Rocks Revealed. Discovery Session. Teacher s Pack

Rocks Revealed Discovery Session Teacher s Pack

Rocks Revealed Introduction Thank you for booking Rocks Revealed Discovery Session at The Manchester Museum. This interactive session lasts 2 hours and is led by a Museum Scientist. The session is packed with a variety of activities including investigations, experiments and movement work. Centred around the Museum s rock collections, this session is ideal for children with various learning styles and can also be adapted for specific ages and abilities. Session Aim The overall aim of the session is to provide school groups with an opportunity to develop and apply their knowledge about rocks and their skills in scientific enquiry. Children will discover the fascinating world of rocks by creating descriptive word banks, moving through the rock cycle, playing a game and conducting experiments. Checklist A checklist is included in this pack. It gives important details on what you will need for the visit, such as the number of helpers required. It also provides information for the Museum. Please sign and give your completed checklist to your group leader on arrival. How to use these resources To get the most from your visit it is suggested that you read the pack before your visit. It contains basic information on the structure of your visit, as well as necessary preparatory work (pre-visit) and follow-up work (post-visit) that can be undertaken before your session. Pre-visit work Please complete this work before your session as it will help familiarise children with the topics that will be covered. Post-visit work The movement activity that introduces pupils to the rock cycle provides an ideal starting point for children to develop stories and other creative writing activities.

Itinerary Rock Revealed Section Description Preparation & Links 1. Introducing Rocks The session begins in the Discovery Centre where pupils will briefly investigate a number of rocks from the Museum s collections. Children will work in small groups to investigate and describe a variety of rocks, creating a word bank that will be shared with the class. The class will need to be divided into groups of five (a maximum of six groups). Each group will need an adult to supervise and scribe for the group Pre-visit resources: Museum objects, What is a 2. The Rock Cycle Drama 3. Yes/No Game 4. Rock Detectives After a brief discussion about the ways in which rocks form, pupils will be introduced to the rock cycle. The whole group will then work through the various stages of the rock cycle using music and drama. The class will then take part in the Yes / No game. This game requires pupils to think about similarities and differences displayed by a range of rocks, and to formulate questions around them. In addition to demonstrating the variety of rocks, this game introduces the difficulties of grouping rocks according to how they look. The second part of the session will give pupils an opportunity to complete a practical investigation. Working in groups, pupils will be given a set of rocks to investigate. Pupils will make observations and carry out hardness and permeability tests, and will then use this information to discover the name and origin of the rocks. Using their knowledge of the rock cycle and the ways in which different rocks form, each group will be asked to identify which of the rocks in their set is the odd one out. Pre-visit resources: Missing words Post-visit resources: Stone Stories, Rock and Roll Pre-visit resources: Museum objects Pre-visit resources: Missing words

Museum Objects Rocks Revealed During the Rocks Revealed session pupils will handle real Museum objects. The group leader will provide clear guidelines for handling specimens during the session, however, it is often useful to discuss this before the visit. Also, you may find it useful to undertake some of the activities below in order to introduce the concept of a museum and what the children may see on their visit. Grouping & Materials Activity Aim: To encourage observation and description of a range of familiar natural objects. Also to help children to understand that there are many different ways of organising, grouping and displaying these objects. Instructions: 1. Lay out all the objects and ask the children to discuss and decide which objects are rocks, which are natural and which are man-made. 2. Put the objects into their groups and discuss the similarities and differences within and between the groups. 3. Explain that this is just one way of grouping objects. Ask the children to think of as many ways as possible of grouping the objects e.g. size, colour, weight etc. Materials needed: 1. Range of familiar and strange rocks (e.g. gravel, sand, pebbles, slate etc), a range of objects that are not rocks (e.g. wood, shells) and a few man-made objects (e.g. brick, books, saucepans) 2. Blank paper and pencils or flipchart and pen, sorting hoops 4. Ask the pupils to sort the rest of the objects into two groups without telling the rest of the class their grouping method and then see if the rest of the class can guess their criteria. Key points: Museums organise their objects in many different ways. These include chronologically, geographically or even by type. The way objects are organised influences the way people look at and interpret them. Q: Following your visit, you might like to ask the children how they think The Manchester Museum organises their objects.

