Gold Mining

Materials:

Pie Pan

Dirt

Copper BBs (available in a sporting goods or discount store)

Glass beads (approximately 5 mm, available in an art supply store)

Water

Colander

Procedure:

In a pie pan, mix dirt, a few small copper BBs with a handful of glass beads of about the same diameter. Add two or three cups of water. Over a colander, swish the mixture in a circle, sloshing some over the side each time.

Ask students: Do the glass beads or the copper BBs rinse out more easily with the water? Why is this happening?

Newton's Apple, http://ericir.syr.edu/Projects/Newton/index.html