How Much Weight Can an Egg Support? Easter Science Activity!

Eggs are uniquely constructed. The outer shell is created hard enough to protect a developing chick, while the inner shell nourishes the chick during its development. As the chick develops, the calcium from the inner shell dissolves in a chemical reaction and is used for the developing chick’s bones. When the chick is fully developed, the shell has undergone enough changes that it is thin enough for the chick to break through and hatch. But what about an unfertilized egg? What happens to all the calcium that the chick would have absorbed?

Eggshells are made of approximately 95% calcium carbonate (CaCO₃). The remaining 5% are proteins used to reinforce the structure that is the additional support behind the eggshell’s strength.  Without a chick to absorb the calcium in development, an unfertilized eggs eggshell remains strong and can withstand weight when applied to it. When eggs are placed in a “standing” position, the shape of the egg can effectively distribute the weight throughout its structure.

In this laboratory activity, you will investigate how much weight an egg can support.  How much can an egg support in weight? A ton?

Easter Science Activity Learning Objectives:

At the end of this laboratory activity, students are expected to:

• Compile data reflecting on the strength of various types of eggs.
• Interpret and contrast data based on the various types of eggs.
• Rank the strength of various types of eggs based on their ability to hold weight.
• Identify why eggs are so strong.

Laboratory Proper:

Materials:

• 4 raw chicken eggs each (vegetarian, Omega-3, white, and brown)
• 4 pop bottle caps
• Poster Board (12” x 12” piece)
• Plastic tablecloth
• Many large heavy books
• Ruler
• Bathroom Scale
• Goggles
• Gloves

Procedure:

1. Cover the table with the tablecloth.
2. Place the pointy part of each egg into the four bottle caps.
3. Place the four bottle caps in a square about 8” apart from each other.
4. Lay the 12” x 12” piece of poster board on top of the eggs.
5. Place a book on top of the shells and position the eggs so that each egg is under different corners of the book.
6. Begin placing a book on top of the eggs. Listen for cracking sounds. Then repeat this process until you hear a cracking sound or the eggs break.
7. Once the eggs crack or break, record the number of books and their weight.
8. Repeat steps 2 – 6 with the remaining egg types.

Easter Science Activity:

Students record their predictions and results of the lab activity. Once the activity is finished, discuss the lab activity and answer post-lab questions.

We also provided some of the Resources below for you to use in class. iTeachly Members can access all the content for the activity and the following lesson.

Students must come up with a unanimous answer for each question. Discussing the answers usually, results in some excellent dialogue on this topic.

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• Easter Science Activity - Student Edition (Docx)
• Easter Science Activity - Student Edition (PDF)
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