Weathering

“A” and Mum write:
Rocks are broken down by erosion and by physical, chemical or biological weathering.
Physical weathering can be due to freeze-thaw, which happens when water gets in cracks in rocks, then freezes and expands, putting pressure on the rock before it thaws and releases that pressure, eventually causing the rock to split.
Another form of [...]

Read Full Post »

Metamorphic Rock

“M” writes

Metamorphic rock is formed by existing rock getting changed by heat and/or pressure.
Metamorphic rock may have small crystals, some have layers, like marble and slate.

Metamorphic means ‘changed form’
Examples (as found in CGP KS3 Geography and CGP KS3 Science)

sandstone becomes quartzite
limestone becomes marble
granite becomes gneiss
clays become slate
When [...]

Read Full Post »

Learning About Tornadoes and Cyclones

In our Literature lesson this week we have started to read L. Frank Baum’s “The Wizard of Oz”. Today we read the first chapter, which tells of Dorothy’s life on the Kansas prairies with her Uncle Henry, Aunt Em and her little dog Toto.
Reading about Dorothy’s experience of a cyclone prompted us to learn more [...]

Read Full Post »

Sedimentary Rocks

“A” writes:
Sedimentary rocks are made from tiny particles of rocks and sand ,or tiny pieces of shells, plants or animal remains, which form layers and eventually become rock.
Here are some websites that give more information:
http://fi.edu/fellows/fellow1/oct98/create/sediment.htm
http://www.windows.ucar.edu/tour/link=/earth/geology/sed_intro.html&edu=elem
Limestone is a sedimentary rock. It is formed from tiny shells and micro-skeletons.

Below is a picture of sandstone.
It is made [...]

Read Full Post »

Igneous Rock

“M” writes:
Igneous Rock is formed from cooling magma (molten rock).

Igneous comes from the latin word ignis for fire.

The volcano in the diagram above is like a tube of toothpaste with holes in because when you squeeze a tube of toothpaste it squirts the paste out of the top, [...]

Read Full Post »

The Cocoon at the Natural History Museum

“M” writes:
The Cocoon is an interactive gallery in the Natural History Museum in London.
The Cocoon has more than 2km of display cases and has many interactive educational games.
I saw many different display cases with animals in, and some interactive tables where you can zoom in on different small animals that you can’t [...]

Read Full Post »

Hydroelectric power in the Alps

This was the our first year camping in the Alps that we had electricity…. Imagine a fan heater in your tent when it is freezing outside!  Why it took us 20 years to discover this luxury I do not know!
M had a good look round on a 9 hour walk around the valley and found [...]

Read Full Post »

The Dragontree Garden

“A” reports from The Dragontree Garden:
Here at Dragontree we have been growing our own fruit and vegetables.
We have turnips, parsnips, blackcurrants, peas, broad beans, onions, garlic and apples, strawberries, radish, tomatoes and runner beans.

We also planted some potatoes but they didn’t grow very well. We covered them over each time they sprouted up above the [...]

Read Full Post »

The First Lunar Landing : A News Report by M

First Men on the Moon
Apollo 11 has landed on the moon and is coming home
Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins will soon complete their mission to land safely on the moon, collect samples of lunar rock, set up scientific experiments and return home.
On the 16th July 1969, Apollo 11 blasted off into space from [...]

Read Full Post »

Reporting the First lunar Landing

During personal project time this week, “A” has been researching the story of the first lunar landing.
Here she has written a news article as though she was a journalist at the time of the Apollo 11 mission:
FROM EARTH TO THE MOON
“One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind”
These are the words spoken by [...]

Read Full Post »