Q-ACTIVITIES

Duration: 60, 120 or 180 minutes

Academic Level: Grades 4–5, 6–8, 9–12

Overview:
Students investigate the fascinating world of minerals using real specimens from the Quartermain Earth Science Centre’s collection. Through a series of inquiry-based activities, students learn to observe, test, and classify minerals using an identification key. The program emphasizes the practical importance of minerals in everyday life.

What to Expect:
Following a lively, interactive introduction, students rotate through hands-on stations in small groups. Each station focuses on one or two key mineral properties, such as hardness, colour, streak, or magnetism. With the aid of self-guided worksheets and geological tools, students conduct simple experiments and record their findings.

Duration: 60, 120 or 180 minutes

Academic Level: Grades 4–5, 6–8, 9–12

Overview:
Students embark on a geological journey to explore the rock cycle using samples from the Quartermain Earth Science Collections. By examining igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic rocks, students gain insight into the dynamic processes that form and transform Earth’s crust. Topics include volcanoes (surface and underwater), ore formation, sedimentation, fossilization, and metamorphism.

What to Expect:

• Elementary Level – "Living the Rock Cycle": After an engaging introduction, students act out the rock cycle as they learn how each rock type is formed and changed. The activity concludes with a fun challenge to answer a scientific question using their experience.
• Middle & High School – "Stratigraphy: How Geology is Like a Murder Mystery": Students develop observation and interpretation skills by analyzing rock textures and learning the Laws of Stratigraphy. Working in small groups, they solve a geological mystery by reconstructing a rock record story.

Duration: 60, 120, or 180 minutes

Academic Level: Grades K–3, 4–6, 6–8, 9–12

Overview:
Where does our stuff come from? In this activity, students explore the role of mineral resources in modern life. They learn about the full mining cycle—from discovery and extraction to environmental responsibility and economics. Key themes include sustainable development, mine planning, ore processing (on Earth and in space!), and the Mine Waste Hierarchy.

What to Expect:
After a dynamic introduction to minerals and mining, students work in small groups to plan and operate a hypothetical mine in Canada. They are challenged to balance ore extraction with environmental protection while navigating economic pressures and potential penalties. For extended sessions, the activity can be expanded to include ore processing and the "Mining in Space" module.

Duration: 90 or 180 minutes

Academic Level: Grades 4–8, 9–12

Overview:
What are volcanoes, and why do they erupt? Why do people live near them despite the risks? This activity invites students to step into the shoes of a volcanologist, exploring the inner workings of volcanoes and their role in shaping Earth. Students learn how volcanic activity influences the atmosphere, radiative balance, and land formation—while also understanding the real dangers they can pose.

What to Expect:
Students can explore:

• The types of volcanoes (Cinder Cone, Composite, Shield) and their eruption styles.
• The hazards associated with different volcanoes (e.g. pyroclastic flows, ash, lava)
• A simulated volcanic island assessment—students evaluate the safety and suitability of establishing a new community near a volcano.

Duration: 90 or 180 minutes

Academic Level: Grades 3–5, 6–8, 9–12

Overview:
What makes a structure safe during an earthquake? How do engineers prevent landslides from damaging homes and roads? This activity introduces students to the field of Geoscience and Geological Engineering, where geology and engineering meet to reduce natural hazards and protect communities. Students learn how geological engineers help create a safer and more sustainable world by applying earth science in real-life scenarios.

What to Expect:

• Grades 3–5: After an introduction to earthquakes, students are challenged to design and test buildings that can withstand seismic shaking.
• Grades 6–8: Students explore landslide hazards and take on the role of a geological engineer tasked with protecting a community built near a slope. Working within budget constraints, they must develop cost-effective solutions to reduce risk and ensure safety.

High School Extension: High school students take a deeper dive into the physical science behind landslides by building and analyzing their own models. Using simple materials like sand, soil, gravel, and inclined surfaces, students create a simulated landslide and perform basic measurements to calculate key physical properties. They determine the density of the material, measure velocity by tracking the time and distance of movement, and use these values to calculate the kinetic energy of their landslide. Students then take their learning a step further by applying these principles to real-world landslides using Google Earth Pro. They investigate notable events such as the Frank Slide in Alberta, Canada, and the Oso Landslide in Washington State, USA. Using digital tools to analyze satellite imagery and terrain data, students measure slide distances and volumes, estimate energy and velocity, and assess the environmental and societal impacts of each event. Through this activity, students integrate concepts from physics, math, and Earth science, while building critical thinking and systems-thinking skills to better understand the complex interactions that lead to natural disasters. This hands-on approach helps solidify understanding of mass movement and energy transfer in Earth systems.

