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Be a Rock Hound
It’s easy to “sniff out” rocks almost anywhere you go. Fetch a few and check out the fun things you can do with them!
Rocks All Around
See if you can find rocks in some different places: at the shore, in a stream, around a field, on a trail, even on a gravel path or a stone patio. A close look will show that no two rocks are just alike. And rocks from one place often look nothing like rocks from another. What differences do you notice in the rocks you find?
Bathing Beauties
Water really makes rocks shine. If you find a small rock, dip it in a bucket of water. If you find a big one, use a paintbrush to “paint” it with water. Watch how the color deepens and the details stand out. Look for different-colored minerals and even fossils on the rock’s surface.
Sorted Treasure
It can be fun to learn to identify rocks, but it can also be pretty tricky. Try making up your own categories to sort your finds. For example, divide them up by . . .
• Color: dark, light, or both?
• Shape: rounded and smooth or squared-off and rough?
• Pattern: solid or striped or flecked with many colors?
Pebble Play
Of course, there are a lot of other fun things you can do with rocks.
• Find a flat one and skip it across the water.
• See if you can use any to write or draw on the sidewalk.
• Decorate one as a pet rock or as a paperweight.
• Collect a pile and build a sculpture.
• Or, best of all, make up your very own rock game!
Read On!
Check out these great books on rocks.
By Kate Hofmann
Art illustration by Debbie Palen
Photo by Mark Godfrey