Throughout the session a number of terms will be used. To gain the most from the session, children should be familiar with some key terms before they arrive. This worksheet gives a brief explanation of some of these terms and also some basic background information for teachers. Useful information What is a...? Rocks Revealed What is a geologist? A geologist studies rocks, minerals and fossils. Geologists use these as clues to find out what the Earth was like millions of years ago. A geologist should not be confused with a palaeontologist or an archaeologist What is a rock? Rocks are natural and solid. They are made of a mixture of one or more minerals. Like a cake is made of ingredients such as flour and egg, rocks are made of minerals such as quartz and mica. Rocks can be huge like cliffs, small like pebbles and gravel, or tiny like grains of sand or soil particles. Planet Earth is a rock. What is a mineral? Minerals are a group of natural earth materials that are the building blocks of rocks. What is a crystal? Crystals are minerals that have formed into orderly shapes. Geologists classify rocks according to how they are formed. There are three groups of rocks - igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic. What is an igneous rock? Igneous rocks (or fiery rocks) are come red hot out of the oven, spewing up from deep inside the earth in volcanic eruptions. Igneous rocks were once liquid, but cooled down to form rocks made of crystals. The bigger the crystals, the slower the rock cooled What is a sedimentary rock? Sedimentary rocks (grainy rocks) are made up of sediment (grains of minerals or other rocks) and may contain fossils (the remains of creatures). Over millions of years, layers of sediment build up and cement into hard rock. What is a metamorphic rock? Metamorphic rocks (or baked rocks) are other rocks that have changed. Metamorphic rocks started off as igneous or sedimentary rocks but were broken up, cooked, squashed and squeezed as they were slowly buried and pushed deeper and deeper underground.

Missing Words Rocks Revealed While this session is an ideal introduction to rocks, pupils may benefit from prior knowledge about the three different groups of rocks.the following activity provides a useful introduction to sedimentary, igneous and metamorphic rocks. Rock Groups Instructions: Read out loud the information on the Rock Group Teacher sheets. Give small groups of pupils copies of the three Pupil Sheets and a set of cut-out words. Explain that there are seven words missing from each sheet. Ask pupils to try to put the correct word in the correct gap. Materials needed: 1. Sheets for small groups of pupils 2. Print out Missing Words sheet for each group and cut out each word. When pupils have replaced all of the blank spaces with words, read through the information out loud with pupils suggesting the correct words to fill in the blanks.

Missing Words Sheet Changed Squeezed Baked Squashed Heat Pressure Deep Liquid Melted Underground Crystals Tiny Big Cooling Volcanoes Grains Hardened Sand Mud Pebbles Grit Fossils

Rock Group Information Sheet 1 Igneous (Pronounced ig nee us) These rocks have all COOLED DOWN Igneous rocks come red hot out of the oven, spewing up from deep inside the earth and in volcanic eruptions. Igneous rocks were once a liquid called magma. Magma is melted rock that got so hot that it turned into a liquid. Igneous rocks contain crystals that formed when magma cooled down. The slower the magma cooled the bigger the crystals grow. Volcanic rocks cool quickly so they have tiny crystals. Rocks that cooled slowly underground have big crystals. Key words: Magma, lava, crystals, bubbles, shiny Key processes: Cooling and hardening Key places: Volcanoes or underground

Rock Group Information Sheet 2 Sedimentary (Pronounced sed im entry) These rocks are made of GRAINS Sedimentary rocks are made of grains from smashed-up or ground-up rock, or from broken and ground-up shells. The grains were either being carried around by water in the sea, lakes or rivers, or being blown around on land by the wind, before settling to build up in layers. These layers then hardened into solid rock again. The grains may be of clay, mud, sand, pebbles, or fossils. Key words: Grains, sediment, sand, mud, grit, pebbles, fossils, layers Key processes: Layering and hardening Key places: Deserts, rivers, lakes, the sea

Rock Group Information Sheet 3 Metamorphic (Pronounced Met-a-morf-ik) These rocks have all been CHANGED Metamorphic rocks are made when other rocks are changed underground. Metamorphic rocks form when other rocks have been squeezed, baked and squashed by the heat and pressure of movements inside the earth. Rocks changed mostly by heat are made of sugary crystals. Rocks changed by heat and squeezing have wavy layers. Key words: Hard, changed, baked, heated, squashed, rearranged, crystals, layers Key processes: Baking and squeezing Key places: Deep underground

Rock Group Pupil Sheet 1 Igneous (Pronounced ig nee us) These rocks have all COOLED DOWN Igneous rocks come red hot out of the oven, spewing up from deep inside the earth and in volcanic eruptions. Igneous rocks were once a called magma. Magma is rock that got so hot that it turned into a liquid. Igneous rocks contain that formed when magma cooled down. The slower the magma cooled the bigger the crystals grow. Volcanic rocks cool quickly so they have tiny crystals. Rocks that cooled slowly underground have crystals. Key words: Magma, lava, crystals, bubbles, shiny Key processes: and hardening Key places: or underground

Rock Group Pupil Sheet 2 Sedimentary (Pronounced sed im entry) These rocks are made of GRAINS Sedimentary rocks are made of from smashed-up or ground-up rock, or from broken and ground-up shells. The grains were either being carried around by water in the sea, lakes or rivers, or being blown around on land by the wind, before settling to build up in layers. These layers then into solid rock again. The grains may be of clay, mud, sand, pebbles, or fossils. Key words: Grains, sediment,,,,,, layers Key processes: Layering and hardening Key places: Deserts, rivers, lakes, the sea

