Last week we started our Pebbles, Sand, and Silt unit. This unit and all materials are provided to us by EBEC (East Bay Educational Collaborative). The science standards line up wonderfully and we can easily tie in our writing standards during the science notebook time. On Thursday the students experimented with three rocks, basalt, tuff, and scoria. They could use water, magnifying lenses and the three rocks. It was so fun to just give them the materials and say "experiment, observe, discuss". They had amazing conversations with each other.
Many of the students observed that when they placed the scoria in the water, air bubbles escaped. Simply through discussion with each other (and a bit of guidance on my part) the students were able to conclude that there was air in the cracks and holes of the rocks! One student even told me it was porous! He remembered our vocabulary word from months ago. :) Inquiry learning at its best!
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