This chapter’s story is based a bit on the ESS (Elementary Science Study) activity “Mystery Powders.” The problem with the original activity was that the students were introduced to the tests for various ingredients without a motivating hook. Alecia Peck
wrote a similar story to motivate her third grade class in western Massachusetts.
It was of course, finished with a cookie treat for all. The new modification then
became part of the third-grade curriculum for the school district. There are two
purposes: Have children engage in problem solving and use their collective knowledge to identify certain chemical compounds in a mystery mix.