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Finding Science in An American Childhood by Annie Dillard
Students read excerpts from Annie Dillard's memoir, "An American Childhood," with the teacher. They experience opportunities to connect English, science, nature and art together from a new and unique perspective. This approach serves as...
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Weathering Rocks
Fourth graders investigate what natural events cause rocks to break apart and differentiate between erosion and weathering. They conduct an experiment with plaster of paris to observe why some rocks are hard and others break, and...
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Rocks, Minerals, and Erosion
Students identify and describe rocks that contain records of the earth's history and explain how they were formed. They formulate questions about and identify needs and problems related to objects and events in the environment, and...
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Sedimentary Rocks
Fourth graders discuss the basic properties of rocks, the processes
involved in the formation of soils, and the needs of plants provided by soil. They write descriptions in their Science journal and identify and discuss each type of...
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A Geological Puzzle
Students compare and contrast the various types of rocks on each continent. In groups, the calculate the rock ages and types to determine if the continents, in their opinion, were joined at one time. They develop two imaginary...
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Minerals Make Rocks
Students examine that all rocks are made from one or more minerals (or plant material, as in the case of coal). They make mock rocks and discuss the difference between a rock and a mineral.
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What's Under My Feet?
Students choose one rock from a collection of igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary rocks. They use multiple resources to create an informational brochure highlighting their rock. The brochures are combined into a class rock museum to be...
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Rocks and weathered rocks
Students connect rock and mineral formation with the changes rocks and minerals undergo at the earth's surface. They observe changes produced by weathering and relating these observations to chemical processes such as oxidation,...
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Engineering For The 3 Little Pigs
Students engage in a lesson which demonstrates the importance of rocks, soils and minerals in engineering and how using the right material for the right job is important. The students build three different sand castles and test them for...
Alabama Learning Exchange
Baseball Rocks!
Students investigate rocks, minerals and the rock cycle before they participate in a videoconferencing activity with another class that tests their knowledge. They create PowerPoint presentation with questions about rocks and mineral...
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Box Cars Math Games
Students grow vegetable sections without soil, using water and pebbles or small rocks. They explain different ways that plants grow and grow vegetable sections using water and small rocks.
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"101 Amazing Earth Facts" Game
Students read for comprehension, work cooperatively to learn "101 Amazing Earth Facts," and compete as teams in a Jeopardy-like game.
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You've Got to Be Cool to Make Igneous Rocks
Students describe how igneous rocks are formed, design a classification system to group igneous rocks and develop a controlled experiment to prove that the rate of cooling affects the size of the crystals.
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Rock Hounds
Students receive a basis for understanding the three main classifications of rock: igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic. They engage in a hands-on activity designed to give them an appreciation for rocks and minerals.
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Rock Density Lab
Young scholars use a balance and weigh a rock sample. They weigh the rock suspended on a sling in a glass of water. They tabulate the rock's density using the two weights and compare the density of various rocks of similar sizes.
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Mining Simulation
Eighth graders put their knowledge of rocks and minerals into perspective by seeing how minerals can be mined and the difficulties and costs of mining. They explore the environmental impacts of mining.
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Let's Take a Rock Apart!
Learners examine a crushed rock and sort the minerals they find in that rock by color and other properties.
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What Is in a Rock?
Students identify, sort, and classify mineral samples that make up a common rock.
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Rocks and Soils
Students compare the properties of rocks and relate these properties to their use. They perform a virtual experiment to describe and group rocks on the basis of their characteristics.
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Rock Star Centers
Students complete a Rock Star Journal while studying the properties of their rock. They choose their own rock star, and then they are going to learn everything they can about their rock star.
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Create a Classroom Exhibit: Rocks and Minerals
Young scholars bring in rocks and minerals from home. They observe them and describe them carefully, completing a worksheet. Finally, a classroom exhibit is created.
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Core
Eighth graders take their own "core sample" with clay and/or play-dough and correlate the layers of the earth.
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Rock Hunters
Students observe rocks of various types and sizes and record these observations through drawings. They gather rocks, measure, classify, observe, describe and record their collection.
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Minerals of the Earth
Students learn and practice identifying Earth's minerals and their properties. Working in small groups, they evaluate minerals. This is a well-described lesson, which students enjoy.