How the Earth Works

This text, produced by the Geological Society, investigates igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary rocks, the rock cycle, erosion and weathering. The book contains a series of classroom activities for earth science at Key Stage Three. Each unit provides preparatory information for the teacher, information sheets for the students, the outline of a student investigation and a homework project. In the activity on igneous rocks, students' experiment with the crystallisation of salol from its molten state as an analogue of the crystallisation melt. The weathering activities investigate weathering by heat, cold and weathering by chemicals. In the erosion activity, students shake bits of rock in a bottle to simulate a process called attrition. One of the activities on sedimentary rocks focuses on compacting different mixtures of sand, clay and plaster of Paris to see which mixture creates the strongest rock, once dried. In the activity on metamorphic rock, students compress play dough to simulate stress on a rock. Appendices include a technician’s guide, a glossary and a teacher’s introduction to plate tectonics.