Design for Learning

Instructor: Elizabeth Collier

Lesson Title: Candy Bar Layers
Curriculum Area: Science

Grade Level/Cooperating Teacher: 3rd/Youngkin

Date: April 11th, 2016
Estimated Time: 45 minutes

Standards Connection:
11.) Describe Earth's layers, including inner and outer cores, mantle, and crust
Learning Objective(s):
When given a diagram showing the four layers of the Earth, students will be able to correctly label all
four parts and describe what each layer is made of.
Learning Objective(s) stated in kid-friendly language:
Today boys and girls, we are going to be learning about the four different layers of the Earth.
Evaluation of Learning Objective(s):
Students will be given a worksheet with a diagram of the Earths layers on it (4 circles). Students will
label the four different layers crust, mantle, outer core, and inner core. Students will also be expected to
know what each layer is made out of. After labeling the layers, there will be a section at the bottom of the
worksheet for students to list what material makes up these layers and if that is not known they should at
least write whether the layer is a solid or a liquid. There will also be a bonus for students who want to
share another fact they have learned about the layers of the Earth!
Engagement:
Good morning boys and girls, today we are going to be learning all about how the Earth is made up.
Does anyone in the class like pie or pizza? Students will respond, yes! Yes, me too I love both pie and
pizza. Can you think of anything that those two foods have in common? Students may respond they are
both circular, if they do not think of the fact that they both have a crust teacher will guide that thinking.
Think about what could be on a piece of bread as well... yes that is correct, all of these things have a
crust! You know what else has a crust? The Earth! The crust is just the beginning of the layers that make
up the Earth. I am going to play you all a video that will help you visualize each layer. Teacher will then
play the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXiVGEEPQ6c&nohtml5=False. Teacher will
then lead into teaching.
Learning Design:
I. Teaching:
Today boys and girls, we are going to become geologists! Does anyone know what a geologist does?
Students respond. Geologists study geology. The definition of geology is a study of the Earth, the rocks of
which it is composed, and the processes by which they change. So to sum that up, geologists study the
make up of the Earth and how that can change! Teacher will review what has been previously learned
(layers of soil) to lead into the other layers of the Earth (acquiring background knowledge). Okay boys

