Never bring sand to the beach!

Bring sand home from the beach…….

In science class, fourth grade recently concluded their study of sands from around the world by making observations of sand samples brought back from their Cape Henlopen shore trip. 

The sand study began with the students looking at enlarged microscopic pictures of sand. They practiced identifying the make up of the sand in the pictures by using rock and mineral identification charts. The students then went on to use hand lenses and microscopes to observe sands from places such as Hawaii, Mexico, Brazil, and more. They recorded the physical properties of the sand such as translucence, magnetism, shell, rock and mineral make up, and texture.

The students were amazed at how beautiful the sand looked under the microscope. They were also in awe of how different sands from places around the world can be and were intrigued as they thought about and discovered the reasons why.

Fourth graders are now challenged to think about science class when they travel to sandy locations and bring back samples for future fourth grade classes to study.