Duration: 60, 120 or 180 minutes

Academic Level: Grades 7–8, 9–12

Overview:
This hands-on, inquiry-based activity introduces students to the dynamic interactions among Earth’s major systems—the atmosphere, hydrosphere, geosphere, and biosphere—while also exploring the emerging concept of the anthroposphere, the human-made system. Designed to follow the Energy module, this session emphasizes systems thinking and encourages students to explore how Earth's subsystems are interconnected through feedback loops, natural processes, and human influences.

Drawing on real-world case studies and powerful imagery, including astronaut photography from the International Space Station, students investigate how Earth’s systems function individually and collectively. This foundational activity supports the development of scientific vocabulary, systems modeling, and environmental reasoning, and is aligned with curriculum goals in Earth and Climate Science.

What to Expect:
Students will engage in a mix of indoor and outdoor investigations that focus on identifying, describing, and modeling components of Earth’s systems. Through guided inquiry and teamwork, they will:

• Explore the structure, behaviour, and interactions of major Earth systems.
• Analyze system interconnectivity using real-world examples, such as flooding in Fredericton or wildfires in North America.
• Build and critique conceptual or physical models of systems such as rivers, forests, volcanoes, or soil environments.
• Practice applying scientific reasoning and Earth science terminology in authentic contexts.
• Work collaboratively to solve problems, reflect on system responses to change, and connect concepts to environmental decision-making.

High School Extension — Biogeochemical Cycles with a Winogradsky Column: As an advanced option for high school students, this extension explores biogeochemistry through the construction and long-term observation of a Winogradsky column—a self-contained microbial ecosystem that mirrors Earth’s elemental cycles. Students will:

• Build their own Winogradsky columns in the field using local pond sediment, organic matter, and water.
• Observe how microbial communities form distinct layers based on oxygen, light, and chemical gradients.
• Document changes over time (1–3 months), including colour shifts, gas production, and microbial activity.
• Connect their observations to cycling of carbon, nitrogen, sulfur, and iron, and to feedback loops between the biosphere, geosphere, hydrosphere, and atmosphere.
• Reflect on the role of the anthroposphere and how human activities can disrupt natural cycles.

This extension supports deeper understanding of Earth system science through the lens of microbiology, geochemistry, and ecology, while fostering critical thinking, inquiry, and long-term observation skills.

Duration: 90, 120, or 180 minutes

Academic Level: Grades 7–8, 9–12

Overview:
Why do earthquakes, volcanoes, and mountain ranges occur in specific regions of the world? The answer lies in plate tectonics—the theory that Earth’s rigid outer shell, the lithosphere, is broken into moving plates. Where these plates meet, we see major geological activity such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and mountain formation. This activity helps students explore the science behind earthquakes and understand the hazards they present, from ground shaking and building collapse to landslides and tsunamis.

What to Expect:
Students investigate earthquake-related processes, including ductile vs. brittle deformation, liquefaction, stick-slip motion, and seismic wave behaviour. Using real seismic data from earthquake-prone regions, students are challenged to develop and test their own models—using real seismic data, pom poms and string— to better understand how and why earthquakes happen.

Duration: 180 minutes

Academic Level: Grades 7–8, 9–12

Overview:
Many Canadians rely on groundwater every day, yet few fully understand what it is or how it works. In this in-depth activity, students explore where groundwater is stored, how it moves through different types of underground materials, and how it can be impacted by natural events and human activities. With growing concern over water quality, this activity emphasizes the importance of groundwater protection and sustainable resource management.

What to Expect:
Students use a miniature groundwater model to explore the movement of water through various aquifers, identify the water table, and observe features of the hydrologic cycle. They then take on the role of environmental scientists to investigate a contamination event using a map of downtown Fredericton and simulated well testing for different acidities. Students apply their findings to identify the source of contamination, propose mitigation and remediation strategies, and explore topics like Darcy’s Law, contouring, and the real-world impacts of natural disasters on groundwater systems.

Duration: 90 or 180 minutes

Academic Level: Grades 7–8, 9–12

Overview:
This engaging, hands-on activity guides students through the development of the Theory of Plate Tectonics, tracing its evolution from the early concept of Continental Drift to the modern understanding of Earth’s dynamic crust. Students explore the structure of the Earth, the scientists behind key discoveries, and the internal energy sources that drive tectonic movement.

Building on prior knowledge from the Earth Systems module, this session emphasizes how plate tectonics connects multiple Earth systems. It highlights the mechanisms that shape continents, ocean basins, mountains, and mid-ocean ridges, offering students a foundation for understanding Earth’s constantly changing surface.

What to Expect:
Students will participate in interactive investigations that bring tectonic processes to life. They will:

• Explore historical and scientific milestones in the development of plate tectonic theory.
• Investigate the Earth's internal layers and energy sources driving plate motion.
• Use real GPS data to track and visualize the movement of tectonic plates over time.
• Analyze the shapes of continents, comparing fossil records and rock types across continents to build evidence for plate movement.
• Examine surface features such as mountain ranges, ocean basins, and seafloor spreading zones, and understand their formation through tectonic processes.