and girls, what have you all been learning about in science? Teacher will give time for students to
answer. They may say multiple things but the teacher will help the class focus on the layers of soil. Yes
those are all fun facts and ideas you all have been learning about but I want to focus on what you all did
yesterday and last Friday. I heard that you labeled and learned the different layers of soil? Could anyone
raise your hand and fill me in on the layers that you guys learned? Students respond. Yes, thats right
(McREL positive reinforcement)! Topsoil, subsoil, humus, and bedrock are all types of layers of soils
that you guys have talked about. Well just like the soil have layers, so does the Earth. The Earth is made
up of layers just like soil. The Earth is not just one big ball that is solid throughout; the Earth has four
layers that make up a different part of the Earth. Have any of you ever peeled an onion or seen your mom
or dad peel an onion? Onions have lots of layers. We could make a conclusion that the Earth is like an
onion in both the Earth and an onion you can peel back layers and discover that there are different
things that make up the object. Like I said, the Earth is made up of four different layers. The Earth is
made up of mostly rock and metal. As we will discover later today, scientists cant exactly build a rocket
and head directly towards the middle of the Earth, so it is difficult to know or prove what is exactly there
and how it is made. But through educated research and geologists knowledge on the subject, they are
always coming up with new ideas. Their learning becomes more advanced therefore creating new things
to be learned all the time. So we know that the Earth has layers, correct? Yes we do, and tying it back to
what we have talked about the past couple of days, does anyone know or want to take a guess about what
layer of the Earth the soil belongs to? Nowell that layer is called the crust! Just like my picture of
pizza, the earth has crust! Before explaining a little bit more about what the crust is, I am going to hand
out all a note taking guide to help you remember the layers of the Earth and what they are made out of.
Teacher will hand out note taking guide worksheet (McREL note taking and summarizing). Teacher will
also make sure that her large visual of the Earths crust is on the board for all to see. The crust, (while
pointing to the crust on the big Earth on the board), is an outer solid layer and this is where all life exists,
including animals, mountains, sea, soil and us. We are walking on the crust of the Earth. But there are
two different layers of crust the oceanic crust and the continental crust. The oceanic crust is about 8km
thick and is made mostly from basalt rock. Next there is the continental crust, which is covered by land
and is mostly made out of a rock called granite. Above that granite is sedimentary rock. Yesterday at
recess you all collected one rock to bring back in and examine. Some of those rocks could have
potentially been sedimentary. Sedimentary rocks form over long periods of time and are made from
debris, chemical sediment and broken rocks. The continental crust is between 5km to 70km thick and
made up of granite, sedimentary rocks and metamorphic rocks. The crust is the only layer of the Earth
that geologists can study, because they can drill into it. Therefore, this makes the crust the layer of the
earth that we know the most about! But besides drilling a hole into the crust to see what it is made out of,
how else could we study the crust? Try and think about natural disasters and the rock cycle that Ms.
Youngkin mentioned the other day. Silently think in your head for a few moments other ways that
geologists can understand more about the crust of the Earth. Teacher will practice a sufficient amount of
wait time to allow students to think about what could change the Earths crust. Teacher will then have
students share any ideas they thought of. Okay class, does anyone have any ideas about how geologists
could study the crust more? Well they study more about the crust by uncovering how the crust changes.
One main way the Earths crust surface can change is from erosion. Before giving a definition to the
word erosion the teacher will pause her lesson, grab a snicker candy bar, and head to the sink. By pouring
warm water over the snickers, the chocolate will melt, showing how the crust can go through erosion.
Okay class, before we define erosion, I am going to see if you all can predict what will happen and what
erosion might be. Can you all quietly get out of your seats and gather around. I am going to pour hot
water on this snickers bar. Will someone predict what will happen? Students make predictions. Okay, lets
find out. The water will dissolve some of the chocolate or crust of the Earth. Wow! So when hot water is
poured over a snickers bar, the chocolate melts away. Okay will everyone go back to your seats now?
This melting of the chocolate is very much like erosion. Erosion is the action of surface processes that
remove soil, rock, or dissolved material from one location on the Earths crust and transport it to another
location. This is how and why there is a rock cycle! Rocks are recycled throughout erosion. Now what

