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Day 3: Candy Conundrum — Food Science Teamwork

Lesson Overview
Time 50 minutes
Objectives Complete the H&L "Candy Conundrum" team activity; experience how scientific specialists collaborate; connect food science teamwork to vet clinic teamwork
TEKS d(1)(C)
Deliverable Group brainstorm sheet with one solution presented to class + individual role reflection (3 sentences)
Materials H&L Workbook Ch 2, pp. 18-19; printed role cards (Flavorist, Food Packaging Engineer, R&D Manager, Quality Assurance Specialist); chart paper or whiteboard space per group

Warm-Up (5 min)

WARM-UP: Have you ever bought a candy you HATED? What was wrong with it, the flavor, the texture, the wrapper, or something else?

Take 3 fast responses. Use this to bridge: behind every candy on the shelf is a team of food scientists with different specialties who tested and fixed problems before launch. Today students become that team.

Activity 1: Set the Scenario + Choose Roles (10 min)

Source: H&L Workbook Ch 2, p. 18, "Candy Conundrum" (Career Climb activity)

Read the workbook background aloud (Ch 2, p. 18): A major candy company has released a new candy, but customers don't like it. The food science team must figure out what went wrong and fix it.

Group students into teams of 4. Hand each team the four role cards (face down) and have students draw one each, this prevents the same students from always getting "leader" roles.

The four roles from the workbook (Ch 2, p. 18):

  • Flavorist: Develops new flavors and enhances existing flavors.
  • Food Packaging Engineer: Develops the candy wrapper and container to keep it fresh and safe.
  • Research and Development (R&D) Manager: Oversees the team and coordinates names, flavors, taste tests, and sales ideas.
  • Quality Assurance Specialist: Makes sure every batch is safe to eat, tastes right, and looks consistent.

Each student writes their role and one sentence about what their job does on their workbook page.

Facilitation Tip

Emphasize that EVERY role is needed. The Flavorist may have the loudest opinion about the candy taste, but the Packaging Engineer has the only credible solution to Problem #3 (the candy crumbles). Scaffold the idea that a strong team uses every specialist.

Activity 2: The Three Problems + Brainstorm (25 min)

Source: H&L Workbook Ch 2, p. 19, "Candy Conundrum" Problems & Solutions

Project the three problems from the workbook on the screen so all groups can see them clearly:

  • Problem #1: The original flavor is "orange mint," but customers say it tastes like they drank orange juice after brushing their teeth. How do you fix it?
  • Problem #2: The candy is named "Orange Spice Ice," but consumers don't like the name. What can you do to improve it?
  • Problem #3: When customers try to take off the wrapper, the candy crumbles into pieces. How do you keep it intact?

Step 1 (5 min): Each role spends 2 minutes brainstorming on their OWN, what would your specialist add to each problem? Write 1-2 ideas per problem in the workbook brainstorm boxes.

Step 2 (15 min): Teams share their role-specific ideas and combine them into one team solution per problem. The R&D Manager facilitates the discussion (this is part of their job in the activity).

Step 3 (5 min): Each team picks ONE problem to present to the class. They write their final solution on chart paper or a whiteboard, and decide who will speak (one speaker per role, even if they each say one sentence).

DOK 3: What conclusions can you draw about why a candy company needs MULTIPLE specialists instead of just one really smart food scientist who tries to do everything?

Facilitation Tip

Watch for groups where one student dominates and others are silent. Intervene with: "What does the Packaging Engineer think about this?" or "R&D Manager, has everyone shared yet?" The activity teaches teamwork, not just creative problem-solving.

Activity 3: Quick Class Share (8 min)

Each team has 60-90 seconds to share their chosen problem and solution. After all teams present, the class connects this to the Animal Systems pathway: a vet clinic also has specialists — Veterinarian, Vet Tech, Animal Care Assistant, Practice Manager — and a sick patient is the team's "candy conundrum." Each role contributes a piece of the solution.

Exit Ticket (2 min)

EXIT TICKET (Decision Tree / Branching Prompt) · Printable PDF:

My Candy Conundrum role: _____ (Flavorist / Packaging Engineer / R&D Manager / Quality Assurance)

New problem: A candy's COLOR is fading on store shelves after 2 weeks. Customers think it's stale.

Step 1: What does MY ROLE do FIRST to investigate? (One specific action.)

Step 2: Branch on the finding —

IF the color fade is caused by LIGHT (sun exposure), which OTHER role do I loop in first, and why? _____________

IF the color fade is caused by the INGREDIENTS (recipe issue), which OTHER role do I loop in first, and why? _____________

Step 3: Name ONE veterinary career that plays a similar specialist role on a VET CLINIC team:

(d(1)(C))

Differentiation

  • Support: Provide a "Solution Starter" sheet with sentence stems for each role: "As the Flavorist, I would change the flavor to _ because ___." Students fill in the blanks.
  • Extension: Add a 4th problem of your team's invention. Bonus points if it requires all four roles to solve.
  • ELL: Pre-teach: Flavor = Sabor, Wrapper = Envoltura, Quality = Calidad, Specialist = Especialista. Color-code role cards so non-English speakers can identify their role visually. Pair with a bilingual peer.