10 Fun Ideas to Celebrate Earth Science Week
Earth Science Week this year is October 11-17 Of course we should celebrate this magnificent globe that we live on! Instead of staying inside and making a craft, let’s get outside and enjoy our world. Here are 10 ideas for easy excursions for learning more about our marvelous blue planet.
And if you are looking for some fun kits to help you in your exploration, see the links at the bottom of this post!
- Visit a local state or national park. Learn a bit about the geological features of it before you go.
- See if you can find the four (yes, four!) rock types in your area. It may not be possible. Why would that be? Learn more about the rock types at our Youtube channel. We have several on rock types, but here are just two of them: here and here.
- Earth science includes the water on our earth. Visit a local lake/ocean. Even better, do it a couple times and make some observations. Is the water level the same as the last time you visited? Is it a dry season or a wet season for this body of water? What might give you the answer to that? How does the moon impact the level of the ocean tides? Visit a local river, creek, or stream. You will likely find tumbled stones there. What kinds do you find?
- Do you live in an area that once had glaciers? What evidence of this can you find? This might include glacial valleys, moraines, large smoothed boulders that are standing alone, glacial striations (scratches caused by moving heavy ice), etc. Do some research on glaciers before you go.
- Are there caves in your area? What kind are they? Check out this web site for information on the different types. Although there are several different types of caves, the most common is the Solution Cave. There are two competing views of how these caves were formed. One is a uniformitarian view, that they took a long time. The other is that the formation took place quickly, as a result of a catastrophe. Look into both ideas. What do you think? Make a list of evidence that would support each idea.
- If you would like to collect rocks, one of the best places is county road cut-outs – those places where a road has been laid down after cutting through a hill. This often results in exposing rocks that might not otherwise find. Check out our suggestions for how to get the most out of this activity. You need the right “tools!” Tools of the Trade
- Are there stone quarries in your area? Safety is always the first order of business. But you might be able to either get a tour of the area, or explore on your own, depending on the regulations in your area.
- Visit a landscaping business that specializes in cut stone. There can be hundreds of different types of stone to look at and identify.
- Visit a store that sells granite counter tops. Did you know that they aren’t all granite, even when they are labeled that way? See if you can identify the rock in the different products. Having a stone countertop does not guarantee a problem free counter. If you were given the choice of either a granite, quartz, marble or slate countertop, which would you choose, and why?
- Is there a mountain chain close to you? What is its name? Take a hike there! What kind of rocks are represented in these mountains? How were these mountains formed? Again, there would be two main ideas about how they were formed. Do you know what they both are?
Check out these resources to help you in your exploration:
- Rock Identification Made Easy, the Kit
- National Parks, Monuments, and Historic Trails
- Biblical Geology and the Ice Age
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