other ways can the earths crust change? I mentioned natural disasters so maybe things such as what?
Earthquakes, tsunamis, and volcanoes, yes! Geologists study how waves travel through the Earth not
ocean waves, but seismic waves that are caused by earthquakes or eruptions. So yes you all were right
when guessing earthquakes and volcanoes. Within the next layer of the Earth we will find out more about
how these natural disasters occur. The next layer that comes after the crust is the mantle. The mantle is
2,867km thick, making up 85 percent of the Earths weight! Wow! That is a very heavy layer! The mantle
is made up of molten (or melted) iron, minerals, and other semi-solid rocks that will still flow under
pressure. The mantle is where these earthquakes and volcanic eruptions come from. In this layer the rocks
rise. The geologists who are constantly researching and investigating have gathered that when these
rocks rise from the very intense heat, and then cool down again; they sink back to the core. This
movement makes the crust break into plates or different sections. When the crust breaks into plates they
move and crash into each other causing natural disasters. This movement is also how new mountains and
seabeds are formed. Remember boys and girls that the Earth is always changing due to erosion and the
movement within the mantle. These changes give geologists new things to study. The next layer of the
Earth is the core. This is broken up into the remaining two layers of the Earth outer and inner core.
When the Earth was formed it is said that the light materials, such as water and air, stayed on the crust
while heavy materials sunk to the middle of the Earth and became the core. The outer core is made up of
iron and nickel and is very hotso hot that the iron and nickel metals are liquid! The outer core has some
very important purposes. This layer creates something called a magnetic field. This magnetic field that is
created by the outer core is crucial to the Earth. This magnetic field goes way out into space and makes a
protective barrier around the Earth that shields us from the suns damaging solar wind. The inner core is
kind of like a solid lead ball, which is about 2,400 km wide. The inner core is also made up of iron and
nickel, mainly iron. The inner core is the hottest part of the Earth and is about as hot as the surface of the
sun. This means that the inner core is 6,000 times hotter than our atmosphere and scorching enough to
make metal melt! Although, the inner core does not melt but because the inner core is under immense or
incredible pressure, this part of the core stays solid. So you can think of the inner core as a huge metal
ball. Does anyone have any questions? Teacher will answer and discuss questions if the class has any.
Now we are going to do a fun activity with snickers bars! As we will soon find outsnickers bars are a
lot like the Earths layers. Teacher will now transition into practice.
II. Opportunity for Practice:
Teacher will hand out snickers candy bar to each child as well as reminding students to flip over their
note-taking guide to a comparing/labeling worksheet for the snickers and the layers of the Earth. Okay
class, I am going to give you each a snickers bar but please do not eat it yetyou will be able to but do
not eat it right now! Before looking at the visual to help us decide what layers of the candy bar represent
what layer of the Earth, I want you all to break in half the snickers bar. Teacher will walk around
assisting those who need help. Try and break the bar over the napkin so we do not make a big mess! Okay
does everyone have their bar cut in half? Yesokay now I want you to turn and talk with the person
across or beside you and discuss what you see inside the candy bar. Teacher will give students plenty of
time to investigate what they see inside the candy. This is just like how we had time to touch in our soil
the other day, we are simply observing and remembering what we see. Okay now boys and girls; lets talk
about what we see as a whole group. Would anyone like to share? Teacher will give students time to
share. Okay so what we see is a layer of chocolate, nuts, caramel, and some type of filling. What do you
all think the outer layer of chocolate could represent? Thats right, the crust. Just like we live on the crust
of the Earth, we can touch the outside of the snickers bar. The crust of the Earth is the thinnest layer. It is
made up of soil and rocks. Both the land we walk on and the ocean are a part of the crust. What about
the next layer, which is the nuts? Yes, good job. The nuts represent the mantle. Remember the mantle
makes up almost 85 percent of the weight of the Earth just like these nuts are weighing down the snickers
bar. Remember, the mantle is made up of hot molten/melted rocks. Okay now what about the caramel?
Yes, that would represent the outer core. The outer core is in the form of a liquid just like the caramel.

And this is the only layer that is a liquid. The outer core is made up of liquid iron and nickel. Now what
about the last section or the bottom layer of the snickers baryes this is the inner core! The inner core is
solid iron and is the hottest part of the Earth. So now I want you all to flip over your note-taking guide to
a worksheet that will help you visualize the layers of the Earth through the snickers bar. We just discussed
what each layer of the candy bar represents inside the Earth so labeling each arrow or layer should not
be difficult for you now. Teacher will then give students time to label and compare the Earths layers to the
snickers bar layers. Okay class, you all did a great job with this activity! Now you may eat your candy!
After you have finished your candy, please throw away your napkin and come back to your seat. Now you
all are going to show me what you know by labeling the layers of the Earth and writing what each layer
is made of.
III. Assessment:
Students will be given a worksheet showing the layers of the Earth. On each layer of the earth they will
write the correct name and what that layer is made out of. (If students are unable to recall what each layer
is made out of, they should at least write down if it is solid or liquid all solid except outer core). There
will also be a bonus for students who want to write down another fact they have learned about the Earths
layers. When students are done, they may color their Earth. Okay boys and girls, now I am going to give
you the layers of the Earth. I want you to write on each layer the correct name for that layer. You should
also write what that layer is made up of! If you cannot remember what the layer is specifically made up
of, then try to at least write if it is a solid or a liquid! If there is another fact about the Earths layers you
are wishing to tell me, then please write that on the back of the Earth and I will count it as a bonus!
IV. Closure:
Teacher will review and students will discuss their bonus facts written on the back of his or her Earth.
Materials and Resources:
Note-taking guide/labeling worksheet
Pencils
Crayons
Pie and pizza crust pictures
Big Earth layers (butcher & construction paper)
Snickers
Milky way or 3 musketeers for peanut allergy student
Differentiation Strategies (including plans for individual learners):
Data Analysis:
Reflection:

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Design for Learning