This is
THE BEST
way I know to teach the rock cycle. When I added this lab to my classes, test scores
soared!
Have students bring
wax crayons from home, which are your building blocks for a great
simulation of the entire rock cycle!
CAPSULE:
Weathering: shave crayons, Erosion:
pick up crayons and move them, Deposition,
drop crayon shavings
onto aluminum foil & fold into packet. Compaction
to form
Sedimentary Rocks: put packet
into vise & apply light
pressure. Heat &
Pressure to form Metamorphic Rocks: put
packet into vise & apply heavy pressure. Melting
and Cooling to
form Igneous Rocks: melt crayon
shavings, pour over ice cubes to
form "pumice," into ice water to form "obsidian," and over warm/hot
water to form intrusive rocks, such as "diorite" and granite."
Click
here for
a nice cut & paste
vocabulary review. Remember: "big" kids get a lot out of this kind of
"little" kids exercise. Make
flashcards
showing names of
different formation processes, arrows, types of rocks, characteristics
of different rock types. OR Put on
one piece of paper and
enlarge on "Poster Machine" & cut out. Give to teams of
students.
They assemble into Rock Cycle Diagram with arrows showing formation
processes and characteristics matched to proper rock types. Have each
team assemble on a desk top and/or paste to newsprint. Rock
Cycle Lab
A
traditional
rock cycle lab can
acquire a new "spin" after the Rock Cycle Simulation. Give the students
a
tray with 12 rocks, four from each rock type. Don't give them the
names! Give them a key instead. By using a Rock Cycle Key
and what they already know about rock
characteristics produced by the different formation processes, they can
figure them out! I
don't make them
memorize rock names, because I'm more
interested in the students learning the
formation processes and rock type characteristics. Created
by
MJKrech
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