Landslide!

We have been doing a lot of studying of landforms and erosion in the 1-2s, but the large scale changes that are caused by erosion (think, Grand Canyon) happen over long spans of time. We wanted to see some of that erosion action as it was happening.

Using a mix of cornmeal, salt and water, we created a model landform, and sprinkled cinnamon on top to really show us the path of erosion carrying down bits of our "land". Then we created a drip cup that would allow rain to fall on our landform - what would we see? The water carving a canyon through our landform? Creating a mudslide? What would be left behind after four such "storms"?

It was exciting to watch! Kids were amazed by seeing the effects of our erosion and were equally interested in seeing how other groups' landforms were faring. The results were varied somewhat, possibly due to the position of the rainfall on the landform, but most groups saw their landform either flow down like a mudslide, or collapse in on one side leaving behind a cliff. Some groups described their transformed landforms as peninsulas (while many described theirs as applesauce).

It was a great experiment that allowed us to see first hand how erosion occurs on a small scale. Before and after pictures are below along with our records of what happened after each rainfall.

Maia 1-2M

Firedrake 1-2A

Firedrake 1-2M

Maia 1-2A

Shimmertail 1-2M

Slatebeard 1-2A

Slatebeard 1-2M

Shimmertail 1-2A