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Lesson 23 of 84 ยท Earth Systems

Experimentโญ 30 XP๐ŸŒ‹ Rock Realm

Tornadoes: Funnel Clouds

๐ŸงชLab Brief #23

Earth Systems.

๐ŸŽฏ Your mission

Set it up. Test it. Be amazed.

โšก The twist

The slowest changes are the biggest ones.

๐Ÿคฏ

Mind = Blown

๐Ÿชจ Every grain of sand on every beach used to be a mountain.

๐Ÿ”ฎ

Make a hypothesis first

Predict: which will erode faster?

What You'll Learn

Glaciers are massive bodies of ice that form from compacted snow. They shape landscapes by carving valleys, depositing sediment, and creating features like moraines and cirques.

Key Words

  • humidity
  • precipitation

Materials Needed

  • clay
  • water
  • plastic tray
  • magnifying glass

Safety First

  • Tie back long hair before starting the experiment.

Steps

Step 1 โ€” Read

Read the introduction and identify the main idea of this lesson.

Step 2 โ€” Do

Create a timeline of Earth's history on a 5-meter strip of paper. Place major events (first life, dinosaurs, ice ages, humans) at the correct scale.

Step 3 โ€” Observe

Watch carefully for any changes and note the time.

Step 4 โ€” Record

Create a data table to organize your measurements.

Check Your Understanding

Question 1

1 of 3

What instrument measures air pressure?

๐ŸŒ

Where you see this in real life

Today's weather, tomorrow's beach, next century's coastline โ€” all this.

๐Ÿ†

Stretch Challenge

Try this in real life this week.

Look at the sky for 5 minutes and try to predict tomorrow's weather.

๐Ÿ‘จโ€๐Ÿ‘ฉโ€๐Ÿ‘ง

For the dinner table

โ€œWhat's the slowest change you can think of?โ€

๐ŸŽฏ

Next Smart Experiment

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

๐ŸŒShare card

Share this experiment

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

๐Ÿ–จ๏ธ

Checkout complete lesson on Earth Systems for 8th Grade

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

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Tornadoes: Funnel Clouds โ€” Earth Systems | 8th Grade Science | LittleActivity | LittleActivity