How can volcanic eruptions be predicted?

Continuing our natural hazards theme, our ELI today is 'When will it blow? – predicting eruptions; how a simple tiltmeter can demonstrate the bulging of a volcano before eruption'.

There is also a teaching video demonstrating this activity. You might enjoy watching another video too!

This activity demonstrates how a simple ‘tiltmeter’ can show the bulging of a volcano before eruption – using trays of water to highlight ‘bulging’ as a bag or balloon is inflated.

Related activities can be found in our Natural Hazards category - Volcanoes.

Why are some lavas more dangerous than others?

The new ELI today is an extension of one we published many years ago, 'See how they run; investigate why some lavas flow further and more quickly than others'.

This activity involves an investigation into some of the factors which can affect the viscosity of lavas. The two activities included involve varying the temperature and composition of the 'lava' using treacle and honey.

Other related activities can be found in our Natural Hazards category - Volcanoes.

Soil erosion - why do some fields lose their soil while others do not?

Our ELI today is "Why does soil get washed away? - investigating why some farmers lose their soil through erosion whilst others do not".

This ELI investigates the effect of vegetation cover in protecting soil from erosion in heavy rainfall. It provides the opportunity to explore some of the factors involved in limiting soil erosion. A teaching video accompanies this activity.

The extension to the activity also gives some good ideas, including painting with different soil types.

Related activities can be found in our Earth Materials category - Soils and in Earth processes - Sedimentary processes.

Dramatic geological events - natural hazards

Our ELI today is 'What catastrophic natural processes affected your region in the geological past? Use the evidence in your local region to interpret dramatic geological events'.

Several photographs are used to stimulate discussion about possible rapid geological processes in the past which might have had “catastrophic” outcomes if there had been humans on the Earth at those times.

Many related activities can be found in our Natural Hazards category.

Igneous rocks plus a list of other revision activities

Now we are approaching exam time, our ELI today is a good revision exercise, as are the other activities in the 'Picturing . .' series - 'Picturing igneous rocks 1 - visualise and draw igneous rocks from a verbal description'.

This ELI enhances pupils’ skills of description and interpretation using photographs of igneous rocks and scenery. It could form a useful revision activity. The answers to the matching exercise are given in the back-up text.

Related revision activities can be found in the table at the end of each 'Picturing . . ' activity:

Rock history of an exceptional piece of slate

Following on from looking at metamorphic rocks last week, today we investigate an exceptional piece of slate - 'Every rock tells a story; reading the rock history from an exceptional specimen of slate'.

This ELI gives a detailed analysis of structures of igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic origin in a single rock specimen. The photo of the specimen is fully annotated in the activity.

Related activities can be found in Rocks in our Earth Materials category.

Looking at Metamorphic rocks

Today's ELI is 'Building Stones 4 - Metamorphic rocks; what are the differences between metamorphic rocks commonly used as building stones'.

This activity uses photographs of metamorphic rocks used for ornamental purposes. This activity follows ‘Building Stones 1’ and is intended for pupils to deepen their understanding of metamorphic rocks. A table showing how the series of Earthlearningidea building stone activities link together is given on the final page.

Related activities can be found in Rocks in our Earth Materials category.

Why do slopes collapse?

Today we are continuing our theme of slope stability with 'Sandcastles and slopes; what makes sandcastles and slopes collapse?'

This activity investigates the factors which affect the angle at which loose materials rest before they begin to slide.

Related activities can be found in the Natural Hazards category - Landslides and failing slopes.

How rock cliffs and slopes can collapse

'Failing slopes; modelling how rock cliffs and slopes can collapse'.

This activity investigates the factors which affect the angle of slope at which materials fail and slip. It could be used in a lesson on slope failure itself, or as an application of the physics of friction.

Watch the teaching video

Demonstrate ocean currents and density currents in a lunch box

'Atmosphere and ocean in a lunchbox; a model for all pupils – of hot, cold and cloudy density currents

This ELI develops an earlier teacher demonstration in 'Atmosphere and ocean in a tank' into a smaller-scale model for pupil group use.

