Barthelme 1

Lauren Barthelme

Mr. Gregg

Biology

19 September 2018

Edible Cell

Hector Serratos, Chase Ewertz, Isaac Weber and I were partners for this project. We

made a plant cell out of candy, cake, and jello. I learned how a plant cell is constructed, and

which organelles are closely related and work together. I also learned good teamwork skills from

collaborating with people who I normally don’t talk to. It was an overall good experience and I

got a lot out of it.

My group chose the plant cell because that is what we looked at under the microscope

last week. For the DNA, we used multi colored twizzlers. The strands of the twizzlers wrap

around each other much like the double helix of the DNA strands in plant cells. DNA houses

genetic instructions for the functions within the cell. We placed the twizzlers inside of an orange

peel to represent the nucleus. The orange peel is like the envelope keeping the DNA safe and

together. Outside of the nucleus we placed the rough endoplasmic reticulum, made out of nerds

ropes. The rough endoplasmic reticulum transports substances and aids in protein synthesis (with

help of membrane bound ribosomes). The nerds represent the bound ribosomes on the outside of

the endoplasmic reticulum. Connected to the rough endoplasmic reticulum we placed the smooth

endoplasmic reticulum, which was made of sweet tart ropes. The smooth endoplasmic reticulum

produces enzymes, lipids, oils, phospholipids, and steroids.

 Barthelme 2

They have no bound nerds on the outside. We also included free ribosomes made out of

nerds. Ribosomes are involved in protein synthesis and use instructions from RNA to produce

proteins. They were found all around the cytoplasm, which was made of green jello. The

cytoplasm fills remaining space in the cell and is made of mostly water. The mitochondria was

made of candy oranges, and were found in several different places within the cell. The

mitochondria harvests chemical energy from food. The golgi body was made of several layers of

laffy taffy to show that it had more than one duct. Its function is to receive, activate, and

distribute proteins. The chloroplasts were made of green layered frogs and were found in several

parts of the cell. The function of chloroplast is to make chemical energy from solar energy. The

central vacuole was made of cake and was the largest organelle in the cell. It pushed the other

organelles further to the side. The central vacuole maintains a certain pressure inside the cell and

stores certain substances. Vesicles were made of green mints, and were found all around the cell.

Vesicles are like the packages for various substances. Lastly, the cell wall was constructed of

graham crackers. It was made to represent the cell wall’s hard structure. The cell wall protects

and supports the cell.

Everyone in the group participated. Everyone gave ideas and was helpful. I learned how

to work with people that I don’t know as well, and I enjoyed it a lot. I learned how to research

and make a model as accurately as I can. It was a positive experience.