This rock cycle and classifying rocks unit unit is a three lesson unit that has nine printable student worksheets, student note-takers and activities, three lesson plans, a unit quiz, and a 55 slide power point with animations that your students will love! This two lesson mini unit contains everything you need to teach your students about the three types of rocks, how they form, and how they are recycled through the rock cycle over a long period of time. This is not an average or basic foundational lesson that just barely touches on the aforementioned concepts. With the incredible animations included in this power point and the enrichment in the reading articles, worksheets, graphic organizers and unit assessment, your students will understand the rock cycle and how to classify rocks completely.

Lesson one addresses the question “What processes explain how rocks are formed and categorized?” Students will take notes on their interactive notebook learning map provided, while they listen to you teach a direct instruction lesson that goes along with 28 beautiful slides in the animated power point included in this product. Your students will learn so much from the carefully thought out animations included in this presentation. You won’t see animations like this anywhere else showing how igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic rocks form. It will be very engaging for your students with meaningful animations that will truly help your students understand the difference between each rock type and the processes that must take place to form them.

Lesson two addresses the question “What processes of Earth cause existing rock to be changed into another type of rock over time?” Students will take notes on their interactive notebook learning map provided, while they listen to you teach a direct instruction lesson that goes along with 27 colorful, animated slides. On top of learning all about the three types of rocks and their formation in lesson one, lesson two will teach students all about how rocks can change from one type to another over thousand or potentially even millions of years. They will also learn about other topics covered such as sediment, weathering, deposition, lithification and metamorphism. They will also have the opportunity to test their knowledge at the end of this lesson with a ten question practice assessment.

Lesson three is a starburst rock cycle lab that addresses the question “How can we observe rocks changing in form from one type of rock to another type of rock? Students will compare small pieces of cut starburst to sediment, and press them together in step two to create sedimentary rock. They will add heat and pressure to transform the starburst into metamorphic rock that they will then heat to turn into magma. Finally they will see how the liquid starburst can cool and harden just like igneous rock. You will love the animated visuals in the power point that they can easily relate back to the rock cycle after each step if you choose. There is also another version of the power point in this product that does not show the rock cycle diagram after each step, if you would like your kids to exhibit higher order thinking and decide for themselves how each step of this starburst rock cycle relates to the actual rock cycle.

This unit will fill at least a week of your science block, but depending on the length of your science period it could be more. To finish off the unit, students will have the opportunity to take a three page, twenty question end of unit quiz to assess their knowledge about everything they have learned about rocks and the rock cycle.
Included in this two lesson unit:

- Three Lesson Plans

- 55 slide power point with amazing animations timed perfectly

*************PLUS 12 more printable pages or worksheets including:*************

- Two Student Learning Maps / Interactive Notebook note-taker (with images) for use during the power point

- Classification of Rocks foldable: igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic

- Classifying Rocks Sort – graphic organizer

- Sedimentary Rocks – reading comprehension worksheet

- Igneous Rocks – compare and contrast worksheet

- Metamorphic Rocks – cause and effect worksheet

- Layers of the Earth – reading comprehension assessment

- The rock cycle – diagram activity

- Rock cycle illustration page (observation sheet) lab worksheet

- Two page recording sheet for making predictions, comparing steps and drawing conclusions during the lab

- Unit Assessment - three page, twenty question assessment with fill in the blank, true false, multiple choice, a diagram and a short answer question.

This unit includes everything you need to teach your kids these important concetps in a fun and exciting way, but if you have purchased my Rocks and Minerals Comprehensive Unit Bundle - 8 lessons, PPT & Printables, or any product included in it, don't purchase this rocks unit, because you already have it!

Your students will absolutely love the carefully timed animations with built in sounds in the colorful power point with custom clipart and the learning activities they will find in this excellent two lesson mini-unit. They will learn a lot from the printable pages and you will have plenty of grading opportunities from this product as well, whether it is from one of the reading comprehension worksheets, graphic organizers or the unit assessment. I know you and your students will love this product, and truly understand this concept on a much deeper level due to the resources included in this product, I guarantee it!

-MrJacksbackpack