For this activity, students will discover some of the factors that influence weathering of the monuments in a cemetery. These factors may include the type of rock, length of time the rock has been exposed to the elements or the amount of...

This site offers a wealth of online textbook-related materials that encourage the discovery of science in the world around us. Enter the site to access material on specific topics. Each section contains reading material (complete with...

Students learn about probability through a LEGO MINDSTORMS NTX-based activity that simulates a game of "rock-paper-scissors." The LEGO robot mimics the outcome of random game scenarios in order to help students gain a better...

Learn how weathering changes rocks.

A colorful diagram of the rock cycle showing the stages that rocks go through as they are transformed by different processes such as weathering, lithification, and crystallization.

Explains what standing rocks are, how they are formed by erosion, and gives the names of some well-known ones in Indiana.

The purpose of this activity is to demonstrate 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...

This interactive website explores the various soil layers and introduces you to the lifeforms that live in those soil layers.

Smithsonian in the Classroom presents Building Up, Breaking Down. Teachers can download this comprehensive teaching package in which students investigate how buildings weather. See what happens to a building once it has been erected....

Young students are introduced to the complex systems of the Earth through numerous lessons on its natural resources, processes, weather, climate and landforms. Key earth science topics include rocks, soils and minerals, water and natural...

After completing this instructional activity, students will understand the source and the process for the formation of soil, the different types of soil, and the components of soil.

Abiotic components are the nonliving components of the biosphere. Chemical and geological factors, such as rocks and minerals, and physical factors, such as temperature and weather, are referred to as abiotic components.

This series of photos dramatically illustrates the process of mechanical weathering known as rock abrasion. Taken over a 100 year span, you can see the effects of rock abrasion on Jump-off Joe, a sea stack at Nye Beach in Oregon. The...

The Gravestone Project, part of the global citizen science program called EarthTrek, seeks volunteers to visit cemeteries around the world and collect scientific data on how marble gravestones are weathering.

In this investigation, middle schoolers will use sand to build a mountain and then use a straw and watering can to simulate wind erosion and water erosion. Students will make observations and then propose ways to slow the erosion and/or...

This lesson is a demonstration in how geological layers form and erode using just a stack of towels. The author describes this lesson as GeoArt, which means one looks at geologic processes through both a scientific and an artistic lens.

While visiting three separate sites in or near the Minnesota River valley, students will question the deposition environment of rock types found and the creation of the valley itself. Students will discover find types of rock found far...

Slope failure is the downslope movement of rock debris and soil in response to gravitational stresses. Three major types of mass wasting are classified by the type of downslope movement. The types of movement, falls, slides, and flows...

Soils may be formed in place from rock or formed in weathered rock and minerals that have been transported from where the original rock occurred.

The most recent ice age peaked between 24,000 and 21,000 years ago, when vast ice sheets covered North America and northern Europe, and mountain ranges like Africa's Mt. Kilimanjaro and South America's Andes were encased in glaciers. At...

This digital textbook covers core earth science concepts and includes interactive features, real-world examples, videos, and study guides.

In this lab, students investigate whether the rate of water falling (rain) affects the amount of erosion (soil movement). This experiment could lead to further questions: how does grass or rocks effect soil erosion, does erosion lead to...