The ground feels solid, but the Earth beneath us is hot and always slowly moving. At Lava Lake, Year 3 scientists find out what is under their feet and why volcanoes and earthquakes happen where they do.
What your child will learn
- Name the Earth’s layers: crust, mantle and core
- Explain what happens when a volcano erupts
- Know that earthquakes happen when plates of the crust move
- Know how to stay safe in an earthquake
A cracked shell
The Earth’s crust is like the cracked shell of a boiled egg: broken into huge pieces called tectonic plates, which move very slowly. Where plates push together, pull apart or slide past each other, melted rock can escape as a volcano and the ground can jolt in an earthquake.
Example questions
Here are a few questions like the ones in the first quest. Can you solve them?
1. The hollow at the top of a volcano is called a…
- cave
- cliff
- canyon
- crater
Show answer
Answer: crater. The crater forms around the opening.
2. What comes out of a volcano as well as lava?
- Sea water
- Ash and gas
- Snow
- Sand only
Show answer
Answer: Ash and gas. Eruptions can send ash clouds high into the sky.
3. What is melted rock called while it is still underground?
- Clay
- Magma
- Coal
- Lava
Show answer
Answer: Magma. It is magma below ground and lava above it.
Tips for grown-ups
- Mix bicarbonate of soda and vinegar in a model volcano and watch it “erupt”.
- Look at a world map of volcanoes and notice how they line up.
- Practise “drop, cover and hold on” so everyone knows what to do.