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Badge Name: Geologist         Start Date: July 1st         Completion Date: July 31st
 
Den Meeting Location: Josh's house         Date/Time: July 8 - 7:00pm
 
Den Outing Location: The Rock Shop         Date/Time: July 25 - 2:00pm
 
Fulfilling Badge Requirements:

#1:	Requirement: Collect five geologic specimens that have important uses. Activity: Excavate clay blocks with gems inside. Pour 2 to 3 inches of clay slurry in a container, such as a Handi-Wipes plastic container. Mix in 5 or 6 different polished stones or rock specimens. Let dry a month. Scouts chip off clay to find gems - a good start to a rock collection, too.
#2:	Requirement: Rocks and minerals are used in metals, glass, jewelry, road-building products, and fertilizer. Give examples of minerals used in these products. Game: Scavenger hunt to find items that contain specific minerals and rocks.
#3:	Requirement: Make a scale of mineral hardness for objects found at home. Show how to use the scale by finding the relative hardness of three samples. Activity: Build hardness scale. Test it on rocks that the scouts bring.
#4:	Requirement: List some of the geologic materials used in building your home. Activity: Hand out colored index cards with the materials listed - Aluminum, Calcium, Silicon or Boron, Lead or Zinc, Iron, Copper. Have a contest - which team can correctly locate the materials first. They have to stick the card on the part of the house that matches the card. Aluminum (windows, doors), Calcium (cement), Silicon or Boron (glass), Lead or Zinc (pipes), Iron (nails, screws), Copper (gutters or wiring).
#5:	Requirement: Make a drawing that shows the cause of a volcano, a geyser, or an earthquake. Create an earthquake - put a large book on carpet and attach a rubber band to it. Set up LEGO people on the book. Pull the rubber band until the book finally moves in a jerk. Create a geyser - Boil water in a teakettle and the steam coming out is just like a geyser. Create a volcano - using 2 paper cups, cut the bottom out of one cup and cut almost the top half off the other. Lay out a large piece of plastic wrap to work on. Put the bottomless cup upside down over the topless cup - its rim should not quite touch the table. Put a few drops of liquid detergent into the cup. Add a few drops of red food coloring. Fill about 2/3 of inside cup with vinegar. Put about 1/4 teaspoon of baking soda, and mix quickly. The volcano will 'boil over'.
#6:	Requirement: Explain one way in which mountains are formed. Activity: Explain 3 ways - volcano, erosion, and uplift. We chose volcano. For erosion, explain that water dissolves rock over time. Have a race with each scout putting a SweetTart in his mouth and dissolve it - no chewing. For upheaval, have each scout make a playdough pancake and then stack them. Push the sides together to cause upheaval. Cut it to show the buckled layers.
#7:	Requirement: Describe what a fossil is. How is it used to tell how old a formation is? Find two examples of fossils in your area. Activity: Excavate clay blocks with fossils inside. Clean some chicken bones and/or fish bones. Bleach them and dry them. Pour a 1/4 inch layer of clay slurry in a container for each scout or pair of scouts and let dry for 3 days. Pour in a 2nd layer and dry 1 day. Press 3 a few chicken bones, fish bones, or plastic items into the clay. Let dry 2 days. Cover with another layer of slurry and dry 3 days. Pour a 4th layer on top and let dry for at least a month. Scouts carefully chip away the layers to find fossils.

 
Homework do before Den Meeting:

Read Geologist section in Webelos handbook Find one or two rocks and bring them to the meeting.

 
Den Meeting Agenda:

Time	Activity, Game, Presentation, Skill, ...
6:55	Gathering: Volcano Map and Geologist Word Scramble from Worksheets page.
7:00	Opening Ceremony - Outdoor Code
7:05	Create a Volcano - discuss how volcanoes form mountains
7:15	Fossil Work - discuss what fossils are and how they are formed. Dig for fossils in clay blocks.
7:30	Find geological materials in home - have contest.
7:40	Discuss hardness of minerals and build hardness scale.
7:55	Collect 5 specimens from clay blocks.
8:05	Use hardness scales to arrange specimens.
8:10	Find examples of minerals used in products.
8:15	Closing Ceremony - Outdoor Code
8:20	Snack - Paleo Cookie Dig

 
Homework do after Den Meeting:

Practice Scout Oath

 
Den Outing Agenda:

Time	Activity
2:00	Meet at Josh's house and drive to Rock Shop.
2:20	Tour Rock Shop and listen to presentation.
3:45	Return home.

 
Which activities need to be scheduled? Visit to Rock Shop.
 
Other materials needed: Clay, hammers, gems, bones
 
Snacks: Paleo Cookie Dig
Make a pan of rice krispy bars, with deposits of 'fossils' - M&Ms, peanuts, chocolate chips, sunflower seeds, etc. Don't put in an even amount of these and don't space them out evenly.

1. Explain that the concept of systematic investigation of an area of soil is dividing the area into squares called "quadrants". Now cut the pan of cookie bars into quadrants.
2. Give each participant a quadrant on a paper plate and ask him to carefully pick it apart using a toothpick. All 'finds' from his quadrant should be grouped by type.
3. The rice krispys are also placed in a large pile (on the plate).
4. After digging apart their quadrants, have them count how many of each type of material is on their plate.
5. Construct a bar graph using circle stickers on a poster board grid.
6. Challenge them to analyze the graph to see if all the quadrants were the same or different.

 

 
Geologist Discussion Questions
Geologist Worksheets

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Webelos Badge Activity Ideas List - tons to choose from here!
 

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