August 16, 2012
There's a new hole on the side of 6,500-foot-tall Mount Tongariro. It erupted in early August for the first time in nearly a century, catching geologists by surprise, closing roads and disrupting flights.
Mount Tongariro is the mountain location where The Lord of the Rings movies were filmed. Since this volcano was thought to be dormant, does that mean other so-called dormant volcanoes will also erupt?
For a list of volcanoes in the United States, go here.
Here are some lesson ideas for studying volcanoes in your homeschool:
- Create a volcano lapbook and do a unit study using the HomeschoolShare website's templates. This free study offers two weeks of activities.
- Include these free printables from About.com in your supplemental materials for a fun science filler.
- Every kid should get to make their own volcano at least once. Check out this easy experiment here.
- Studying about Pompeii and the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius by reading T.L. Higley's book, Pompeii.
- Watch the Lord of the Rings and keep an eye on that mountain! Is it smoking?
- Watch the 10 most active volcanoes video (to the left of this article).
- Peruse the links on this great volcano website: A to Z Home's Cool Homeschool.
- And don't forget to include the supervolcano in Yellowstone!
Are once-dormant volcanoes waking up? Enjoy the adventure with your kids finding out.
What ideas have you used in your homeschool to study volcanoes? Weigh in below.
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