In this activity kids travel through the rock cycle, recording their journey using a string of beads. They will see the many paths as the simulation plays out with no two kids having the same one. We typically draw the rock cycle as a circle, giving kids the mistaken idea that there is a specific order to the process. Here they develop a clear understanding of how one rock can become a different rock and the processes involved in that.
 
What's Included:
✅ Task Card instructions
✅ Student Sheet for capturing observations
✅ Answer Key to Student Sheet
✅ Student Reading with Questions
✅ Answer key to Student Reading questions.
✅ Teacher Notes with prep, set up, and explanations.
 
This Resource Is Great For:
❑ Whole class activity
 
Questions Answered:
☀ What types of rock can a sedimentary rock become?
☀ Is there a specific order that rocks move through the rock cycle?
☀ What happens to magma?
 
Topics & Concepts Addressed:
✦ Each rock type can become another type of rock
✦ Sediment becomes sedimentary rocks
✦ Magma becomes igneous rocks
 
Materials Needed
Pony beads (5 different colors), string, binder clips (optional)
 
Preparation Needed
collect materials; cut and tie knots in strings, copy and laminate cards