Volcanoes!

During Period 1 we have been learning about natural disasters (Volcanoes, Earthquakes and Tsunamis) in Science class. We have been following the events in Indonesia, using it as a case study to help us learn  just how catastrophic these events can be, and how people are affected by them.
We have also done a couple of fun experiments based on this topic. In September the class created 3 'papier maché' volcanoes, when they were finished we took them out to the playground, and that is when the real fun began! We filled each one with a little bicarbonate of soda, vinegar and red colouring, and hey presto we had our own volcanic eruptions.
This month we have been looking at Earthquakes and to finish the topic off we created out own basic seismographs. Once the pupils had constructed their seismograph one person shook the box to imitate the earthquake while another pulled the paper through so that we would get a reading of the magnitude.