Pizza Lab: Earth's crust

In class we had to determine the Earth's layers using the layers of a slice of pizza.  We used the Pizza crust as the Earth's mantle, sauce as the upper mantle
Pizza Crust= Earth's Mantle
Sauce=Upper Mantle
Cheese= Oceanic Crust
Toppings: Continental Crust

US Populations, Mid 1800

What is the comparison between these cities in mid 1800's

• New York, NY
• Baltimore, MD
• Boston, MA
• Philadelphia, PA
• New Orleans
• Cincinnati, OH
• Brooklyn, NY
• St. Louis, MO
• Spring Garden, PA
• Albany, NY

I have no idea where Spring Garden, PA is located.  My best guess is that they are all towns with music, culture, and or places near water.

According to class, all these cities are located near water. 



Landscapes Fashioned by Water

• Earth's external processess
• The water cycle
• Running water
• Water sculpture
• Groundwater
• Caves and karst topography (Leaving rocks behind)

 How much water is there and where is it distributed?  If you had 100$.

55 Dollars Ocean 
10 Ground Water
10 Dollars Clouds
10 Dollars Glaciers 
5 Dollars Lakes
5 Dollars River's and Streams
5 Dollars Soil Moisture


Correct Answer:

• $97.20 Oceans
• $2.15 Glaciers
•  $.62 Ground Water
• $00.09 Fresh Water Lakes
• $00.08 Salt Water Lakes and Seas
• $00.07 Variable
• $00.05 Soil Moisture
• $00.01 Atmosphere
• $0.0001 Streams

The Water Cycle

 

The Story of a Rock

Schist: A Metamorphic Rock.

How the rock cycle works:  In the beginning the Schist started off as shale, a sedimentary rock. Then the little rock started to erode and was weathered away.  The rock then became melted and the solidify and exposed to high pressures and heat.  The heat and pressured formed the metamorphic rock into Slate.  After time has gone by and more heat and pressure are added, the slate will then turn into Phyllite and lastly into Schist.  Schist has a foliate texture that contains medium to coarse grain sizes.   If Schist undergoes more pressure and heat it would them metamorphic into Gniess, a foliated rock with layers of light and dark colors.  Gneiss is also harder than glass.

Simulations, Models, and Analogues

What are simulations, models, and analogues?
A simulation is a representation of an operation or enactment.  In class we simulated crystal structures by using coal, chemicals, and sponges.  Those products allowed enacted how a crystal forms over a period of a few days.

A model is a representation of an example for comparing an item or data.  In class we created models for mineral identifications. Another example of a model is a globe of the Earth to show what the Earth looks like.

Analogues are a group of chemical structures that are similar in structure but are different in element composition.  An example of this could be the different types of minerals and rocks, some share similar attributes but are made up of a different element compotsition.

What are some examples of models?
Some examples of models that deals with rocks and minerals are showing a class what some items are made up.  A teacher could hold up a pencil and ask what the lead if made up of.  The students then would answer graphite.  Other examples are pointing to drywall--gypsum, or even showing a picture of a milkshake and asking what mineral can be found in milkshakes--kaolinite. Some other models are having students build a rock using plaster-glue like solution, sand, and small pebbles to make a sandstone type of composition.  Then a student maybe able to have that rock for a long time.

*Igneous
Taking the ingredients for an oatmeal chocolate chip cookie and having the children label what types of minerals and compositions are in igneous rocks.
*Metamorphic
An example of a model for metamorphic rock is for students to melt crayons and mush them together.
*Sedimentary
An example of a sedimentary rock for children is by gluing bits and pieces of cereal together using marshmallows. (Rice Crispies)



Here is a list of some great websites that have wonderful ideas to create models and representations of rocks and minerals.
http://www.science-class.net/Geology/rocks_minerals.htm
http://www.proteacher.org/c/814_rocks_and_minerals.html
http://www.msnucleus.org/membership/html/k-6/rc/rocks/1/rcr1_1a.html
http://www.coreknowledge.org/mimik/mimik_uploads/lesson_plans/378/Rocks%20and%20Minerals.pdf
http://www.pcschools.us/woad-local/media/sciencemap/2nd_grade/2III3RockUses.pdf

Minerals

A mineral is...
1. Natural occurring
2. Is a solid
3. Inorganic
4. Has a crystalline structure
5. Has a chemical component

 

Covalent and Ionic Bonds

Covalent Bonds are the sharing of electrons.
Ionic Bonds are opposite ionic charges that are attracted together.

