To make your rock activity really interesting AND tie geography with science, you can invite educators world-wide to swap rocks. You may copy and use this project to post on any number of educational listservs. Suggestions on where you can post and announce your call for collaboration can be found at the end of this page. Simply delete the text that appears in red, and add your personal information. Your students will be excited and motivated to learn about the rocks and where they came from when they begin arriving!

Project Information

Project Title:  Rock Swap

Project Beginning and Ending Dates: Enter your time choices

Project Registration: You should allow at least a month before your beginning date starts.

Project Summary:

You can edit this as you like ;-) This should be no more than 50 words long.
Students will collect rocks found locally and write a brief description which includes what is the name of the rock, whether the rock is sedimentary, metamorphic, or igneous, and what uses this rock has. Rocks collected and exchanged should be approximately golf ball size.

Project Details

Grade Level(s): Whatever you choose to work with!

Curriculum Areas: earth science, geography, and language arts

Technologies Used: e-mail

Full Project Description:

You can edit this as you like ;-)
In this project, students are asked to collect two to three rock specimens from their local area. Each rock specimen should be about the size of a golf ball. Students should research what is the name of the rock, whether the rock is sedimentary, metamorphic, or igneous, and what uses this rock has. These written descriptions will be sent along with the rock specimens to all participants in this activity.

 

When mailing the rock specimens and descriptions, the rocks should be wrapped in a protective covering such as bubble wrap or in styrofoam pieces. Mailing envelopes with a bubble wrap interior are also good protection for the rocks.

 

Participants are encouraged to e-mail the schools when they have received their rocks from them. Students can compare their rocks from their home with the rocks received and discuss the differences and similarities in the rocks with the other schools by e-mail.

 

Number of Participants:

Your choice!

Project Registration Information

Send the following information to the Project Coordinator:

Your name
Your school's name
Your grade level
Your postal address
Your e-mail address
Your school phone number

 

To register, send the following information:

Your name:
Your school's name
Your grade level
Your postal address
Your e-mail address
What rocks will you be sending:

Once you've created the description for your rock swap, you can post this on several educational mailing lists where several educators will read your call for collaboration and will join you in this project. As participants sign-up, you will need to write them back, telling them whether or not you will be choosing them to participate.

Here is a list of sites that you can use to request participants:

Global SchoolNet Project Registry
http://www.gsn.org/pr/_cfm/RevisitCheck.cfm

K12 Opportunities Registry
http://www.gsn.org/teach/list/k12opps.html

Join an Educational Listserv
http://www.siec.k12.in.us/~west/edu/list.htm

Classroom Connect Mail List
crc@listserv.classroom.com

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