Earth Rocks!
The rocks beneath our feet have a fascinating story to tell; a story that has lasted almost 3,000 million years and shaped our islands and their rich wildlife as we know it.
The geology of an area can influence the types of plants, insects, birds and animals that can be found there. Use these resources to discover more about the ground beneath our feet, and how it can affect the wildlife in our gardens and green spaces.
Discover
Read our ‘Earth Rocks! Fact Sheet’ to discover how rocks are formed and how they have influenced the wildlife at two of our reserves.
Then watch the video below to learn all about the rock cycle.
If you’d like to dig a bit deeper (haha) then read this ‘Rock Cycle fact sheet’ and have a go at the ‘Rock Cycle Activity Sheet’ , both from The Geological Society.
Explore
Go for a rock safari! Explore your garden, nearby park or beach, and see how many different types of rocks and stones you can find. Collect one example of each type of rock and take them home with you to examine in more detail.
Try to identify each type of rock that you collected using the chart below, how many different types of rocks did you find?
Using the rocks that you have found, and others that you may already have at home or in the garden, explore your rock collection further using this ‘Rock Properties Activity Sheet’. Don’t worry if you don’t have all the rocks mentioned on the sheet, you can do the activity with the rocks that you have found, and don’t forget there may be chalk somewhere in your house, and pumice stone in the bathroom.
Get your hands dirty and make some quick sand, here’s the recipe.
Conserve
Rocks can provide wildlife with precious shelter and spaces to live in, so if you have an unused corner or space in your garden, you could use your rock collection to make a small rock garden, or have fun building a mini stone wall.
Create
Rocks formed over a very very long time; here’s a Spiral Geological Timeline that you can print and colour in then cut out, attach some string and hang up in your room.
Use this recipe to make a tasty Edible Sedimentary Rock Cake
And, finally, use your rock collection to make some rock art:
