Brown is Not a Tasty Color

It is that glorious time of year again....SCIENCE FAIR!!

Wait for it though. Remember? This is the year that we get to do two projects. So lucky.

Robyn's project probably won't start until after the holidays, but June's school always gets a jump on things and they present before Thanksgiving Break. (I actually like that better. Let's just get it done!)

This year was much better because I had no false assumptions that Tyler was going to be helping out. Don't get me wrong...he is amazing at helping with the kids, but school projects are not his thing.

June stayed on top of each step. She spent an entire Saturday doing her experiment and organizing her data. A friend even called mid-experiment and June responsibly said that she couldn't play because she was watching apples.

Apples. We watched them. For a long time.

June's project was to see what liquid would best keep apples from browning once they were cut. She likes her apples to be as fresh as possible in her lunch. (I am very aware that this project has been done many, many times. But she was interested in it and did it all herself.) She chose six different liquids to try; Sprite, milk, salt water, orange juice, lemon juice, and apple juice.

I have used lemon juice on her lunch apples before, with good results, but she was looking for something that might taste a little better.

She found that lemon juice seemed to preserve the apples the best, but orange juice was a close second. (I like the salt water as well. I always have it on hand, it isn't expensive, and it doesn't seem to adversely flavor the apples.) We only did the experiment for five hours (the amount of time her lunch sits at school before consumption) and many liquids were equal to the task.

Bottom line...many liquids keep apples from going brown over a short period of time. Take your pick and enjoy your lunch.

June worked hard on her board. At first I thought the apple theme was a little over the top, but in the end I decided it looked pretty sharp. Lots of parents stopped to look at her board and I think it was the bright colors and good organization.

The results aren't in on the winners yet. We did the whole progression last year, so I am fine missing it this year. I'm just proud of June for keeping up on this project and doing a good job. She is such a great gal.