step into my classroom: earth science at ECA, quarter three

The eighth graders spent third quarter getting their hands dirty with the first half of our geology unit. It starts with minerals, rocks, and fossils, then goes a little deeper into an investigation on plate tectonics, landforms, earthquakes, and volcanoes.

We began with a simulation of the rock cycle using chocolate bars. For whatever reason this activity turned into a HUGE mess this year - I have never seen such a slimy chocolately mess and I've been doing this lab for years now! Maybe it's the Spanish chocolate? The students got a kick out of it anyway, but unfortunately I didn't get many good pictures of the lab since I was busy helping them get cleaned up.

White chocolate "sediment"

For each rock and mineral group we studied, the students then did an observation lab in which they used their textbook and field guides to identify and classify various "mystery" samples. For some this was a very simple task while others really struggled. Who doesn't love playing with rocks??

Relying on the fact that I have a very creative group of kids in eighth grade this year, I added a new project to my roster. After an in-depth study of mineral properties, each student chose a mineral on which to base a new comic book character. They had the option to create either a hero or villain, and designed his or her "super powers" to reflect the properties of the given mineral. They presented their Mineral Heroes in the form of a comic book cover and got to share a brief character bio with the class. I was amazed and entertained by the creativity and originality of so many of their designs!

Many of their comics were on display for our school's science showcase

To wrap up the rocks chapter, students were tasked with creating a model of the rock cycle. The sky was the limit for how they chose to demonstrate what they'd learned, and the whole gamut of projects appeared on my desk on the last day before spring break.

"The Adventures of Rocky Bill"

"Rock Culture"

Another view of all the projects in the science showcase

It's hard to believe my time with these eighth graders is almost over, and with it my sixth year of teaching middle school earth science. Where has the time gone?!