Teach your students about the wonders of caves without leaving the classroom.
You don't have to go spelunking in a deep, dark cave to be able to teach your class about the concepts of speleology. Instead, plan some entertaining, hands-on activities that can be executed right in the classroom. These activities demonstrate various important aspects of caves, ranging from the historical to the scientific.
Arts and Crafts
Use arts and crafts projects to get your students thinking creatively about caves. For example, a possible project idea could incorporate the historical significance of caves by examining ancient cave paintings and then having students create their own modern versions. Students tell a pictorial story using paper, paint, markers, crayons and other art supplies. For a rustic, cave-wall look, use crinkled brown paper bags or sandpaper as the drawing canvas. Hang the resulting cave art around the classroom, and then have the students see if they can make sense of the pictorial elements in their peers' work.
Science Experiments
Teach your students about the science of cave formations with simple experiments. One experiment you could perform involves a simple supply list and effectively demonstrates how caves form. Give each child six ounces of clay and 12 sugar cubes. The clay will represent hard sandstone, while the sugar cubes will represent softer limestone. Have the students mold the clay to envelope the sugar cubes in a formation of their choice, always leaving the sugar cubes at least slightly exposed. Allow several days for the clay structures to dry and harden, and then submerge them in water for the sugar to dissolve. The resulting hollowed-out formation represents a newly-formed cave.
Games
Reinforce the cave concepts you cover in class with games. Create word searches that incorporate critical vocabulary words like "stalactite" and "stalagmite," and play classroom trivia games with questions tailored to speleology. For an interactive and imaginative game that deals with learning about creatures who call caves home, try Are You My Mother? Discuss with students how bat mothers use scent and sound to identify their babies. Then, select six students to be the mothers and six to be the babies. Give each pair a scented cotton ball and a distinctive sound to use. Blindfold the mothers and have the students rely on the scent and sound elements to find each other.
Snacks
After completing cave activities, you might continue your lesson with some cave-themed treats. For instance, have your kids make rock candy and discuss how it relates to the formation of cave structures like stalactites and stalagmites. You might also make sedimentary rock sandwiches by layering slices of white and brown bread, peanut butter and jelly, raisins and graham cracker crumbs to represent the different elements that go into sedimentary rock formation. Press down on the sandwiches to demonstrate how sedimentary rock is compressed.
Tags: sugar cubes, sedimentary rock, your students, Give each, scent sound, students about, students mothers
