ROCK N’ ROLL FEST!

The 7th and 8th grade students at University Lake School wanted to do something special for the culminating activity for their Geology unit.  They decided to host a Rock (rocks and minerals) and Roll (plate tectonics, earthquakes and volcanoes) Fest to educate the other students here at ULS about what they learned. While researching Earthquakes, students also decided to do a service project for the EQ victims in Haiti, and held a bake sale during their Rock and Roll Fest to raise money to be sent to the Red Cross servicing Haiti.

Project Outline
Research – Write paper – Prepare visual display – Prepare for Fest
Each student chose a topic of interest to further explore and research for the Fest.

Research Guidelines 
Use at least three sources -

• 1-3 educational websites, (Wikipedia was allowed!)
• 1 book or text
• A personal interview with an expert* in your chosen field. 

*I provided students with University email addresses, and they had to find a TA or professor willing to answer 3-5 questions by email, phone, or skype.  This was a challenge to them – “What?”  “We have to talk to a stranger?!” They could also contact a sales representative for their topic, for example, one student phoned customer service at Morton Salt, and another visited a granite building supply company for information (and free samples!)

Writing the Paper
We have a written and presentation component as part of our yearly requirements.  Students wrote drafts, edited, wrote more drafts, and finalized their paper.

Visual Display

• Students built models of geysers, and cross sections of volcanoes and mountains. 
• They made videos, timelines, and power point presentations. 
• One student illustrated a timeline of the geological development forming Glacier/Waterton National Park. 
• They each designed a tri-fold display board to go with their project

Presentations
Students presented their information and visual display to their classes, to practice for the Fest.  They scored each other on content knowledge, eye contact and audience participation, and visual displays.  They practiced asking and answering questions to prepare for the Fest.

The Fest!

• We invited students in grades 2-12, and decided to make a Passport Book for the Fest. 
• Each student came up with a question that could be answered from their display or presentation. 
• We put the questions together in a Passport style book, and gave one to each student that toured the Fest.
• The touring students went from station to station, and wrote the answers to the questions. 
• The hosting students gave them a sticker on their page if they got the answer correct. 
• Completed Passports were turned in for a Geo Prize (a fossilized shark tooth or mineral).

Students took turns manning the bake sale.  Everyone baked something for the Fest, and we earned $150 for earthquake victims in Haiti!

The students loved this event, and all their hard work was evident in the knowledge they gave to others, and in being able to answer questions about their topics.  They received a letter of thanks from the American Red Cross, and are already planning the next event!

My  students would love to answer any questions you may have regarding the planning and presentation of our Rock and Roll fest. 

You can reach us at:
Jodi Koehler – Middle School Science
University Lake School
4024 Nagawicka Road Hartland, Wisconsin 53029
Jodi.koehler@universitylake.org