HFH Science Class Spring 2009 Syllabus- Geology

All Classes- End of Semester Field Trip

At the end of the semester students will have the opportunity to visit Cave of the Mounds, for an up-close lesson in Wisconsin
geology! Students will tour the cave, attend a presentation on rocks, and have an opportunity to “mine” for rock samples to take
home. Watch your email for details regarding time, date, and pricing.

Grades 2-3
Students will learn all about rocks, covering classification, formation of igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic rocks, erosion and
deposition, melting and crystallization, crystal shapes, Earth processes, and the rock cycle. Labs will include activities such as
growing crystals from a solution, making crystal models from paper, examining the composition of the local soil, and making a model
of the formation of metamorphic rocks from clay. To round out the semester students will also have two classes on earthquakes and
design earthquake-resistant structures.
Week 1: Properties of Rocks and Minerals. Students compare the properties of rock samples and create ways to sort them.
Week 2: Distinguishing Rocks from Minerals. Students learn the difference between rocks and minerals and gain hands-on
experience with minerals by growing salt crystals.
Week 3: The Shapes of Mineral Crystals. Students build models of crystal shapes from cardstock.
Week 4: Earthquake-Proof Building Challenge Part 1. Students will explore various materials, shapes, and design options that
affect the durability of a building. Students will then design and build their own buildings.

Week 5: Earthquake-Proof Building Challenge Part 2. Students will finish their buildings and test their stability using the earthquake
simulator. May the best design win!

Week 6: Formation of Igneous Rocks. Students simulate the formation of igneous rocks and observe the crystals.

Week 7: Formation of Sedimentary Rocks. Students investigate sediments with different grain sizes and create a model of a
sedimentary rock profile by suspending a mixture of these materials in water.

Week 8: Formation of Metamorphic Rocks. Students create clay models which illustrate how intense heat and pressure result in
properties that they can observe in metamorphic rock samples.

Week 9: Recycling the Earth’s Crust. Students are introduced to the dynamic nature of the earth’s crust through clay models. Rock
cycles and plate tectonics will be discussed.

Week 10: Classifying Rocks and Minerals. In this session students will apply the knowledge they have gained to classify the rock
and mineral samples they have been working with. They will also apply their knowledge to “mystery rocks” that students have
brought in.

Week 11: Rocks Rock! Students will create a fun rock related project.

Grades 4-5
Students will learn about plate tectonics. The class will build model volcanoes and fault simulators to aid in the study of the
following topics: plate tectonics, lithosphere plate boundaries, strike-slip faults, types of volcanoes, sea-floor spreading, subduction,
earthquakes, viscosity, density, sedimentary layers, and the geochemistry of magma. Students will study geologic events around the
world and use their findings to support a unifying theory to explain important geological phenomena. Students will "travel" to
California to learn about fault zones and experiment with building earthquake resistant structures. From there they will "visit" Hawaii,
Japan, Nepal, and Iceland conducting geologic field studies along the way!

Week 1: Preparatory Session. During this prep session students will build the volcano models, strike-slip fault simulators, spreading
center models, and earthquake simulators that will be used to conduct all the subsequent investigations in class.

Week 2: The Structure of the Earth and the Processes that Form its Crust. Students will make various models of the earth’s
layered crust.

Week 3: Field Work in California. Students will “travel” to California and experiment with clay models placed on fault simulators.
Week 4: Earthquake-Proof Building Challenge Part 1. Students will explore various materials, shapes, and design options that
affect the durability of a building. Students will then design and build their own buildings.

Week 5: Earthquake-Proof Building Challenge Part 2. Students will finish their buildings and test their stability using the earthquake
simulator. May the best design win!

Week 6: Investigating Viscosity and Volcanic Rocks. Students will conduct experiments to understand viscosity, in order to interpret
data collected in subsequent field studies.

Week 7: Field Workin Hawaii. Students will study shield volcanoes and the relationship between viscosity, temperature, and speed
of lava flows.

Week 8: Field Work in Japan. Students will study the intense eruption and geographic distribution of strato volcanoes. Data
collected will lead students to speculate on the relationship of this type of volcanism to plate tectonics and the overall structure of the
earth.

Week 9:Field Work in Nepal. Students evaluate evidence that suggests that the Himalayan Range has been produced as a result of
collision between two large land masses.

Week 10: Field work in Iceland. Students will “travel” to Iceland to conduct magnetic field surveys using models of the sea floor near
the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and compasses. Students will calculate the rate at which the sea floor is spreading apart.

Week 11: Evaluating the Theory of Plate Tectonics. In this session students are given an opportunity to synthesize the results of
their previous investigations. They engage in a class discussion that focuses on the overall significance of the geological
phenomenon they have studied.

Grades 6 +

SEE ABOVE SYLLABUS FOR GRADES 4-5

Students will follow the same curriculum as the grades 4-5 class listed above featuring volcanoes and plate tectonics, and will also
have the opportunity to participate in an ADDITIONAL Middle School Challenge Project. This project or mini-course will focus on
web design using html and is intended to give middle school students a higher level of challenge and integrate technology into the
curriculum. Students will work together to create an informational website to share the results of the Geology experiments done in
class. Basic html code will be taught, and some time will be allotted to work on this project in class. However, due to lack of a St.
Joseph’s computer lab some homework assignments will be given. As always homework assignments are optional but
recommended as they will give your student hands-on practice with concepts taught in class. I will send out homework assignments
via email, and will make every attempt to keep them brief. Here is the schedule for this Web Design mini-course:

Week 1: Html Basics.

Week 2: Fun with Fonts.

Week 3: Images.

Week 4: Lists and Tables.

Week 5: Links and Website Design.

Weeks 6:-11: Project. Students will design and publish an“ HFH Geology Class” website.