Release week Oct. 10, 2006: Geology

Standards

• Geology: Students will report on news affected by geology.
• Science: Students will grow their own sugar-crystal rock candy.

Activities

• Use the News: Geology affects the events in the world every day. Share information with the class about a news event that has been affected by geology. Some examples might include: an earthquake, travel over a certain terrain (such as a mountain or the ocean), oil or gold exploration/mining, etc.

• Learn how crystals grow by making your own sugar crystals in the form of rock candy. Follow the instructions at this Web site to grow your own rock-candy crystals. Be sure to examine the crystals under a magnifying glass or microscope before and after the experiment. http://www.exploratorium.edu/cooking/candy/recipe-rockcandy.html#

• Make a wall-sized geologic time scale with the whole class. First, create a long strip of paper to draw the outline of the timeline. Include labels and dates of each of the time periods. Finally, draw or print and paste images of appropriate animals, plants, maps (plate shifting), etc., on the timeline. Groups or individuals can research a period to get images and information.

World of Wonder meets many state educational standards. This guide helps teachers identify standards and related activities generally intended for grade 6, but teachers can modify activities to the appropriate grade level.