This week in Science (eight)

This week in Science we identified rocks. We found more qualities of rocks that we can use for identifaction. We also had a group of foods that we had to classify. We put these in groups and it helped us learn how to classify rocks using characteristics.

This Week in Science (seven)

This week in science we took a quiz on types of heating and plate tectonics.  We also tried to identify rocks and their rock type (Igneous, Sedimentary, and Metamorphic).  We also melted mothballs so we could see how crystals form at different cooling periods.  The ones with shorter cooling periods had more air bubbles and therefor looked clearer.  The ones with a longer cooling period had little to no air bubbles therefor they were more white than clear.  This helps in identifying the length of time the rock cooled for.

This week in Science (six)

This week in science we learned about different rock formations, layers, and their laws.

Law of Superposition-  younger rock layers are deposited over older layers

Law of Original Horizontality-  Sedimentary rock layers are originally deposited horizontally; 

any alterations that caused the rocks to bend or break occurred after the rocks were deposited

Law of Lateral Continuity-  rock deposits originally extended in all directions; if the rock deposits are separated; the alteration after the rock was deposited

Cross-Cutting Relationship-  a fault or intruding rock unit must be younger then the rock unit through which it cuts

We also took a quiz on heating.  We learned the ways heating can take place also.

Radiation-  heating though the form of energy

One example of this would be the sun with light as the energy used for heating

Conduction-  heating through particles in physical contact with each other

Convection-  heating with moving fluids

I wasn't in for Thursday and neither was our teacher and a multitude of other classmates because we went to Princeton for science competition.  We ended up coming in 7th place out of twenty but that was enough to send us to the state competition.  This was our first time in this competition and we were up against two nationally ranked teams.  We preformed extremely well.

This Week in Science (five)

This week in science we talked a lot about plates and their movements.  We learned the terms Transform, when two plates slide along each other, Convergent, when a plate goes under another and melts, and Divergent, when two plates pull apart from each other and magma comes up to fill the gap.  we also learned a few other terms like Hotspot, where magma comes up to the earth's surface.  We learned these terms on a website with video representations of all of the different movements.

Pizza Box Fire

This week in Science (four)

This week in Science we took a quiz on Topographic Maps and some water Unit topics.  The maps on this need some serious improvements.  You couldn't see or read anything on them.  After the quiz Finley took us about some plate movements.  Some of these are: pushing together making folded mountains, sliding against each other causing an earthquake, pulling apart making a lake or have lava fill the gap, and various other actions.  He also taught the different rocks and how they are formed.  Igneous are formed when lava or magma cools.  An example of this is Pumice after a volcano erupts.  Sedimentary form with intense pressure on loose layers of sand and small rocks.  An example of this would be Shale.  Metamorphic Rocks form wit intense heat and pressure on Sedimentary rocks.  A good example of this would be Coal (a Sedimentary Rock) to Diamonds (a Metamorphic Rock).  He gave us some samples of rocks and sand collected from our town's tributary and we had to make guesses using prior information about what type of rocks they were.

This week in Science (three)

This week in science class we learned about some of the basics of topograghic maps.  These maps are really great to find which way the water is flowing  and where it is flowing.  Also they are very easy to use and under stand.