Lava Layers: Finally a good use for the baking soda and vinegar volcan

Resource: Lava Layering Activity, pgs 24-32 from Mars Activities, Teacher Resources and Classroom Activities from NASA/JPL and Arizona State University.

Students use two favorites: playdough and the baking soda and vinegar volcano to simulate layering of volcanic rock on a planet surface by using playdough to simulate the volcanic rock left behind after an eruption. Students draw a map and add to it as each layer is added. This is just one of twenty four activities in the free packet.

Student traces the second lava flow.

My students were very excited about this activity. They got to making baking soda and vinegar overflow not just once but four times. Several of them struggled with the idea that they needed to use the playdough to cover everywhere the volcano erupted, not just previously bare areas. I also didn’t make enough playdough. I wish the lesson had been clear that the suggested playdough recipe was only enough for one volcano board.

Student drawn map of the lava layers.

There was no suggested time frame. I did this lesson after school with a group of volunteer students, and alloted a full hour, which was not enough time, even though I did the set up before students arrived. If I were to do this activity in my usual 43 minute period, I would need to read the handout with the students the day before and go through the procedure with them step by step, possibly sharing pictures of a model volcano being built so that they would be able to walk into class and get started immediately.

In addition to being fun,  the lesson did help students understand how lava flows add layers over time. They were able to suggest digging a pit and using a core sampler to learn more about the layers that could no longer be seen, although they didn’t have the vocabulary to name them, and when we pulled the straws out with core samples they were excited to see that their blue playdough was still there.

Student shows the “core sample” demonstrating all four layers. I used pastel food coloring. Next time I’ll use deeper colors and suggest a color order for maximum contrast. 

The lesson suggested using orbital images to guide students through a discussion of others ways to estimate the age of surface layers, but it did not suggest images to use, or provide a lot of background for students who aren’t familiar with geology. Both of those would have been useful.

I would definitely use this lesson again in the future, with the modifications I mentioned, because it was engaging and informative, and uses easily accessible materials. I would also consider collaborating with the art teacher to turn this into a STEAM project, adding the some more detail to the lava layers map, and perhaps talking about how important shadow and light are when viewing orbital images.

What is Genius Hour? Passion projects get kids excited about research and learning.

This year I am introducing Genius Hour to my 6th, 7th, and 8th grade science classes. You can read more about Genius Hour on the official website, but I want to talk about what it will look like for my students.

The concept of Genius Hour is that students are given the opportunity to research a topic that they are passionate about, and use that passion to solve a problem. The topic can be anything, from pollution at local parks to oil painting. Although I am a science teacher, the Genius Hour topic doesn’t have to be science related. Unlike a traditional science fair project, the result of a Genius Hour project might not fit on a tri-fold display board, or follow the outlines of the typical “scientific method.”

I might choose bread as my topic because I am an avid bread baker. A Genius Hour project on bread would include research into the history of bread in multiple cultures, types of flour, how agricultural, industry, and nutritional research has affected the bread we eat and how we eat it. My final presentation could be a loaf of bread that I baked in a brick oven I built based on my research. 

Every Friday, our science time will be dedicated to Genius Hour. Students can do research during that time, but many of them will want to do work outside of class as well, both because they need more time and because they are passionate about their work. All students are required to keep a log of their research in a document I created for them so that I can see what they’re up to in and out of class. The template for the log document is here.  I will conference with students about their work during class on Fridays and provide feedback by commenting on their logs. Logs will be graded on a ten (10) point scale weekly. Twice during the school year, they will be expected to present a product. What that looks like depends on the topic and the student.

The Upper School science and knowledge fair will be in April. Every 6th, 7th, and 8th grade student will be expected to present something that day. Students who wish to be considered for the State Science Fair two weeks later must present their project in a traditional science fair format. The science fair project might be a smaller part of the larger Genius Hour topic. So if my topic is bread, I might do a science fair project that tests how adding eggs affects a bread dough, and produce multiple loaves of bread using different numbers of eggs to compare the outcomes. Students who do not wish to be considered for State Science Fair can present their research to date in another format that makes sense for their topic. 

At the end of school year, students will be expected to present a summary of their work. This could take the form of a 5 minute presentation in front of the class, a video of a clean up project at a local park, a tutorial for the perfect jumpshot, a website the student created with information about their topic, a prototype for a new or improved device, an informational paper designed to be presented to a government representative in support of a change in policy, etc. 

Although students will need assistance from parents and other adults from time to time, it is important that the work be student drive, and that the results show the student’s passion and effort. Students have already started work on a wide variety of topics from Frisbees to candy making. I’m excited to see where their interests take them.