It explains how warm ocean water, or warm air, rises upwards while cold ocean water or cold air, sinks. It then demonstrates how density currents flow in the water, or air, and can be used as an analogy of density currents in the oceans and atmosphere.

Related activities can be found in our Oceanography category.

Finding microplastics in your environment

Our new very exciting ELI today is 'The invisible plastic problem – can you find what the eye can’t see? - finding microplastics in the local environment using simple separation techniques'.

This activity introduces pupils to environmental sampling and density separation. It demonstrates how a saturated salt solution can be used to isolate microplastics from soil or sediment and shows how pollution can be studied using simple materials.

Other activities in this category can be found in 'Environment'.

Trying to imagine the enormity of geological time

 Have you tried 'Counting to one million? - trying to imagine the enormity of geological time'.

This Earthlearningidea is an activity to help young children to understand deep time.

Related activities can be found in our Geological Time category - Visualising deep time.

How many sand grains are on that beach? Too many to count . . but can we work it out?

And now for something completely different - such is the scope of Earthlearningideas. 'How many sand grains are there in a bucket – or on a beach? - planning activities to estimate the number of sand grains in a bucket – or on a beach'.

This activity is a planning exercise to estimate large numbers of very small items.

More Earthlearningideas involving some maths can be found in our Cross Category topics - Maths in ELIs

Make your own soil

Last week, we published 'Make your own bricks'. Today we have, 'Make your own soil; investigating the type and origin of the ingredients of soil'.

This activity can be used in any lesson about the environment, rocks and landscape, agriculture, gardening or investigations out of doors.

Go to ELI Early years for related activities.

Have fun with mud - make your own bricks

Our new ELI this month is an addition to our ELI Early years activities 'Mud, Mud, glorious mud*; make your own bricks'.

This activity involves carefully measuring ingredients to make a pliable mud. The mud is then baked in the sun or in an oven to make bricks. The bricks can then be painted and/or used to make structures.

Related activities can be found in Engineering and Industrial geology in our Earth Materials category, or you can search for our 'Make your own . . .' series.

* from Flanders and Swan ‘The Hippopotamus Song’

Sedimentary building stones

Today, we are continuing to look at building stones with 'Building Stones 3 – Sedimentary rocks; how do the sedimentary rocks used for building stones differ?'.

A small group activity using photographs of sedimentary rocks used as building stones or for ornamental purposes. This activity follows ‘Building Stones 1’ and is intended for pupils to deepen their understanding of sedimentary rocks. A table showing how the series of Earthlearningidea building stone activities link together is given on the final page.

Related activities can be found in our Earth Materials category - Rocks.

Identifying building stones

Have you ever wondered about all the beautiful building stones you see when you walk round most towns and cities? Try this ELI - 'Building Stones 1– a resource for several Earthlearningidea activities; use a key to identify many different attractive-looking rocks'.

A small group activity in the identification of a wide range of rock types, using natural-scale photographs of rocks used as building stones or for ornamental purposes. The sheets of photographs are intended for use as the basis for several further activities.

Related activities can be found in our Rocks section of the Earth Materials category.

Solve the mystery of the dinosaur footprints

Today we are continuing to look at footprints with 'The meeting of the dinosaurs - 100 million years ago; the evidence given by dinosaur footprints'.

Fossil tracks, such as footprints, can provide a great deal of evidence about the environment at the time when they were made and about how the animals lived and moved.

Related activities can be found in our Dinosaurs, Evolution of Life category.

Making footprints in sand for others to interpret

Our new ELI today is 'What were the animals doing? Interpreting footprints and other marks in the sand.'

Footprints and other traces of animals, found as fossils, can tell us a great deal about what the animals were doing at the time. Pupils make footprints in sand for others to interpret. This is great fun!

Related activities can be found in our Evolution of Life category - dinosaurs.