Rock Group Pupil Sheet 3 Metamorphic (Pronounced Met-a-morf-ik) These rocks have all been CHANGED Metamorphic rocks are made when other rocks are underground. Metamorphic rocks form when other rocks have been,, and by the and of movements inside the earth. Rocks changed mostly by heat are made of sugary crystals. Rocks changed by heat and squeezing have wavy layers. Key words: Hard, changed, baked, heated, squashed, rearranged, crystals, layers Key processes: Baking and squeezing Key places:

Stone Stories Rocks Revealed After the session, you may wish to write a story about a rock as it moves through the rock cycle. You may wish to extend this work using the ideas provided below. Stepping Stones Instructions: 1. Read the story to the class. 2. Hand out sets of the Story Snippet cards to small groups of pupils. 3. Ask pupils to try to arrange the story cards in chronological order. 4. Hand out a set of Picture Cards to each group. 5. Ask pupils to match the pictures to the story cards. 6. Use the rock cycle diagram to show pupils the path that the story takes through the rock cycle. Materials needed: 1. Print out the Story Snippets (1 set for 6 pupils) and cut out the individual cards 2. Print out the Picture Sheets (1 set for 6 pupils) and cut out the individual cards. Rock and Roll Instructions: 1. Explain that there are many different paths that can be taken around the rock cycle and that they will be making their own stories which may be different. 2. Hand out dice and rock and roll sheets to pupils/ small groups. 3. Ask the groups to roll the dice 6 times and follow the instructions on the sheet, making a note of each stage they pass through. 4. Ask pupils to plot their route on the blank rock cycle diagram. Materials needed: 1. Print out the Story Snippets (1 set for 6 pupils) and cut out the individual cards 2. Print out the Picture Sheets (1 set for 6 pupils) and cut out the individual cards.

Story Snippets I am hot, gloopy magma I creep up through the rocks above me I erupt from a volcano I land on the ground as a lump of basalt I cool down and am stranded on my own I am weakened by the changing weather I start to crack and am washed away by a river I start to crumble as the river bashes me into other rocks I settle on the river bed as a grain of sand I am covered by other grains of sand I join with the sand around me and become sandstone I don t change for millions of years I am buried by sand and mud which pushes me underground I am baked and squeezed and become quartzite I start to melt I am hot, gloopy magma again

Picture Sheet Picture Sheet?

Story And so begins my journey I am trapped deep in the red hot belly of the earth. Gradually, I start to stir as the heat from deep deep underground slowly swirls me around. I am magma; a thick and gloopy mixture of red hot melted rock. For what feels like an eternity, I am churned around by the flow of the burning heat from deep inside the earth. I gradually break through the stony ceiling which is trapping me here and slowly I begin to move upwards. Sluggishly crawling upwards, slowly creeping through the gaps and cracks in the rocks above me. Soon I find it easier and easier to squeeze myself through. I soon have the power to push myself nearer to the surface, further and further, and I can almost smell the freedom Up and up I go, hurtling towards the outside world. I tear through the rock, bursting through the crater of a volcano and erupting into the cool, fresh air Yippeeeee! Freedom at last! Before I know it, I land on the ground cool hard ground as a dollop of lava. I instantly start to harden in the cold air, and I grow a rocky hard skin. I still have a warm glow inside, but that soon disappears. Soon I realise that I am stranded all alone, cooling and hardening into a sharp, rigid piece of basalt: I love my new solid self, all tough and strong. I stay on the surface for years and years; still and lifeless, bored and lonely. Only the weather seems to change. At first I enjoy the feeling; the cool rain and the fresh breeze remind me how hot and trapped I had felt before I erupted. With time the wind and rain make me weak as, year after year, I am caught in a cycle of misery. The water seeps deeper into me, and then freezes; prizing me apart. The ice seems to swell inside me, and then the warmth arrives, thawing my icy core soon I notice cracks and they are growing bigger and deeper. I feel drained, exhausted and fragile. I am ashamed and powerless. I hear a rumbling thundering noise in the distance. It gets louder and louder and closer and closer. Suddenly I m on the move again. Out of nowhere a torrent of water gushes over me, plucking me from the ground Carried by the water, I am swept along; rolling, bouncing, and tumbling down the river, bashing my delicate body on the river bed as I go. The water carries me further and further, pummelling me until I start to crack. Flakes start to chip off me and I start to crumble, chipping flakes off me. I shrink smaller and smaller, shattering into fragments, smaller and smaller eventually, the water seems to slow down. I do not move much any more, spending most of my time motionless in the cool water. I don t care any more, I feel so sad that my life as beautiful basalt, so hard and tough is so distant. Now I am just a pitiful, lowly grain of sand; dull and ordinary, nothing special.

