Unit 3: Rocks.(earth studies)(Brief Article)

Background Information

One of the great rock sculptures of the world is Mount Rushmore National Memorial, which rises majestically on the side of a granite cliff in the Black Hills of South Dakota. Taller than the Great Pyramid of Cheops at Giza, this magnificent sculpture rises 5,725 feet above sea level and immortalizes four American Presidents: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln.

Gutzon Borglum, an artist famous for his large sculptures, designed the memorial and spent 14 years supervising its construction. Using models of the Presidents to obtain measurements for the figures, workers cut the figures into the granite with drills and dynamite. Borglum died in 1941, before the memorial was completed. His son Lincoln finished the work.

 
                  Unit Concepts: Students learn that 
                  different types of rocks contain 
                  different minerals and are formed in 
                  different ways; water, ice, and wind 
                  affect rocks. 
 
                  The activities listed below suggest ways 
                  of presenting and enriching the content 
                  and skills in Unit 3. The activities 
                  correspond to days 11 through 15 on the 
                  page 2 calendar matrix. 
 
                  ROCK FROM THE MOON 
 
                  Have students read and discuss pages 16 
                  and 17. Before boiling the eggs used in 
                  the page 17 activity, crack or poke 
                  holes in some of the eggs. Ask students 
                  what the egg white that leaks out 
                  might represent. 
 
                  GO ON A ROCK HUNT 
 
                  Have students read and discuss page 18. 
Mapping           Enrichment. Ask volunteers to create a 
                  rough map of the school neighborhood and 
                  distribute copies to the class. Have 
                  students think of the best areas in 
                  which to look for rocks. 
                  Then have them mark on their maps 
                  locations where they plan to look 
                  for ...