Global Change: Where Land, Air and Water Meet Activity Source: USGS Global Change Education Objective The atmosphere is a mixture of gases. Similarly, the world’s oceans and fresh waters contain dissolved chemicals. Many substances dispersed in air or water are measured in parts per million. Some of these substances are colorless, odorless, and tasteless, yet even in small quantities they can be toxic. To develop an understanding of parts per million as a concept, teams of students will create successive dilutions of a solution to reach a parts-per- million concentration. [Read More]

Gold Panning Activity Source: Adapted with permission by Adrienne Barnett, Chabot Space & Science Center, Oakland, California. “Thar’s gold in them thar classrooms!” History meets Earth science in the fun, hands-on activity below. Some gold deposits, or lodes, are found in veins of fractured rock. After millions of years of weathering, gold nuggets and flakes are eroded out of the veins and carried away by streams and rivers. Gold is 19 times heavier than water and tends to settle on the bottom and in the bends of rivers, streams, and lakes with sand and gravel, forming deposits called placer. [Read More]

Greenhouse in a Beaker Activity Source: Adapted with permission by The NEED Project. Carbon is naturally found in the atmosphere. Carbon dioxide, or CO2, itself is not considered a pollutant. The CO2 being released from burning fossil fuels was part of the atmosphere hundreds of millions of years ago before being captured by plants and sea organisms. Carbon atoms naturally cycle through the biosphere, the atmosphere, the hydrosphere, and the lithosphere in process known as the carbon cycle. [Read More]

Groundwater Movement Activity Source: Adapted from “The High Plains: Land of Extremes” Bureau of Land Management, 1996 Background Water that accumulates beneath the surface of the Earth is called groundwater. Contrary to popular belief, groundwater does not form underground “rivers,” but is actually found in the small spaces and cracks between rocks and other material such as sand and gravel. Groundwater supplies about 38 percent of the water used for agriculture in the United States. [Read More]

Groundwater on the Move Activity Source: Adapted with permission by Bureau of Land Management. Water that accumulates beneath the surface of the Earth is called groundwater. Contrary to popular belief, groundwater does not form underground “rivers,” but is actually found in the small spaces and cracks between rocks and other material such as sand and gravel. Groundwater supplies about 38 percent of the water used for agriculture in the United States. [Read More]

Grow Your Own Crystals Activity Source: Source: Mineralogical Society of America. Adapted with permission. Most minerals happen naturally as crystals. Crystals are made of specific atoms or molecules joined to make distinctive repeating patterns. The crystals that make up many kinds of minerals are formed deep underground through the interaction of fluid, pressure, and temperature. Some minerals form at or near the surface. You may have seen spectacular mineral samples in museums, but you might not be aware that minerals are everywhere, including in your body. [Read More]

Hands-On Experiments to Test for Acid-Mine Drainage

Activity Source:

U.S. Geological Survey, Open-File Report 00-369, ONLINE ONLY, Version 1.0

Click on the link below for the .pdf file of this classroom activity.

Acid Mine Drainage

How Can You Test Your Soil? Activity Source: Soil Science Society of America, 2006. Adapted with permission. Background We walk around on soil all the time, but how often do we think about what’s in it? If you have ever looked closely at soil, you probably saw that it is made up of various types of particles and has various materials mixed in with those particles (rocks, twigs, water, air, worms, insects, and much more). [Read More]

How Dangerous Are Tsunamis? Activity Source: Adapted with permission by Geological Society of America. Imagine playing beside the ocean, when suddenly, the water drops. Where the water used to be, there are wriggling fish and ribbons of seaweed. What do you do? You could be seeing the first sign of a tsunami ─ a long wave formed in the ocean when the sea floor moves suddenly. Most tsunamis happen because of large earthquakes on the ocean floor. [Read More]

How Does a Solar Eclipse Affect Air Temperature? Activity Source: National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Adapted with permission. Most everyone has experienced the cool relief provided by shadows and clouds on a hot day. You may have even done experiments that measure the difference in air temperature between areas with direct sunlight and areas shaded by trees or other objects. How would a solar eclipse affect air temperature? MATERIALS Phone, tablet, or computer with internet access Safety Note: Remember to never look directly at the Sun without proper safety equipment [Read More]