I lie still and time passes. I start to regain my strength and realise that I am no longer alone. I notice that I am surrounded by others just like me. We chatter, comparing stories and discover our shared past. Soon we grow closer, not noticing that we are slowly being buried as more of our kind pile on top of us. The weight from above begins to grow; squashing, squeezing and cementing our friendships. We grow closer and closer, joining our strengths and hardening into a solid mass. I start to feel stronger and I realise how I have changed once more. No longer a grain of sand, but beautiful sandstone. My new form pleases me and I remain sturdy and hard. Above me, life goes on. Rivers come and go. I feel the feet of mysterious beasts plodding over my rough surface. Millions of years pass. I don t notice that I am slowly being covered by blankets of mud and sand. More and more layers pile up above me, and they grow heavier and heavier with time, slowly squashing me; pushing me deeper and deeper, pressing me further into the hot belly of the earth. I feel so hot, baked, uncomfortable with the heat. Then there is the squeezing pressure that only gets worse with time. I no longer know where I am, what I am, who I am, but I feel stronger, harder, more powerful. I have become quartzite. I glance at my crystals, realising that I am beautiful again. I dream of glistening in the stunning light of day; I have a new confidence and am filled with energy and strength, nothing can break me now I wait for the rocks above me to wear away, so that I can enjoy the fresh air once more. I wait and I wait, millions of years pass and still I wait. I feel hotter and hotter and realise that I am not being lifted up towards the surface, instead I am being forced downwards, slowly being pushed deeper and deeper. But as my journey continues there is nothing to stop my slow descent towards the centre of the earth. The heat becomes unbearable, and to my horror I realise that I am melting. I feel strangely familiar with this state. Why? What am I? I soon discover the answers to these questions when I realise that I am trapped deep in the red hot belly of the earth. Gradually, I start to stir as the heat from deep, deep underground slowly swirls me around. I am magma; a thick and gloopy mixture of red hot melted rock. For what feels like an eternity, I am churned around by the flow of the burning heat from deep inside the earth.

Rock Cycle Diagram for Story

Rock and Roll Sheet METAMORPHIC SEDIMENTARY SEDIMENT IGNEOUS MAGMA Roll 1 or 4: You stay as MAGMA Roll 2 or 5: You erupt from a volcano and harden into a rock. Go to IGNEOUS Roll 3 or 6: You cool underground and turn into rock. Go to IGNEOUS Roll 1 or 4: You are buried and pushed back underground until you melt. Go to MAGMA Roll 2 or 5: You are broken and worn down by the wind and rain and then moved along by a river. Go to SEDIMENT Roll 3 or 6: You are covered by more rock and pushed underground where you are baked and squeezed until you become a new rock. Go to METAMORPHIC Roll 1 or 4: You are buried and pushed back underground until you melt. Go to MAGMA Roll 2 or 5: You are broken and worn down even more. Stay as SEDIMENT Roll 3 or 6: You are covered by layers of sediment and are glued together to make a new rock. Go to SEDIMENTARY Roll 1 or 4: You are buried and pushed back underground where you melt. Go to MAGMA Roll 2 or 5: You are broken and worn down by the wind and rain and then washed out to sea. Go to SEDIMENT Roll 3 or 6: You are covered by more rock and pushed underground where you are baked and squeezed until you become a new rock. Go to METAMORPHIC Roll 1 or 4: You are pushed further into the heat until you melt. Go to MAGMA Roll 2 or 5: You are pushed a bit further down and you change into a new rock. Go to METAMORPHIC Roll 3 or 6: Wind and rain wear away the rock above you and then you too get broken into bits. A river carries you away. Go to SEDIMENT

Blank rock cycle for rock and roll

Checklist Rocks Revealed Dinosaur Detectives Discovery Session This is a checklist for the Rocks Revealed Session at The Manchester Museum. Please check that you have got or completed everything on the list below. Please sign and hand this form over to your group leader on arrival. You will need: 1. To have divided children into groups containing no more than five children 2. Minimum of one helper per group of five (i.e. six helpers for a class of 30). During the session children will work in smaller groups. Please note that the adults should be prepared to actively engage with their group of pupils throughout the session. If you would like to float around groups during the session, we strongly recommend teachers to bring enough helpers to allow you to do this. 3. You may wish to bring a digital camera with you to record your day. 4. Payment cheque made payable to The University of Manchester. Please fill in: Class size: Number of helpers: Name: Signed: Date: Please arrive promptly for your session. If you are unavoidably delayed, please inform us by ringing 0161 275 2630.