Volcanoes

On Sunday, we finished our lapbook for volcanoes. We had a lot of fun and learned quite a bit while putting it together.


One afternoon last week, we exploded our volcano. We had a kit called Exploding Volcano by Becker & Mayer. It was really helpful as we didn't have to build a volcano - we just snapped it together. And, it also came with 2 tubes to keep the vinegar & baking soda separate until you were ready to mix them. It had a 3-piece foam top that should explode of the volcano, but it only worked the first time. I think I might have mixed it stronger that first time. Another possibility is that we weren't cleaning and drying the pieces well enough between explosions.


We had lots of fun & exploded our volcano 8-9 times. We worked outside and I let Alexandra do all the pouring, so it was kind of messy, but fun! The mosquitos were really biting me, or we would have stayed out longer. By the end, we switched from red & yellow lava to blue and then green lava (as you can see in the photo).
Resources:

• Voyage to the Volcano (Magic School Bus Chapter Book) by Juduth Stamper - we love the Magic School Bus!
• Volcanoes (a Let's Read and Find-Out Science Book) by Franklyn M. Branley - I like these science books
• Volcanoes (a True Book) by Paul P. Sipiera - another good series
• Danger! Volcanoes (a See More Reader) - has some great photos
• Volcano! by Ellen J. Prager (National Geographic Society) - has a cartoon dinosaur that tells about volcanoes - some good information
• Vacation Under the Volcano (Magic Tree House) by Mary Pope Osborne - Jack & Annie visit at the time of the Pompeii Explosion
• Hill of Fire by Thomas P. Lewis - great true story about a volcano that builds up in Mexico
• Eruption! The Story of Volcanoes (DK) by Anita Ganeri
• Magic School Bus Blows Its Top (video)
• Pompeii: Lost and Found by Christensen (added Sept 2006) - we really enjoyed this book