Teacher information on the progression of the lesson Engineering Erosion
o Experiment One: Chemical Erosion
o Rock samples labeled A-D (calcite and limestone respectively) and an eyedropper
with vinegar; using paper towels and a Petri dish
o Experiment Two: Water Erosion
o Model of a mountain and a watering can
o Experiment Three: Wave Erosion
o Wave Simulation in a pyrex pan on the overhead projector; could add sand to dish to
show movement of earth materials
o Experiment Four: Wind Erosion
o Plate of sand and a straw/fan
o Experiment Five: Ice/Glacier Erosion
o Clay, sand, and ice; I am thinking about using the student’s forearm for the land and
then rubbing an icecube across it and then adding a few grains of sand between the
ice and the forearm to “feel” the erosion
Version II:

Experiment One: Ice/Glacier Erosion
o Clay, sand, and ice block; have student 1 roll out the clay and rub it with the ice
block; then have them add a pinch of sand to the clay and rub the ice block again
over the clay; Compare/contrast.

Experiment Two: Demo Wave Erosion
o Wave Simulation in a circular dish on the overhead projector; could add sand to
dish to show movement of earth materials

Experiment Three: Water Erosion
o Model of a mountain made of diatomaceous earth, ruler, and rain cloud; have
student 2 rain on the landform; discuss erosion.

Experiment Four: Demo Temperature
o From start of class heat the marble and at this point remove marble from heat and
dump into ice water; observe cracking

Experiment Five: Wind Erosion
o Frisbee, 2 limestone and 2 sandstone rocks; have student 3 rub limestone together
over the Frisbee and then rub sandstone together over the Frisbee; discuss that
some rocks wear down more quickly than other rocks; add a bit more sand to the
Frisbee and have student 4 blow on the sand with a straw; try to stop the erosion
using poker chips and pennies.

Experiment Six: Demo Gravity Erosion
o Using a book and a rock, tilt the book and the rock rolls down hill.
Version III:
 Experiment One: Ice/Glacier Erosion
o Clay and ice block; have student A roll out the clay and rub it with the ice block;
compare to a real glacier.

Experiment Two: Demo Wave Erosion
o Wave Simulation in a circular dish on the overhead projector.

Experiment Three: Water Erosion
o Model of a mountain made of diatomaceous earth, ruler, and rain cloud; have
student B rain on the landform; discuss erosion.

Experiment Four: Demo Temperature
o Using a video clip to show what happens to earth materials when temperatures go
from one extreme to another extreme, illustrate by sharing glass discs that are
cracked and uncracked from heating and cooling.

Experiment Five: Wind Erosion
o Frisbee, 2 limestone and 2 sandstone rocks; have student C rub limestone together
over the Frisbee and have student D rub sandstone together over the Frisbee;
discuss that some rocks wear down more quickly than other rocks.

Experiment Six: Demo Gravity Erosion
o Using a book and a rock, tilt the book and the rock rolls down hill.
What’s the difference between weathering and
erosion?
Weathering involves two processes that often work in concert to decompose
rocks. Both processes occur in place. No movement is involved in weathering.
Chemical weathering involves a chemical change in at least some of the minerals
within a rock. Mechanical weathering involves physically breaking rocks into
fragments without changing the chemical make-up of the minerals within it. It’s
important to keep in mind that weathering is a surface or near-surface process. As
you know, metamorphism also produces chemical changes in rocks, but
metamorphic chemical changes occur at depth where either the temperature and/or
pressure are significantly higher than conditions found on the Earth’s surface.
As soon as a rock particle (loosened by one of the two weathering processes)
moves, we call it erosion or mass wasting. Mass wasting is simply movement
down slope due to gravity. Rock falls, slumps, and debris flows are all examples
of mass wasting. We call it erosion if the rock particle is moved by some flowing
agent such as air, water or ice.
So, here it is: if a particle is loosened, chemically or mechanically, but stays put,
call it weathering. Once the particle starts moving, call it erosion.
http://www2.nature.nps.gov/GEOLOGY/usgsnps/misc/gweaero.html
what they think will happen if the soil in the model were to move; what would happen to the
neighborhood? Then demonstrate what happens when this occurs. Buried under the
neighborhood and in the soil is a balloon; when the balloon is popped it will clearly demonstrate
what occurs when the soil moves. Explain to students that it is the job of a civil engineer to plan
and even stop the soil from moving in areas where people live and work.