Limestone Archives

Outdoor Hour Challenge

Rock Study: Calcite, Limestone, Marble Nature Study

Most families that have been taking time for nature study have no doubt started an official or unofficial rock collection. I know when my boys were young, they would fill my pockets with rock treasures on our nature walks and then insist I take them home for our nature table. So many rocks!

rock collection in jars — I must admit that I still collect rocks! You may wish to read this entry that shares 5 ways to organize rock collections: 5 Ways to Display Rock Collections.

Use this week’s Outdoor Hour Challenge to learn a bit about rocks that you may already have in your collection. Or use the information and videos in the original challenge to build enthusiasm for a rock hunt soon.

View the original challenge here: Outdoor Hour Challenge – Calcite, Limestone, Marble.

If you have access to the ebook, there is a general rock activity on page 39 that everyone can use: Rocks Up Close printable. Take this notebook page along with you this week during your Outdoor Hour Challenge and see how many things you can find.

Newsletter Resources: Members also have access to the two newsletters in the archives that feature rock nature studies: January 2013 and February 2016.

Alternate Study: Members can download and print the Under a Rock Notebook Page. Find a rock, turn it over and then observe what you can find underneath. This is a fun activity with or without the notebook page.

Sample to view: Outdoor Hour Challenge Autumn Nature Study 2015 Sample Pages

If you don’t have a membership yet, click the graphic above and join today for immediate access to the 26 ebooks and so much more! Remember that all levels, even the Discovery level membership, include access to all of the archived newsletters!

Topics in this ebook include:

Swallows and swifts
Catfish
Jewelweed
Prickly lettuce
Cockroach
Field horsetail
Catbird
Calcite, limestone, marble
Chicken
Turkey
Hedgehog fungi
Sapsucker
Brooks

Outdoor Hour Challenge
Rock Study- Calcite, Marble, and Limestone

Inside Preparation Work:

Read pages 748-750 (Lesson #210) in the Handbook of Nature Study. Make sure to highlight some of the main points to share with your child.
If you have samples of limestone, marble, and/or chalk, have those on your nature table during the week of your study.
Additional information: calcite, limestone, and marble.
Videos: Simple limestone video and excellent detailed video about calcium carbonate.
Advanced study: Limestone is sedimentary and marble is metamorphic. Research how they both are formed and create a nature journal page recording your information.

Outdoor Hour Time:

There are a couple of ways of handling this nature study topic. The first is to research ahead of time a place in your local area that has limestone or marble to look at in its natural state. The second is to have on hand some samples of these rocks for your family to observe up close.
Go on a rock hunt with your kids! Take your outdoor time this week and go exploring for rocks. Use the Rock Activity page in this ebook for additional observations.
There are many places in the United States that have limestone caves. Plan a trip to visit one in the near future. Mammoth Cave National Park and Carlsbad Caverns National Park both feature limestone caves!
Are there buildings in your town built of limestone? This may be an interesting way to learn about the usefulness of limestone.

Follow-Up Activity:

Follow up your outdoor time with a simple nature journal page where you write a detailed description of a rock. This can be any rock your child finds during their nature walk.
Advanced study: Research limestone caves, stalactites, stalagmites, and sink holes. (This is question #6 in the lesson.)

If you want to purchase the Autumn Nature Study 2015 ebook so you can follow along with all the notebooking pages, coloring pages, and subject images, you can join the Ultimate or Journey Membership Levels. See the Join Us page for complete information. Also, you can view the Autumn Nature Study 2015 announcement page for more details.

Tag: Limestone

Rock Study: Calcite, Limestone, Marble Nature Study

Outdoor Hour Challenge – Calcite, Limestone, and Marble

Outdoor Hour Challenges for families since 2008!