Rocks music; create your own instrument

The new Earthlearningidea today continues our cross-curricular theme with 'Rocks music; create your own geo-instrument'

For this activity, the pupils should be able to identify the rocks they use and should be able to say whether they are sedimentary, igneous or metamorphic. This activity fits in well at the end of a topic where pupils can explore other aspects of the subject of study. It encourages creative thought and breaks down barriers pupils may make between scientific subjects and the arts.
Other cross-curricular activities can be found on our website; geo-art, geo-literature and Earthquakes in art. Geo-music will be published later this year.

Rock cycle in wax

'The rock cycle in wax; using a candle to demonstrate the rock cycle processes'

In this ELI a candle is used to demonstrate several rock cycle processes, and is effective in consolidating understanding of the rock cycle at the end of a lesson.
Many activities related to the rock cycle can be found on our website.

What happened when? Working out sequences of events

New ELI today - 'What happened when?: sorting out sequences using stratigraphical concepts. Are the age-based stratigraphical concepts principles or laws? – and how do you use them?'

The stratigraphical concepts used for age sequencing can be applied through indoor and outdoor exercises in both natural and constructed situations and they are great fun to do!
More activities about working out geological sequences can be found in our Geological time category on the website.

Fold mountains: the Himalayas in 30 seconds!

'The Himalayas in 30 seconds! Making a miniature fold mountain range in an empty box'

This activity models how lateral pressure can squeeze rocks into folds and faults, and imitates the way in which fold mountain ranges are formed. It could be used to extend a physics lesson on forces, or to aid understanding of the ways in which Earth’s surface features affect weather systems such as the monsoon, in geography.
Many more activities related to fold mountains and plate tectonics can be found on our website.