Notes

Volcanic features are common in our landscape, and dramatic events are associated with volcanic eruptions. However some of the science involved in studying volcanoes is complex, and many volcanic phenomena cannot be directly observed by children. For this reason a good starting point for teaching about volcanoes is their observable features in the landscape. Seeing the patterns in these features can lead to scientific explanations of what causes those patterns to occur. Building Science Concepts is a series of science resource units for different curriculum levels. A distinctive feature of each book is the ‘concept overview’, located on the inside cover. This sets out the progressive concepts that build towards the ‘big ideas’. The books are linked to the achievement aims of levels 1 to 4 of “Science in the New Zealand Curriculum”. Each book also includes background science notes for teachers as well as suggested student activities.