The elements in the periodic table list elements that includes ionic numbers, how many protons and electrons that are in the
 



Mrs. Stewart's Crystal Garden
http://mrsstewart.com/magic-salt-crystal-garden/

Here is how to make a crystal garden by http://engineering.oregonstate.edu/momentum/k12/june04/index.html

Supplies:

• 1 container (per child) – plastic (clear polystyrene) to-go dishes work well
• Several small pieces of porous material to grow on per container – sponges, clay pot pieces, BBQ Briquettes, etc.
• Water
• Ammonia
• Laundry Bluing (such as Mrs. Stewart’s Liquid Bluing…careful it stains!)
• Salt
• 1 small paper cup to mix ingredients (Dixie Cup)
• 1 plastic spoon
• Food Coloring (optional)

Begin by mixing 2 tablespoons of salt with 4 tablespoons of water, stirring to dissolve as much salt as possible.  Next add 2 tablespoons each of ammonia and laundry bluing, again mixing as you go.  The mixture will be a blue, watery sludge.  Pour the sludge, liquid and extra salt, on top of the porous substrate in the plastic dish.  Make sure to get all the salt out of the mixing cup and onto the porous items in the plastic dish (Note: If you use a sponge, wet it first abd squeeze dry for better sludge absorbtion).  All the salt may not go into solution; this is okay as long as you pour the extra salt on top of the items in the dish.  The porous materials in the dish will not immediately soak up all the liquid; this is okay.  The crystals will naturally grow white, like the salt.  If you want colored crystals, add a drop or two of food coloring on each item in the dish. The crystals will grow that color.
Allow the container to sit open to the atmosphere overnight.  By the next day, crystals should have formed on the items in the dish and your crystal garden should be starting to bloom. You can keep the garden “in bloom” by adding 2 more tablespoons of salt on the second day, then half batches of the whole mixture from time to time.  Make sure to pour the liquid into the base of the container and not on top of the already formed crystal blooms, as it will dissolve them and you will have to start all over…which is also a lot of fun!
The garden is formed by the salt after the water and ammonia evaporate away.  The ammonia helps to speed the evaporation of the liquid from the mixture.  The laundry bluing helps to form crystal blooms instead of crystal chunks or plates.  The bluing solution is actually a colloidal suspension; it has very small particle that will not dissolve, but are held up and separated by the liquid.  As the water evaporates away, the salt forms crystals using the colloidal particles as a seed, or nucleus, for growth.  The liquid mixture and the salt are pulled away from the bottom of the container up to the tops of the porous material by capillary action, much the same way water spreads through a sponge.  This allows you to add more mixture to the bottom and have your garden bloom and grow forever.  You could experiment by leaving out the ammonia or bluing, or changing the ratios in the recipe.

Lab Day! Fossils

Geologic Time Scale:
This week I will be taking the time to re-look over the Geologic Time Scale and hope to remember it.  I do not have the time scale fully memorized yet, but this week I plan to look over it and take time to memorize it.  I plan to learn the song from the youtube videos and or attempt to create a mnemonic device to remember it. 

Fossils:
Fossils are composed of animal remains.  They allow us to find old creatures, plants, and tell us about time and what may have happened many years ago. There are also many different types of fossils like: amber, trace fossils, and petrified food.  Fossils are incredible.  Amber is tree sap that is fossilized that can contain particles of insects. Trace fossils are impressions or imprints from animals, or plants.

Here is what I learned from Google and in class:
We can tell the age of fossils through radiometric dating.

Another types of fossils are compressed leaf imprinting, trilobites, molds and casts, carbonization, petrified animals and wood, and whole animals caught in the action.

Fossil Lab 2-27-13

Earlier this week my class made fossils by using plaster and sand.  The easiest fossil to get out was the 25 mL of plaster and 50 mL of sand mixture.  The next one to be the easiest was made of 50 mL plaster and 50 mL of sand.  The hardest fossil mixture to release contained 100 mL of plaster and 26 mL of sand.  Over all the first and easiest fossil mixture left the best impression.

Time

Two years ago, I learned about geologic time at Finlandia University by professor Barb Mctaggart.  She was a phenomenal teacher and gave us time to remember and learn the scale.  Since then I have not had any opportunities, time, or classes that needed me to use the information I once learned.  Because of that I no longer remember as well how the time periods go for geologic time, but from the music videos about geologic time I find it will not be hard to remember them again.  If there is one thing I did learn and remember is that the Precambrian period was the first block of the scale.  Also I recall the words, "Paleozoic, Mesozoic, and Cenozoic".  I am excited to relearn about the time scale and what happened in those periods.

 

Geologic Time

Over the snow day I was given some videos to watch for my blog.  At first I was disappointed thinking, "Oh man! Homework."  Then I clicked on the videos and I was blown away by what I was told to watch.  How could I be disappointed about learning about the Earth?  I am highly upset by myself.

I am torn between to music videos about Geologic time.  One video was to the tune, "We Didn't Start The Fire" by Billy Joel, a classic! I was nerding out once I started to watch each video because I knew what they were referencing to, and because it was about geologic time.  The second video was called "Ages of Rock".  I think both videos are a great way to learn the time periods and neat facts about what happened during those times.  I will be listening to these over again to help me memorize these.  Until then, I will be jamming to "We Didn't Start The Fire" while studying for my lab quiz tomorrow.