This activity supports the development of scientific reasoning, evidence-based thinking, and a deeper appreciation for Earth’s active, interconnected systems.

Duration: 60 minutes

Academic Level: Grades 7–8, 9–12

Overview:
Introduction to Earth Systems Science: This interactive outreach activity provides students with an engaging and inquiry-based introduction to key curriculum concepts related to energy. Designed to support hands-on learning and critical thinking, the session explores foundational scientific principles, including the laws and properties of energy, as well as the major sources of energy on Earth—the Sun, Earth’s interior, and gravity. Students gain insight into various forms of energy, such as thermal, mechanical, radiative, convective, conductive, chemical, and radioactive energy, while making real-world connections to Earth systems and everyday life.

What to Expect:
During the session, students will participate in hands-on experiments and real-time demonstrations that bring energy concepts to life. They will actively investigate how energy behaves, flows, and transforms across systems, deepening their understanding through observation and guided discussion. The activity encourages students to think critically about how energy powers their homes, communities, and the dynamic systems that shape our planet. By the end of the session, students will have developed a stronger grasp of both scientific concepts and their practical implications in the world around them.

Duration: 90, 120, or 180 minutes

Academic Level: Grades 3–5, 6–8

Overview:
What is Earth’s most precious resource? It’s not gold or diamonds—it’s water. And most of our usable drinking water doesn’t come from lakes or rivers—it comes from groundwater. In this engaging, hands-on activity, students are introduced to the hydrologic cycle and the importance of protecting this mostly non-renewable resource for a sustainable future.

What to Expect:
Through fun, age-appropriate play with scarves, sand, and gravel, younger students explore key concepts like porosity, permeability, and groundwater flow. This foundational activity helps build early understanding of how water moves through Earth's systems and why it matters.

Duration: 120 or 180 minutes

Academic Level: 9–12

Overview:
This hands-on laboratory and field activity offers high school students a meaningful opportunity to explore surface water systems and the hydrologic cycle through direct observation, data collection, and analysis. After reviewing the key components of the water cycle and surface water processes in the classroom, students head into the field to apply their knowledge at a safe, accessible stream or creek site.

What to Expect:
In small groups, students conduct a comprehensive river profile, beginning with a site assessment and a qualitative description of the stream’s characteristics (e.g., channel shape, sediment type, vegetation, and surrounding land use). They then gather quantitative data, including:

• River width and depth to create a cross-sectional diagram of the stream.
• Flow rate measurements using either basic materials (such as orange peels) or a velocimeter.
• Water temperature and basic water chemistry parameters (e.g., pH, salinity, and conductivity).

This activity not only reinforces core concepts related to Earth and environmental science, but also strengthens students’ skills in scientific observation, data collection, analysis, and systems thinking. It encourages them to make connections between the hydrosphere, geosphere, biosphere, and anthroposphere, while fostering a deeper appreciation for local water systems and the importance of environmental monitoring.

Duration: 90 or 180 minutes

Academic Level: Grades K–3, 4–5, 6–8, 9–12

Overview:
In this engaging, hands-on activity, students step into the role of paleontologists, using fossils to uncover clues about Earth’s ancient past. Students learn how fossils are formed, how they are discovered, and what they reveal about the prehistoric organisms and environments that once existed. They explore a variety of fossil types—including body fossils and trace fossils—to better understand how scientists reconstruct past ecosystems and geologic history.

What to Expect:
Students are challenged to observe carefully, ask scientific questions, and analyze evidence to identify and interpret real fossil specimens. As the activity progresses through grade levels, students work to connect fossil findings to specific paleoenvironments and determine the geologic age of the site. Students also have the opportunity to create their own fossil to take home!

Duration: 120 or 180 minutes

Academic Level: Grades 7–8, 9–12

Overview:
This engaging two-part activity introduces students to the fundamental properties of light—including polarization, birefringence, reflection, refraction, fluorescence, and triboluminescence, and their applications in the Earth sciences. Through intuitive, hands-on experiments, students gain a foundational understanding of how light interacts with materials, and how these principles are applied in fiber optics and optical mineralogy.

By connecting basic optical principles to the behaviour of light in crystals, the activity helps demystify what students observe under a polarizing light microscope. It also lays the groundwork for more advanced concepts such as the optical indicatrix, used to describe the directional dependence of light velocities and refractive indices in anisotropic minerals.

What to Expect:
Session 1 – Exploring Light, Interactive Stations: In this hands-on session, students rotate through five experiment stations, each designed to highlight a different property of light using simple, everyday materials. Activities may include:

• Investigating polarization with polarized lenses.
• Exploring refraction and birefringence using vegetable oil and transparent solids.
• Reconstructing paleoenvironments and possible behavioural scenarios based on fossil evidence.
• Observing fluorescence under UV light.
• Creating triboluminescence by crushing Life Saver mints in the dark.
• Demonstrating internal reflection using laser pointers and water-filled tubes.

