The Earth’s mantle is an enigmatic place, out of direct reach and sight of us on Earth’s surface. As a result, people have many questions about it: What is the mantle really like? How does it behave? If we could hold a bit of it, what would it look like?
This home-learning ‘workshop’ uses everyday physics, and four hands-on activities to allow you to answer these questions about the Earth’s mantle for yourself! Bounce silly putty, burn your own Hawaii, and race your family and friends to ‘creep’ the mantle to the finish line.
The worksheet and experiments take you on an exciting journey through seismic imaging, mantle convection and solid-state creep, all the while asking questions to help you think about the Earth.
· Subject: Science
· Aimed at: 11-14 years
· Experiments: Silly putty recipe, Convection tank, Hotspot tracks, Creep race
· Contents: Summary, worksheet, experiment instructions, suggested answers, more activities to try
Click here to download the: “What is the inside of the Earth like? Home-learning workshop” resource pack.
This workshop also exists as an in-school workshop, and can be downloaded from this page.
If you have used this resource pack and have any comments or improvements, please contact designer Hero Bain at: hrb47@cam.ac.uk
Looking for some fun ways to learn more about the Earth? Why not try out some of these activities you can do at home or in a classroom!
