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Activity (Hands-On)Grades 9 - 12

Diseases Exposed: ESR Test in the Classroom

Materials List

Each group needs:

  • Sedimentation and the ESR Test Presentation (PDF) (printed out to serve as a handout), Student Lab Handout (PDF), Post-Lab Quiz (PDF) and Homework Sheet (PDF), one each per student
  • Each of the solutions and amounts listed in Table 1; see the Procedure > Before the Activity section for preparation instructions for the solutions and beet extract; solution ingredients include: tomato juice/V8, petroleum jelly, olive oil, unsalted butter, rice starch, beet, salt and water; solution preparation equipment includes: digital scale, beakers, plastic spatulas/spoons, glass stir rods, stove (or hot plate or Bunsen burner), vegetable grater (hand or electric), tissues, storage containers.

A table lists six solutions and the amount needed by each student group in order to conduct the activity: Fibrous tomato drink such as V8 (18 ml), 1% solution of petroleum jelly in olive oil (28 ml), 1% solution of unsalted butter in olive oil (1 ml), 0.5% solution of unsalted butter in olive oil (0.5 ml), 5% rice starch solution in water (0.5 ml), and beet extract containing salt (2 ml).Table 1. Activity solutions and volumes.

  • lab aprons and safety goggles, one each per student
  • computer or tablet, one per student
  • clear, labeled containers to store each of the five solutions
  • 1 tablespoon of finely grated beet shavings placed in a cup; preparation details provided in the Procedure > Before the Activity section
  • small tweezers, for transferring beet shavings
  • 5 graduated test tubes of 25-ml capacity with screw caps, placed in a zip-lock bag or cup; alternatively use 25-ml graduated measuring cylinders with caps; note: if you scale up the experiment 5 to 10 times, then use five tall, skinny, clear plastic bottles that are 8-9 inches tall and 1.5-2 inches wide, such as empty recycled soda bottles or dollar-store olive oil bottles, as shown in Figure 1
  • 1 test tube stand, if using test tubes
  • 5 graduated plastic laboratory droppers of 2-3 ml capacity; used to add solution into the empty test tube when making the blood model
  • tray, to organize each group’s materials
  • paper towels
  • clock, to time the 60 minutes needed to let the samples settle

Three photographs show the same tall, capped clear bottle that contains a blood model composed of equal volumes of V8 drink with 1% solution of petroleum jelly in olive oil. From left to right, the mixture’s particles are settling to the bottom, leaving clearer orange liquid at the top.Figure 1. A blood model at different stages of settling.

To share with the entire class: