufacturers fortify cereal with iron, they grind pure iron metal into an extremely fine powder and mix it directly into the cereal ingredients. Because the iron is simply mixed in and not chemically bonded to the other ingredients, the cereal is considered a **mixture** — a combination of two or more substances that are physically combined but not chemically joined. This means the iron keeps its own properties, including the ability to be attracted to a magnet.
In science, we classify matter into **elements**, **compounds**, and mixtures. An **element** is a pure substance made of only one type of atom — iron (Fe) is element number 26 on the periodic table. A **compound** is formed when two or more elements chemically bond together, like water (H₂O) or table salt (NaCl). A **mixture** contains multiple substances that are physically combined but can be separated by physical means. Since the iron in cereal is not chemically bonded to the carbohydrates, proteins, or vitamins around it, we can use a physical **separation** technique — magnetism — to pull the iron particles out of the mixture.
Iron is an essential mineral for human **nutrition**. Your body uses iron to make hemoglobin, the protein in red blood cells that carries oxygen throughout your body. The recommended daily intake of iron for a 7th grader is about 8–11 mg per day. Many cereals are fortified to provide 10–100% of that daily value. In this open inquiry lab, you will design your own procedure to extract iron from cereal using a strong magnet and then analyze your results using **error analysis** and **Claim-Evidence-Reasoning** to draw conclusions about which cereal contains the most iron.
Vocabulary
Term: mixture
Definition: A combination of two or more substances that are physically combined but not chemically bonded, and can be separated by physical means.
Term: separation
Lab Type
Post Lab
Standards
Safety Level
Teacher Notes
Estimated Time
Experiment Design
Research Question
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