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Land Activities
Exploring Rocks
Groups of three to five students will investigate properties of the rocks
including physical characteristics (smoothness, hardness, luster, shape,
color, reaction to water, weight, composition--perhaps rubbing sandstone
together to make sand). Students will sort and classify rocks by attributes.
They will create models to explain how the rocks got to be what and where
they are. Students will be encouraged to discuss how the interaction of
air, water, sun and living organisms-- especially humans--affect rocks.
The Little Rocks
Teachers will provide sand and dry, powdered clay (and silt, if possible)
as examples of small rocks. Students will explore and compare the wet
and dry properties of each and will compare the samples to larger rocks.
They will then invent their own recipes for mixing the materials in many
different proportions and comparing the resulting mixtures.
How do big rocks become
little rocks, or how do little rocks become big rocks? Students should
discuss how the interaction of air, water, sun and living organisms affect
rocks.
Exploring Soils
Resource: LHS GEMS Terrarium Habitats pp. 4-13 (read pp. 15-22
and 58-61 for context)
Note:
The soil used in this investigation may be used to build a terrarium in
Week 7, so you may want to hold on to it so that you do not need to get
new soil later on. Teachers may want to provide several different soils
for terrarium building in Week 7 so that students will be able to compare
the effects of different soils on living organisms.
In
Week 7 you will add plants to your terrariums. so you may want to order
them now. Fast growing plants (marigolds, Chinese cabbage, turnips, radishes,
peas, oats and beans) can be purchased at a local hardware or grocery
store. Or you may order small plants that can go through an entire life
cycle in just 35 days from Wisconsin Fast Plants at
Wisconsin
Fast Plants
1630 Linden Drive
University of Wisconsin-Madison
Madison,
WI 53706
Materials
- LHS GEMS
Terrarium Habitats
- Small collection
of diverse local rocks gathered by students
- Teacher collection
of rocks, including different sizes, shapes, hardness and colors
- Magnifying glasses,
nails to scratch rocks, balances, pipettes, water, chart and plain paper,
12 oz.+/- plastic containers for mixing materials
- Samples of different
soils collected locally
- Thermometer
Questions for Students
- Is dry soil heavier
or lighter than wet soil? (Experiment with the water holding capacity
of different soils, e.g., sand, clay and potting soil.)
- Does soil have
any air in it? (Add water to dry soil and watch the bubbles--proof that
air was in the soil.)
- What does soil
do to the water? (Run muddy water through fine sand and see if it comes
out cleaner on the other side. The soil filters the water and holds
on to particulate matter.)
- How does water
move through different soils? (Fill tin cans with holes in the bottom
with sand, clay and potting soil. Watch how fast water moves through
each.)
- How does soil sort
itself out? (In a can, mix dry pebbles, coarse sand and dry potting
soil. Shake the can to see what particles are on the top and on the
bottom. The larger, heavier particles will be on the bottom, the lighter
ones on top.)
- What part of soil
washes away first? (Take a sand-soil-pebble mixture outside and spray
water over it. The fine particles wash away first. Muddy water will
run away and leave only the sand and pebbles.)
- How do some rocks
get smooth? (The action of water, and sometimes wind, smoothes rocks.
Look at rounded beach pebbles, or play with a rock tumbler.)
- What happens when
rocks freeze? (For this winter experiment, find a porous rock such as
sandstone, soak it in water, let it freeze outside or in the freezer
and see what happens to the rock. This process is an example of mechanical
weathering.)
Teacher References
- LHS GEMS Terrarium
Habitats.
- Earth at Hand.
NSTA, 1993.
- AIMS. "Overhead
and Underfoot." (Revised Edition). AIMS Education Foundation. Fresno,
CA. 1994.
Children's References
- Arem, Joel E. "Discover
Rocks and Minerals." Publications International, Ltd.: Lincolnwood,
IL, 1991.
- Baylor, Byrd. "Everybody
Needs a Rock." Macmillan Publishing Co.: NY, 1974.
- Bourgeous, Paulette.
"The Amazing Dirt Book." Addison-Wesley: NY, 1990.
- Catherall, Ed.
"Exploring Soil and Rocks." Steck-Vaughn: Austin, Texas, 1990.
- Cole, Joanna. "The
Magic School Bus Inside the Earth." Scholastic, Inc.: NY, 1987.
- Glaser, Linda.
"Wonderful Worms." Millbrook, 1992.
- Lewis, Thomas P.
"Hill of Fire." Harper and Row: NY, 1971.
- McNulty, Faith.
"How to Dig a Hole to the Other Side of the World." Scholastic,
Inc.: NY, 1997.
- Ryder, Joanna.
"Simon Underground." Harper and Row: NY, 1976.
- Watts, Lisa and
Jenny Tyler. "The Usborne Book of the Earth." Usborne Ltd.:
London, 1986.
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