4th Graders Learning About Earth Materials
by Lucinda Lange
March 05, 2008
The 4th graders are presently working on the Earth Materials Module. Students focused on taking materials apart to find what they were made of and putting materials together to better understand their properties.
In 'Investigation #2 Scratch Test' students were introduced to hardness as a property that can help geologist identify a mineral. They used a paper clip, penny and their fingernails to do the scratch test, make hardness comparisons, and help identify minerals. Using this knowledge, they identified and ordered four minerals by hardness: quartz, fluorite, calcite and gypsum.
In 'Investigation #3 Detecting Calcite' students tested these minerals: limestone, sandstone, marble, and basalt for calcite. In this investigation students took particles from each mineral and placed it in a vial of vinegar and checked for bubbles. Calcite causes bubbles to rise to the top of the vial. All vials were then emptied into a clear dish, and students waited for the vinegar to evaporate.
In 'Investigation #4 Evaporation Test' students looked at their dish and checked the left over material for traces of calcite by looking at the crystal that were left in their dish as their final test of these minerals.
February 27th the class experienced distance learning by visiting the Badlands National Park of South Dakota with Park Ranger Julie Johndreau
4th Graders Learning About Earth Materials
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