Candy Quakes

Summary:  This activity is an excellent way to see and experience the effects on Earth's crust by tectonic stress and deformation. Have the students bring in their favorite candy, gum, and licorice. They will be able to eat this activity when they are done.

Learning Objectives:

• Students will explain the Theory of Plate Tectonics.
• Students will demonstrate the movement and results of movement along convergent, divergent, and transform plate boundaries.

Materials:

(For each student)

• One candy bar, any kind - any size
• (4) Licorice or Red Whips®, Twizzlers® etc. at least 10 inches long
• (1) Napkins
• (3) Large pieces of bubble gum [Bubblelicious®, Bubble Yum®, etc.]

LEARNING ACTIVITY

Duration: one 45 minute session

1. Unwrap one gum piece and apply compressional forces with your fingers on the gum. 
   1. Observe the piece of gum. 
   2. Draw what you see. 
   3. Draw an earthquake stress model from the textbook. 
   4. Does it look a like? 
   5. Relate these stresses to the appropriate fault.
   6. Draw the related fault and label it accurately.
2. Reshape gum piece and apply tensional forces with your fingers on the gum. 
   1. Observe the piece of gum. 
   2. Draw what you see. 
   3. Draw model from the textbook. 
   4. Does it look a like? 
   5. Relate these stresses to the proper fault. 
   6. Draw related fault and label.
3. Unwrap second gum piece and apply shearing forces with your fingers on the gum. 
   1. Observe the piece of gum. 
   2. Draw what you see.
   3. Draw model from the textbook.
   4. Does it look a like? 
   5. Relate these stresses to the proper fault. 
   6. Draw related fault and label.
4. Repeat step 3, but this time, apply shearing forces to the candy bar.  Have students leave the candy bars on their desks and walk around to see how other candy bars reacted to the stress.
5. Take the licorice and stack them one on top the other supporting them with your two hands.  Apply compressional forces by pushing in towards the center.  Observe your anticline and syncline.  Draw what you see.  Draw model from the textbook.  Label Drawings.

Background Information

Deformation

The breaking, tilting, and folding of rocks.

Stress

A push or pull force. As rocks undergo stress, volume & shape changes.

Three types of stress

Compression

When crustal rocks squeezed together. (Found in Convergent Plate Boundary)

Tension

The pulling apart of rocks in opposite direction.(Found in Divergent Plate Boundary)

Shear

When presssure pushes crustal rock in opposite, horizontal directions. (Found in Transform Plate Boundary)

Joints

Parallel cracks in the rocks.

Fault

A break or crack along which crustal rocks move.

Four Types of Faults

Normal Fault

A tensional stress on a fault, the hanging wall will move down in relation to the footwall.

Reverse Fault

A compressional stress on a fault, the hanging wall will move up in relation to the footwall.

Strike Slip - or - Lateral Fault -

A fault along which blocks move horizontally past each other.

Folding

A bend by compressional forces when the rock is extremely hot. It bends and folds instead of faulting.

Anticline

An upward fold in a rock.

Syncline

A downward fold in a rock.