As 3rd grade students, through this Rock Unit, you will be exposed to concepts. You will get to see rocks up close and how they change througout their cycle to create other elements of the earth. The Rock Unit includes the following concepts:
The unit will cover the following standards:
11A. Know and apply the concepts, principles, and processes of scientific inquiry:
12E. Know and apply concepts that describe the features and processes of the earth and its resources:
Focusing Activity
Today we are going to begin talking about rocks! What are rocks? And what are they made out of? Watch this video below to learn more about minerals and what minerals have to do with rocks.
Focus Questions
Thinking Outside the Box: Make a list of 5 things you want to find out further about rocks.
Update: Go outside and find at least 10 different rocks. Make observations for each rock. List at least 5 different characteristics for each rock: dark, light, smooth, rough, shiny, dull, etc. and post your observations to the community.
Bring your rocks to class tomorrow to discuss.
Concept/Skill
Students will learn that rocks are identified based on their different characteristics.
Objectives
Students will learn the difference between a mineral and a rock and how minerals make rocks.
Students will learn the importance rocks in their everyday life.
**The Focus Questions throughout the unit are meant to be written in a journal and then discussed openly among the whole class.
**Thinking Outside the Box is intended to get students thinking ahead and thinking critically about what they want to know and what they want to find out more about.
**Both should be written in a journal and kept throughout the unit.
Focusing Activity
Let's continue our discussion about rocks. Do they have different characteristics? Does anyone have a rock collection? If so, where did your rocks come from? Do they all look the same?
Watch the Youtube video below: Let’s Go Rock Collecting by Roma Gans.
Focus Questions
Thinking Outside the Box: Make a list of 5 things you know about rocks.
Update: You are to go outside and collect samples of different rocks, at least 25 rocks, and create your own classification system. Place them into groups based on your system. Separate your rocks piles according to any group of characteristics, such as dark, light, smooth, rough, shiny, dull, etc. Then complete a bar graph to illustrate some of the rock characteristics:
Concept/Skill
Students will know and observe that rocks have different physical properties.
Objectives
Students will construct bar graphs to display at least 5 different rock characteristics.
Standards
11A. Know and apply the concepts, principles, and processes of scientific inquiry
Focusing Activity
Do you know how many different kinds of rocks there are? Watch the video below that describes the different kinds of rocks and how they are formed.
Read more on the different categories of rocks below
Focus Questions
Thinking Outside the Box: Where are the different categories of rocks found? Give examples from your every day life.
Update: What do you notice about the image below? Post an update in the community and list 3 things you observe about the image.
We will be doing an activity in class tomorrow. Be thinking about what it could possibly be. We will be using the below items:
Concept/Skill
Students will know and observe that rocks are composed of smaller parts called minerals. Also that rocks have some characteristics that cannot be seen, but can be tested for.
Objectives
Students will compare and contrast the hardness of rocks and turn in a worksheet with all 4 rocks in order of hardest to softest.
Standards
11A. Know and apply the concepts, principles, and processes of scientific inquiry
12E. Know and apply concepts that describe the features and processes of the earth and its resources
Additional Class Activity
You will have the students make their own rock! Provide them with the materials and have them follow the below instructions:
Discuss: What do you see? What kind of rock did you make? How do you know?
Focusing Activity
We have learned so far the rocks are solid made up of a bunch of different minerals, and there are 3 different categories of rocks: Igneous, Sedimentary, and Metamorphic. These 3 categories make up what is called the rock cycle. But how do rocks become one of these 3 cagegories?
Rocks are constantly changing in what is called the rock cycle. It takes millions of years for rocks to change. Take a look at the diagram below. It will give you a better idea of what the rock cycle looks like.
One thing to remember though, is that rocks don't need to follow this specific cycle. They may change from one type to another and back again in any order.
Please watch the below video which discusses the rock cycle in more detail.
Focus Questions
Thinking Outside the Box: How do the different types of rocks behave differently under different conditions?
Update: Click here and follow the slide show to see more details on how the rock cycle works.
Create an update in the community and discuss how you think the rock cycle helps scientists to decipher things about past periods on Earth.
Concept/Skill
Students will consider the different modes of the rock cycle, and the different types of rock that form on Earth.
Objectives
Students will be able to identify the 3 different rock categories.
Students will be able to understand the rock cycle.
Standards
11A. Know and apply the concepts, principles, and processes of scientific inquiry
12E. Know and apply concepts that describe the features and processes of the earth and its resources
Peer Reviewed Project: Choice 1
Create an electronic journal. The focus of your journal is rocks and everything you have learned about rocks so far. It will need to include the following:
1. Title page
2. Definition of rocks and how they are used in our daily lives.
3. Describe each of the different kinds of rocks we have learned about. Discuss how each kind of rock is formed.
4. Tell me what is the most interesting thing you have learned about rocks so far.
Please review the rubric below to know how you will be graded.
Peer Reviewed Project: Electronic Journal
Students will create an electrnic journal. The focus of this journal is rocks and everything they have leared about rocks so far. It will need to include the following:
1. Title page
2. Definition of rocks and how they are used in our daily lives.
3. Describe each of the different kinds of rocks we have learned about. Discuss how each kind of rock is formed.
4. Something they found most intersting when learning about rocks.
The work will be reviewed by teacher and at least 2 other students. Students will revise based on feedback and resubmit a final version.
