This collection supports the House of Science resource kit. (houseofscience.nz)

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Learning about volcanoes is part of the science strand Planet Earth and Beyond and can include the Physical World, Material World and Nature of Science Strands.

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Examples include:

Earth systems:

  • Explore and describe natural features and resources. (Levels 1-2)
  • Appreciate and develop an understanding that water, air, rocks and soil, and life forms make up our planet and recognise that these are also Earth's resources. (Levels 3-4)

Interacting systems

  • Describe how natural features are changed and resources affected by natural events and human actions. (Levels 1-2)
ARTICLE 

Investigating volcanoes – introduction

Uncovering our explosive past – a look at some of the historical aspects of volcanoes in New Zealand: https://www.sciencelearn.org.nz/resources/1600-volcanoes-timeline

TEACHER PLD 

Volcanoes resources – planning pathways

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ARTICLE 

Plate tectonics, volcanoes and earthquakes

Looking for a glossary? - every article has one, just click on the tab to the right of "Resource" under the article heading.

ARTICLE 

Investigating volcanoes – question bank

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1. What’s on the inside?

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Learning Objective (levels 1-4)

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Students are introduced to the internal structures (layers) of the earth.

ARTICLE 

Under the Earth’s surface

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ARTICLE 

Inside the Earth

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2. Puzzle Pieces

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Learning Objective (levels 1-4)

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Students understand that:

  • the Earth’s crust is not solid rock
  • tectonic plates are huge slabs of rock that fit together like puzzle pieces to form the surface of the Earth.
ARTICLE 

Plate tectonics

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ACTIVITY 

Plates and quakes

In this activity, students take on the roles of seismologists, vulcanologists and geographers, using maps to look for patterns in the worldwide distribution of earthquakes, volcanoes and topographic features.

3. Action at the Edges

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Learning Objective (levels 2-4)

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Students understand:

  • tectonic plates are constantly moving
  • how tectonic plates interact when they push together and pull apart.
  • mountains, volcanoes, tsunamis, and earthquakes form because of plate movements.
ARTICLE 

The moving Earth

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ACTIVITY 

Tectonic jigsaw puzzles

In this activity, students turn a map of the Earth into puzzle pieces to investigate tectonic plates.

ACTIVITY 

Tectonic sandwiches

In this activity, students make sandwiches to investigate tectonic plate boundaries and how they move during an earthquake.

4. Racing Liquids

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Learning Objective (levels 2-4)

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Students understand that:

  • viscosity is a property of a liquid that describes how fast or slow it will flow
  • lava viscosity is one of the factors that determines the size and shape of a volcano as well as its eruption style (effusive or explosive)
ARTICLE 

Magma on the move

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5. Volcanoes 101

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Part A: What type?

Learning Objective (levels 2-4)

  • Students can identify and name the three main types of volcanoes found on the surface of the Earth and the style of eruption commonly associated with each type of volcano.

Part B: Looking at Lava

Learning Objective (levels 3 & 4)

Students can:

  • identify the different parts of a volcano
  • discuss its structure create a model to observe lava flow and volcano formation
ARTICLE 

Types of volcanoes

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ACTIVITY 

Making a model cinder cone

In this activity, students make a simple model of a cinder cone by pouring a granular material such as fine dry sand, pea-size gravel or rice bubbles into a conical pile and measuring its slope. This is then related to the shape and formation of cinder cone volcanoes.

6. Eruption Evaluation

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Learning Objective (levels 1-4)

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Students understand and can discuss:

  • the impact of lava viscosity on stratovolcano formation
  • hazards resulting from volcanic eruptions
  • caldera formation and supervolcanoes
ARTICLE 

Determining Auckland’s volcanic risk

Use these activities below to help your students understand more about volcanic risk and dealing with a disaster.

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ACTIVITY 

Calderas in the sandpit

In this activity, students pop a balloon in a container of sand to model caldera volcanoes and learn how lakes like Taupō and Rotorua were formed.

Watch this animated video to see how Lake Rotorua could have formed from a caldera eruption.

TEACHER PLD 

Children making evidence-based decisions about volcanic ...

Great for Early Years

7. Rocks Rock

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Learning Objective (levels 1-4)

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Students understand that:

  • rocks formed from the cooling and solidification of magma or lava are called igneous rocks.
  • igneous rocks have different properties depending on where the magma cools and how quickly it cools.
ARTICLE 

Types of volcanic rock

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ACTIVITY 

Identifying volcanic rocks

In this activity students watch a video describing different types of volcanic rocks and then match the chemical composition and type of volcanic eruption each rock is associated with

ACTIVITY 

Making lava fudge

This activity is a fun way to help students to learn about the different proportions of minerals in basalt, andesite and rhyolite rocks.

ACTIVITY 

Lost – a hot rock

In this activity, students examine an igneous rock and synthesise these observations into a poster.

8. Tour of New Zealand Volcanoes

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Learning Objective (levels 3 & 4)

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  • Students have knowledge about the types and location of volcanoes in New Zealand and their potential hazards.
ARTICLE 

Volcanoes – timeline

ARTICLE 

New Zealand volcanoes

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ARTICLE 

Volcanology methods

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