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.