They will need to create the journal by following the rubric below.
Peer Reviewed Project: Choice 2
Create a digital scrapbook. You will put together a small scrapbook of different kinds of rocks and what you have learned about rocks so far. Your scrapbook will need to include the following:
1. Title page
2. Pictures of the different kinds of rocks along with their definitions
3. Illustration (your own illustration or one found online) on how rocks are formed with a description of the illustration in your own words.
4. Tell me what is the most interesting thing you have learned about rocks so far. You can include pictures but the pictures must include descriptions.
Please review the rubric below to know how you will be graded.
Peer Reviewed Project: Electronic Scrapbook
Students will create a digital scrapbook. The student will put together a small scrapbook including the different rocks and what they have learned about rocks so far. The scrapbook will need to include the following:
1. Title page
2. Pictures of the different kinds of rocks along with their definitions
3. Illustration (their own illustration or one found online) on how rocks are formed with a description of the illustration in student's own words.
4. Something they found most intersting about rocks so far. They can include pictures but the pictures must include descriptions.
The work will be reviewed by teacher and at least 2 other students. Students will revise based on feedback and resubmit a final version.
The student will create the scrapbook by following the rubric below.
Focusing Activity
Does anyone know what Weathering is? Let's watch the below videos to get a better idea of how weathering and erosion work into our Rock unit.
Read the article about Weathering and Erosion below.
Focus Questions
Thinking Outside the Box: Can you think of anything that you have seen in real life that has been weathered?
Update: Complete the attached worksheet based on the information you read above. Color in whether the process being shown in the picture is erosion or weathering. Explain your answer in the space provided. Bring your worksheet to class and be prepared to discuss your answers.
Concept/Skill
Students will know and observe that earth materials change over time
Objectives
Students will be able to recognize the processes that cause weathering and erosion.
Students will be able to identify the similarities and differences between weathering and erosion.
Students will be able to identify the various effects of weathering and erosion.
Standards
11A. Know and apply the concepts, principles, and processes of scientific inquiry
12E. Know and apply concepts that describe the features and processes of the earth and its resources
Focusing Activity
To begin today's lesson, I want you to rub 2 rocks together over a paper bag. What do you notice about the different types of rocks? What is the breakdown of these rocks forming?
Watch the video below to get a better idea of what happens to rocks to form soil.
The below image is a diagram showing how soil is formed. Let's take a look to get a better image in our head of how this happens.
Focus Questions
Update: Read the Soil AgMag here from Ag in the Classroom. After reading the article, complete the attached worksheet and bring to class tomorrow for discussion.
Be prepared for an activity in class tomorrow by thinking about what we will do with the following items:
What do you think it will be?!
Concept/Skill
Students will know and observe that soils have varying properties and many different uses.
Objectives
Students will analyze why soil is so important.
Standards
11A. Know and apply the concepts, principles, and processes of scientific inquiry
12E. Know and apply concepts that describe the features and processes of the earth and its resources
Additional Class Activity
In class the next day, do an activity with the student so they get to make their own soil layers.
Place students in their predetermined groups of 2-3 students. Tell the students that during this lesson they will get to see the different layers of soil.
In a clear plastic cup, first place in about 2-3 tablespoons of Kix cereal. These represent the rocks in the ground.
Next, add 1-2 tablespoons of Rice Krispies. This represents the subsoil, which is not as dark and rich as the topsoil.
Last, add 1-2 tablespoons of Cocoa Krispies to represent the topsoil.
Sprinkles a little bit of Raisin Bran on top to represent leaves and debris on the humus layer.
Discuss the different layers of soil and what the students observe.
Focusing Activity
Today you will be learning about different types of soil. Let's read about it on the attached article below.
Watch the video below to learn more about the different types of soil.
Focus Questions
Update: Discuss the descriptions of the types of soil. Post it to the community so you can comment on at least one other student's update and build on each other's comments. Use some of the following sentence frames if needed:
"I agree with ____ because..."
"I disagree with ____ because..."
"What you said made me think about...."
Complete the worksheet below and bring it to class for further discussion.
Concept/Skill
Students will learn about earth with this lesson that teaches them about the most basic component-dirt!
Objectives
Students will be able to identify and describe the different types of soil.
Standards
11A. Know and apply the concepts, principles, and processes of scientific inquiry
Assessment Update:
For this assessment, you will turn in your completed journal you have been keeping throughout the unit. In addition, you will be writing a story! A ROCK story!
You are to create a rock character. Give it a name, give it different characteristics that a rock would have. Your character will go on a journey where it encounters erosion and weathering, and other rock or dirt characters.
You can type your story, write it at the end of your journal, or go as far as making it into a book. This is up to you, but your story must have as much information about what we have learned throughout the unit as possible. Have fun with this!
We will be reading our stories to the class when they are completed!
For the culminating assessment the students will turn in their completed journals they have been keeping throughout the unit. In addition, they will write a story where they have created a rock character. Their character will go on a journey where it encounters erosion and weathering, and other rock or dirt characters. This is to put their knowledge to use in a fun way. Students will be allowed to type their story, write it at the end of their journal, or go as far as making it into a book. This is designed to be a fun assessment.