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Lesson 2 of 13 · Earth Systems

Experiment30 XP🌋 Rock Realm

Physical and Chemical Weathering

🧪Lab Brief #2

Earth Systems.

🎯 Your mission

Set it up. Test it. Be amazed.

⚡ The twist

The slowest changes are the biggest ones.

🤯

Mind = Blown

🪨 Every grain of sand on every beach used to be a mountain.

🔮

Make a hypothesis first

Predict: which will erode faster?

What You'll Learn

Weathering breaks rocks into smaller pieces through physical processes (like freezing water expanding in cracks) and chemical processes (like acid rain dissolving limestone).

Key Words

Tap a word to see its definition.

Materials Needed

  • rocks
  • water
  • plastic tray

Safety First

  • Wash your hands thoroughly afterwards and keep the material away from your face.
  • Mop up spills straight away so nobody slips, and keep liquids away from sockets.

Steps

Step 1Read

Look at the vocabulary words and write a definition for each in your own words.

Step 2Do

Model erosion: tilt a tray of soil and pour water from a cup at the top. Observe how channels form. Try adding plants or rocks to slow the erosion.

Step 3Observe

Draw a detailed diagram of what you observe.

Step 4Record

Write a conclusion: what did your results show? Did they match your prediction?

Check Your Understanding

Question 1

1 of 3

What causes weathering?

🌍

Where you see this in real life

This is shaping the ground you walk on, slowly, every single day.

🏆

Stretch Challenge

Try this in real life this week.

Find a rock outside and try to guess how old it is.

👨‍👩‍👧

For the dinner table

What's the slowest change you can think of?

🎯

Next Smart Experiment

We'll pick an experiment that matches exactly how you're thinking right now.

🌱Share card

Share this experiment

Send it to a parent who's looking for a 10-minute kitchen science win.

Ready?

Physical and Chemical Weathering

Set it up. Test it. Be amazed.

Full screen — no distractions

🖨️

Checkout complete lesson on Earth Systems for 4th Grade

Get the full Earth Systems track as a printable PDF — all lessons, worksheets, and answer keys.

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Physical and Chemical Weathering — Earth Systems | 4th Grade Science | LittleActivity