Mike Tuke’s

SAND & SANDSTONE

www.earth-science-activities.co.uk

Sand and sandstones Describing sandstones A P F 5 min per sample  a) Students describe the size, sorting, roundness and colour of a variety of sandstones both by examining the sandstone and by rubbing grains off and examining them with a hand lens. Students give a name to the type of sandstone and suggest an environment of formation Colour Chart A AP 5 min per sample Students work out the colour code for each of a variety of differently coloured sandstones using the Geological Society of America Rock Colour Chart. You can also use Dulux paint cards which are free Porosity of sandstones   A P 1 min per sample Students put a small drop of water onto sandstones to see if it is absorbed. Comparing orthoquartzite and metaquartzite A P 2 min Students compare samples of each Comparing dolerite and greywacke  A P 2 min Students compare samples of each Classification of sandstones   Pe I F 20 min Students are given a triangular diagram and the data for several sandstones and must put a cross on the triangular diagram where the sandstone belongs. Conditions of deposition A P F 5 min Students place samples on a grid depending on whether they were deposited in an oxidising or reducing, high, medium or low energy. They then use the same grid to classify a few common environments. Avalanching and separation of grains using a Mersk cell  D This is a box made from 2 sheets of transparent plastic 0.5cm apart. A mixture of fine and coarse sand or sand and sugar is poured into the box. It separates as it moves down slope.   Idea from Trevor Elliott   Stream table D F A stream table consists of a shallow tray about 75cm by 50cm. It is good for showing the formation of deltas, wave cut platforms and fossils cliffs and for showing the effects of alongshore drift and sea level change.