These accessible experiments provide an engaging, intuitive foundation in the behavior of light.

Session 2 – Light and Crystals, Polarized Light Microscopy: Held at the University of New Brunswick in Fredericton or at a facility with polarized light microscopes. This session bridges classroom physics and Earth science, offering students a hands-on introduction to optical crystallography and the microscopic world of minerals. In this advanced session, students:

• Examine the components and function of a polarizing light microscope.
• Observe and analyze optical properties of minerals such as calcite, quartz, feldspar, and mica in thin section.
• Compare isotropic and anisotropic minerals and discuss what these optical characteristics reveal about crystal structure.
• Explore real mineral samples and begin to interpret the visual phenomena seen under cross-polarized light.

Duration: 90, 120, or 180 minutes

Academic Level: Grades 6–8, 9–12

Overview:
Understanding geologic time is essential for grasping the vast history of Earth and the processes that have shaped our planet over billions of years. In this interactive activity, students use some rope and candy to explore how geoscientists measure both relative and absolute time, how the geologic time scale was developed, and the significance of major events in Earth’s history. Through this, they begin to appreciate the concept of deep time—the immense time span of Deep Time.

What to Expect:
Following a lively introduction, students first engage in activities focused on relative dating, using concepts such as superposition, cross-cutting relationships, and fossil succession. They then move on to explore absolute dating, learning how radioactive decay functions as a steady natural clock. Students are introduced to the principles behind radiometric dating, gaining insight into how geologists assign actual ages to rocks and fossils, and how these tools are used to build the timeline of Earth’s dynamic past.

Duration: 60, 120, or 180 minutes

Academic Level: 9–12

Overview:
In this dynamic and multidisciplinary activity, students explore topographic mapping, navigation, and geographic analysis—essential skills used in fields such as geology, geomatics, engineering, forestry, and environmental science. Students learn how to interpret and create topographic maps, explore grid systems, elevation, contour lines, and how to construct topographic profiles. The activity emphasizes real-world applications, from measuring the slope of a mountain to locating earthquake epicentres or hidden "treasures" in the landscape.

What to Expect:
Session 1 — Field Skills and Traditional Mapping Techniques: Armed with a topographic map and compass, students head outdoors to practice essential mapping and navigation skills. They learn to: Measure distance through pacing, use a compass to determine a bearing, apply triangulation using visible landmarks to determine their exact location on a map, measure distance, height, and slope using compass-based tools, understand and record strike and dip to assess slope orientation (for geology-focused learners)

As a culminating field challenge, students put their skills to the test in a navigation exercise to locate either a series of "treasures" or an "earthquake epicentre" using triangulation and observation of real-world topography.

Session 2 — Digital Mapping and Data Analysis with Google Earth Pro: Back in the lab, students transition to digital tools using Google Earth Pro to extend and deepen their mapping experience. They learn to: Calculate distance, elevation, slope, and area using real satellite imagery, observe and analyze topographic and environmental changes over time, and explore real-world case studies (e.g., climate change impacts, land use, or geological features).

Students finish the session by applying their new skills to create their own topographic maps. Those with background knowledge in geology or petrology can go further to construct geologic maps and profiles, integrating observations about rock types and structural features.

Duration: 90 or 180 minutes

Academic Level: Grades 7–8, 9–12

Overview:
This hands-on activity introduces upper middle and high school students to the fascinating field of ichnology - the study of trace fossils such as footprints, burrows, and trackways. Unlike body fossils, trace fossils provide unique insights into the behaviour and movement of ancient organisms, revealing information that bones alone cannot.

Students learn to distinguish between body and trace fossils and investigate how fossilized tracks can be used to reconstruct past environments and behaviours. By thinking like paleontologists, students develop critical scientific skills while exploring how trace evidence helps interpret life in Earth’s deep past.

What to Expect:
Working in small groups, students will engage in hands-on activities that include:

• Comparing and classifying body vs. trace fossils.
• Measuring stride length, track size, and track spacing to estimate the gait, speed, and size of the track-maker.
• Reconstructing paleoenvironments and possible behavioural scenarios based on fossil evidence.
• Grappling with the limitations of the fossil record, including the challenge of identifying the species behind a trace.
• Learning about ichnotaxa—classification of trace fossils based on form and inferred behaviour.
• Investigating clues for group movement, changes in direction, predator-prey interactions, or other possible inferences based on the evidence.

This interdisciplinary inquiry-based activity strengthens observational and analytical skills, and integrates concepts from Earth science, biology, archaeology, anthropology, and paleontology.