The Role ofKitchen Chemistry Activities in Hands-OnScience Teaching Across Learning Contexts

The study aims to present inquiry-based kitchen chemistry activities that can be adapted not only to classroom settings but also to diverse learning environments such as distance education, thereby positioning the kitchen as an authentic and accessible space for scientific exploration. The study employed five “Kitchen Chemistry” activities using accessible household materials. This approach transformed the kitchen into a natural laboratory, serving not merely as a substitute but as an authentic inquiry environment. Through these activities, students explored concepts like density and chemical changes, engaging in scientific process skills from prediction to evidence-based reasoning within their immediate reality. The research was conceptualized as a descriptive study involving 24 middle school students (grades 5–7) from two public schools in Western Anatolia. The implementation spanned 7 weeks (28 instructional hours), during which students participated in synchronous online kitchen chemistry activities conducted with home-based materials. Data collection focused on students’ responses to the Kitchen Chemistry Applications Evaluation Scale and their performance on concept tests administered after each activity. Descriptive analyses were employed to examine patterns in student engagement, perceptions, and conceptual understanding. Findings indicate that students responded positively to the activities and were able to engage with scientific concepts in meaningful ways. Overall, the study suggests that inquiry-based kitchen chemistry activities are a feasible and pedagogically valuable approach for supporting science learning in diverse learning environments such as distance education contexts.