Hands-On Center 

(Volcanic Terms-Lesson #6)



A Model of a Strato Volcano



Materials: 

  1. Five colors of modeling clay or playdough-Red, Brown, Gray, Black, Blue
  2. Thumb Tacks
  3. 10 X 12 sheets of tag board
  4. Felt tip pen for labeling
  5. Thick Thread

 

There will be no Content Lesson today because the Hands-On lesson will take at least a half-hour.
The students will build a volcano model on tag board. The students will add lava and ash layers one by one simulating the process that builds a real strato volcano cone.  
The students will start by building the upper layer of the mantle and lower crust with a magma chamber and conduit like the diagram below.

 
The students will then start to build the strato volcano model by rolling "snakes" that will represent the alternating layers of hardened lava (Black clay)and ash (Gray clay). They will need to add an extension to the conduit (Red clay) with each set of layers added. As they build the volcano higher have the students add a fissure (Red clay) and a lava flow (Red clay) down the flank of the cone.
When the students are finished making the model have them label it by writing the following terms on the tag board and connecting the terms to the model with pins. (See Diagram below)