Rocks and Dirt by Ellen McHenry

Rocks and Dirt by Ellen McHenry

Sample Chapters | Video Overview

Rocks and Dirt is science your students can see, touch, build, and taste (yes, some of it is edible!). With engaging text and hands-on fun, this curriculum is a fantastic journey through the world of earth and soil science.

What’s Inside?

The first half of the book (about 150 pages) is the student text, filled with:

• Clear explanations
• Colorful diagrams
• Puzzles and review pages
• Self-checks to test understanding

The second half (also about 150 pages) is the teacher’s section, packed with:

• Lab instructions
• Game patterns
• Craft templates
• Step-by-step project guides

There’s also a free video playlist on YouTube at The Basement Workshop, made just for this course.

Topics Covered

This isn’t your typical rock unit! Students will explore:

• What minerals are and how to identify them
• How rocks form (igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic)
• The chemistry behind rocks like limestone and quartz
• Caves, coal, fossils, and the ocean floor
• Earth’s layers and the structure of the crust
• Soil science, including real soil biology
• Earthquakes, tectonic plates, and alternative theories
• Radiometric dating and how scientists make inferences

Best of all, this course clearly explains the difference between observed facts and scientific theories. Students will learn to think critically and ask good questions.

Hands-On Learning

From edible rocks to relay races, this curriculum is packed with creative activities.
Crafts & Art Projects:

• Cut-and-fold crystal shapes
• Make a shrinking plastic model of Earth’s layers
• Draw a trilobite fossil or a microscopic view of soil
• Create a cell profile box or dodecahedron globe

Labs & Simulations:

• Test density
• Try limestone chemistry experiments
• Map the ocean floor
• Extract core samples (with candy!)

Games & Review:

• “Mineral Auction”
• “Follow the Rocky Road” rock ID game
• “The Limestone Game”
• “The Rock Hopping Game”
• Jeopardy-style review
• Two songs to help remember key facts

And no rock kit is required! If you want to buy a mineral set, it can enhance your study, but it’s totally optional.

Flexible & Self-Paced

You can finish Rocks and Dirt in about 8–9 weeks if you move quickly. Or take it slower—spread it out over a semester by doing more activities and going deeper into favorite topics. It’s up to you!

High School Credit?

Yes! While it isn’t a full high school earth science course, it goes deep enough to count for ¼ credit in most areas. The content dives into chemistry, geology, and critical thinking at a level that prepares students for more advanced science.

Origins-Neutral Approach

Rocks and Dirt is written from a neutral worldview perspective. It presents observable facts and explains how scientists make inferences about the age and structure of the Earth. Students will learn about radiometric dating and also explore evidence that challenges long-age interpretations. Nothing faith-based has been added—just the science, clearly explained.