Activities for Elementary
Grade focus 3-6
With resources, this age can be so much fun! Image credit: Kate VandenBos
(See more about this image below)
The resource items listed below are free to you and your club, but are not to be sold or included in any commercial endeavor. Any use outside your AFMS-affiliated rock club should only be done with the permission of the authors.
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Age and grade levels are suggestions only - use however you want for your group
Elementary: Grades 3 - 6
Click on the links to download the pdfs. (Do NOT open in Google Docs. Go to Download)
My Rock Collection! - This is a fun starter record card for kids collecting rocks. Trying to remember what a specimen is called and where and when you acquire it is hard for any age, and teaching early to keep this record teaches skills in organizing, matching numbers, reading, writing, and spelling as well as science. (Print both sides of paper, flip on short edge.)
River Country Sedimentary Rock Project - Use to teach about sedimentary rock formation, including the concepts of erosion, sediment deposition, and sedimentary rock identification.
Mapping My Collection - Use with kids old enough to be familiar with a United States map. This age will not comprehend the abstract concept of a map, but can still match their own rocks to the spaces named on the map visual. Eventually, this will have more meaning for them as they learn more about the states and collect while traveling.
Borax Snowflakes - Many mineral crystals are formed when hot solutions containing dissolved minerals slowly cool. For this fun activity, each junior will make a borax crystal snowflake that demonstrates how such crystals are formed.
Volcano - Volcanoes can erupt with a violent explosion or with more gently flowing rivers of lava. Juniors can make this volcano that will demonstrate both types of eruptions.
Crystal Shapes - Gumdrops and Toothpicks make fun and simple crystal shapes!
Games and Puzzles - These original activities make learning fun. Watch as more leaders contribute to this page.
About the image on this page
Lots of pictures will help this age group, with great specimens like this shiny Obsidian from Little Glass Buttes, Oregon.
Image credit: Kate VandenBos