If I Had A Hundred Dollars

If our solar system was divided up into one hundred dollars between the:

• Sun-10 dollars    Correct Answer: $99.85 
• Earth-10 dollars  Correct Answer: .0003 cents
• Mercury-10 dollars Correct Answer: .00002 cents
• Venus-10 dollars Correct Answer: .0003 cents (Spins opposite of the Earth)
• Mars-10 dollars Correct Answer: .00004 cents (Half the size of Earth)
• Jupiter-10 dollars Correct Answer: 10.6 cents  (Biggest planet)
• Saturn-10 dollars Correct Answer: 3.2 cents (Second biggest planet)
• Uranus-10 dollars Correct Answer: .005 cents (Tilted at 90 degrees, causing bizarre weather)
• Neptune-10 dollars Correct Answer: .006 cents
• Satellites- 5 dollars Correct Answer: Depends (Almost nothing)
• Minor Elements (Comets, asteroids, Trans Neptunium Object's, Meteoroid Belts, Orc Cloud...etc)-5 dollars Correct Answer:  (Almost nothing)

Lunar Video: A Private Universe

Today in class I watched a video called "A Private Universe" produced by the Harvard-Simithsonian Center for Astrophysics made in 1987.  It was about students, alumni, and faculty beliefs about science.  I thought it was amazing and true how students, like myself, had trouble answering the questions or did not know the full reason to the questions being asked. 

First question: The reasons for the seasons are for the earth's different rotations and far away we are from the Sun. The answer I have written is not right.

• The correct answer for the reason seasons occur is when the Earth spins on its axis it spins in a elliptical manner.  Summer occurs when the Earth's axis is tilted towards the Sun.  Winter occurs when the Earth's axis is titlted away from the sun.  And for the other seasons like Spring and Fall the Earth's axis will be pointed 90 degrees from the Sun, according to the National Weather Service in Louisville KY. 
  
  

Another question asked was: What is the reason for the phases of the moon?

The reason for the phases of the moon is for the gravitational tilt of Earth's axis and how the Sun is lined up to the Earth and moon.  The Sun will illuminate the moon.My answer is incorrect, and I am drawing a blank.  Under Pressure~.
 

• The real reason for the moon's different phases is from Earth's moon orbiting the earth and reflects sunlight from the Sun. 

Here is a fun song to teach about the moon's phases to elementary students!This song is educational, fun, and very catchy!

M&M Learning Model

Today in Earth Science I learned a wonderful method on how to describe to children the layers of the Earth.  The Lithosphere of the Earth has two main cores, an inner (plastic) core and an outer (liquid) core, a solid mantle, a plastic upper mantle, and a solid crust.  Below I have provided an image I have found on Google to describe the layers of the Earth. 


To help students understand the Earth's layers, my teacher shared with us the M&M method.  What one does is bite half of a chocolate peanut M&M.  A student can then observe the layers of the M&M and will be able to label the treat to understand the concept of Earth's layers and how M&M's and the Earth are similar.

A peanut M&M and the Earth's layers are similar because they each contain a crust; in this case an M&M has a chocolate casing, an inner and outer core, and a mantle.  Even though the peanut M&M does not have a liquid or plastic core, a student will be able to understand that this delicious treat contains many layers.  This will help students visualize and remember the Earth's layers.  Below I have provided an image I found on Google of a half eaten M&M that I have labeled.

This was a fantastic experiment and if I have the chance to teach my future students Earth's layers I will use the M&M method if I have an old enough group.  I would have never have thought of using an M&M to design a way for students to visualize and remember the layers.  I know because of this project, I will never forget the layers.  This was a fun representation and afterwords a nice treat to enjoy!


Below are the websites I used for the pictures:

1st picture: http://www.sms-tsunami-warning.com/theme/tsunami/img/structure-of-the-earth.jpg

2nd picture: http://www.google.com/imgres?um=1&hl=en&sa=N&tbo=d&biw=1440&bih=730&tbm=isch&tbnid=CcUhMQZ9i4GkCM:&imgrefurl=http://www.obsessivesweets.com/2010/05/strawberried-peanut-butter-m.html&docid=JQKKETMhNCipGM&imgurl=https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj83LcI_SSIe6Bw4pOKtoiXBIDcT3THCK2Bh5r1MOWuiCLNGAFTlGFDO0WoCVSwj536ropKvpAcNz1g4HF8viQz10GcyiXx5tWJoTLApldFzVaWMlbxJhbURz6UNsp5vdeJck8ESB_cGG6u/s1600/100_3126.JPG&w=1600&h=1068&ei=xnL0UIiqGoHF2QWhi4HoAg&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=470&vpy=172&dur=548&hovh=137&hovw=203&tx=141&ty=69&sig=107868146762121972164&page=3&tbnh=137&tbnw=203&start=68&ndsp=39&ved=1t:429,r:87,s:0,i:353