High School Freshman visits the Podcast

A Crazy 8 alum (class of 2009) has been kind enough to tell us about her transition from middle school to high school. Olivia is a freshman at Roosevelt this year, and I think she did a great job in the podcast interview. Feel free to leave a comment on this post if you'd like to thank her (or ask any other questions about high school that were not addressed in the podcast).

Weathering and Erosion Posters

I have been extremely impressed by the collective work of the Crazy 8s on a recent poster project. Here are a few of the posters...


and here are all of them..... see if you can find your own!

Finally, here is a "mosaic" of Harney Peak (highest elevation in South Dakota) made with the Crazy 8 posters.

Case Study: The Black Hills

Many of you have been out to the Black Hills. If you haven't (or if you can't remember what it is like), visualize the following scenario:
As you drive west from Rapid City, you notice a jagged stretch of sandstone peaks called the Hogback Ridge. After a short descent from those sandtone peaks, you come to an area comprised of another sedimentary rock, red shale, which makes a "Racetrack" around the Black Hills. If you keep driving west, there is a gradual incline made of limestone. This limestone formed 100-500 million years ago, from the shells of ancient marine animals. (Yes, we are still in the Black Hills of South Dakota.) Keep driving still, past this limestone plateau, and you will see the Central Crystalline Core of the Black Hills. This area is made of schist (a metamorphic rock) and granite (an intrusive igneous rock) that have aged for up to 2.5 billion years. The apparent color of this Central Core and the groves of Ponderosa Pine gave this area its name, the Black Hills. You might want to get out of the car and take a hike up to Harney Peak, the highest peak in between the Rocky Mountains and the Alps of Switzerland.
What are the events that led to the formation of these Black Hills? Why does it look the way it does? Like geologists, we will explore these questions today.
If you were not in class for the presentation (or if you could use it to review), here is a video:

Here is a link to the presentation (without sound): Formation of the Black Hills

1. Write a summary of how the Black Hills formed. What are the events that led to their formation?
2. Would the Badlands exist if weathering/erosion had not taken place? Why/Why not?
3. The major uplift of the Black Hills occurred 70 million years ago. What do you think that area of South Dakota looked like 40 million years ago? What do you think the Black Hills and Badlands will look like in another 40 million years?

Tape a Student Day

This morning we taped Miranda to a pillar in the team area. We did this for enjoyment and, more importantly, to raise money for our school's food drive. Here is a slideshow of pictures from the event.

Rocks

In science, it is our duty to ask "Why?" and "How?" questions about things that are around us (whether those things are common or extraordinary). Like rocks. I have a couple of those questions for you, Crazy 8s:A: This is a picture of an igneous rock. You may construct a paragraph that answers the following questions, or you may answer each question individually.

1. Why does this igneous rock have crystals?


2. Where did this rock form? How do you know?


3. What type of igneous rock is this?
   

B: This is a picture taken in the Badlands of South Dakota (there are other "badlands", too). The rocks that you see are sedimentary rocks, and they have NOT always been there. Use your knowledge of the rock cycle to answer this question: (If you need a refresher, view the rock cycle prezi in the blog post below this one.)

• How did these sedimentary rocks get here? (What are some of the events that could lead to the formation of sedimentary rocks?)
  

Rock Cycle

To review the rock cycle, navigate through this Rock Cycle Prezi, noting the three main types of rock and the processes by which they are formed.