Earth Sciences

 

Teacher:  Ellen Hillman

Ages:  10-14

Mat Fees:  $30

Class Fees:  $240 or $230 if taking 2 or more classes.  Price is for one quarter.   Can be split into 3 equal payments.

 

Our Earth Science classes were so much fun, and full that we will extend our learning this year with a continuation and expansion of the concepts we were working with last spring.  New students are welcome to our class, and continuing students will learn all new concepts!

 

 SPRING QUARTER:

 

Over the course of the last two trimesters, our student scientists in Earth Science have learned about biomes and habitats of our earth.  They have determined the Earth’s role in our solar system, our galaxy, and the universe.  This trimester we will delve into Earth’s structure, inner dynamics, changes over time, and its resources.  We covered some of these topics in last year’s class, however, we had an entirely different group of students!  We will cover the following topics!

 

• Earth’s structure:  core, mantle, crust, layers, solids, temperatures, features, attributes

• Plate tectonics:  Pangea, continents, continental drift, earthquakes, volcanoes, mountains

• Rocks, minerals, gemstones:  igneous, sedimentary, metamorphic, rock cycles, minerals, metals, crystals, gemstones, mining, classifying

• Shaping Earth’s surface:  erosion, weathering, sediment transfer, wind, floods, landslides, environment

• We will participate in numerous hands on activities to supplement our studies!  The following are just a few of the activities we will enjoy.

•  We will make small models of the Earth depicting its parts.  We will also display Earth’s structure using interesting and tasty samples!

• We’ll demonstrate plate tectonics using familiar ingredients…graham crackers and marshmallow creme!

• We will create samples of the effects of erosion.

• We will create our own mini volcanic eruptions.

• We’ll conduct a small water cycle experiment displaying evaporation and condensation.

• We will examine, test, and classify samples of rocks and gemstones.    

 

WINTER QUARTER:

Astronomy!  This trimester we will continue our studies about our wonderful Earth with a particular interest in our earth in space, and our place in our solar system.  In this enriched class, we will gain an overview of the universe, galaxies, stars, and constellations.  We will learn about our sun and planets in our solar system, comets and meteors, and their dynamic influences.  Ever wonder how a star is born? How does it die?  How far away are stars?  What does the moon have to do with time? What is the Milky Way and can we see it?

We will boost our studies with experiments and research.  Students will have an exciting, experience learning about the mysteries of the universe, and remember these studies for years to come!

 

 

 

FALL QUARTER:

We learned quite a bit about energy last Spring, and learned that the Earth's biomes create different living environments for plants and animals.  We did an overview of these biomes, and had a basic introduction to ecosystems, habitats, food webs, and food chains.   This fall we will further explore these concepts and systems, with a focus on how different plant and animal communities keep their balance, and what happens when any part of the system breaks down. We will see how human intervention affects these communities. In one of our projects, we will study and evaluate how scientists have affected the balance of elk and wolf populations in communities such as Yellowstone and other National Parks.  While we learn about various habitats, we will have an exciting experience in discovering real life evidence of food chains.  We will have a rich hands on examination of owl pellets to determine the food they eat.  We will dissect these pellets and try to identify the bones. It is fascinating to uncover the prey that these owls enjoyed!  The discovery of the skeletal remains of their food sources is a lesson the students will not forget! This exercise offers a very close view of a food chain at work and gives us an opportunity to classify scientific finds. Additionally, students can select particular habitats to learn more about, and share these in class. This class will be both fun and educational!