We love using inquiry-based learning here at Seabury, and we aspire to get kids thinking like the scientists who work in each particular area we study. As part of our study of geology, we played "Rock Detectives," and used the same types of objects and tests geologists use to identify 17 different types of rocks. We looked at color, sheen, texture and noted whether the rock had layers or crystals. We did some tests on the different samples -- do they float? Are they magnetic? Is the streak color the same as the rock itself? We also did some scratch tests and compared results to the Mohs hardness scale:
We also examined a lot of rocks in class:
Do these pictures look all that different from this one of Noah, below? He's a real-life Geologist (and Seabury Alumnus), pictured here testing rocks from our sample collection to see if they are calcium carbonate rocks (i.e. limestone, marble) using a Muriatic acid solution. Thanks, Noah, for sorting this out for us!
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