This week, students in Primary are studying rocks and the Earth. We talked about the three types of rock and how each type of rock is part of the rock cycle. Molten rock fromed beneath the earth’s crust is brought to the surface by volcanoes. After the lava cools, this igneous rock can be transformed into sedimentary or metamorphic rock. Then it can be pushed deep inside the earth again, where it will melt and the cycle will start again.
We demonstrated these three kinds of rocks with soft candy—adding pressure to simulate sedimentary rocks, some heat and pressure for metamorphic rocks, and a lot of heat for igneous rocks. We watched the components of dirt separate when mixed with water and allowed to settle and erupted our volcano model. We also sliced open a hard boiled egg to see that it has layers similar to our planet.
This topic has led to numerous drawings and the writing of books showing the incredible information gained by studying rocks.
