Houston Gem & Mineral Society - Kids Day K-12 Earth Science Education Program

Coordinator: Nohemi Passey

Ages: K-12th grade

Toddlers are welcome to accompany families but are not part of the program. They can enter for free.

Register by Nov. 7th.

For questions or comments, please use this forum: https://www.thehomeschoolcouncil.org/forum/field-trips

Registration information is critical to print sufficient numbers of scavenger hunt questionnaires and maps. Please keep your RSVP firm. We will secure the time slot when we have a headcount and register to the event on November 7th.

Please read the instructions and information from the venue below:

Earth Science education

HGMS is committed to supporting children’s education with materials, information, and activities to engage youth at all levels in Earth Science education.

Our annual show is designated as Kids Day for K–12 students. Bring your homeschool students to the annual show for this extensive, hands-on learning experience. All registered students and their accompanying teachers and parents are admitted FREE on Friday to the HGMS show to participate in our program. NOTE: parent/student ratio cannot be greater than 1. We provide free registration for chaperones but not for extended families. Additional adults other than chaperones (max ratio 1:1) can enter through the front door and purchase a ticket.

At the show, children are given grade-level, TEKS-aligned, age-appropriate “scavenger hunt” questionnaires that enable them to learn about Earth Science. The lesson plan developed by our Education Committee for elementary and secondary schools sets learning objectives for natural science that are emphasized through scientific investigation and reasoning. We provide numerous hands-on activities where students observe, compare, record, and learn about the physical properties of rocks and characteristics of minerals including hardness, color, luster, and streak.

The program for Grades 4 and higher includes an exciting and informative presentation by Mad Science demonstrating pertinent topics such as rock types and tectonic plate activity—including a simulated earthquake. The Dino Dig area gives children in Grades K–3 their own place to dig for dinosaurs, minerals, and other fun geology items.

Check-in: 12:15 p.m.

Homeschool groups check in together, first meeting up outside the west entrance of the Humble Civic Center. The group coordinator will manage check-in and be given a packet of scavenger hunt questionnaires (for the children) and maps (for the accompanying adults).

Understand our policy about free admission for adults: Knowing that homeschool parents are very active in their child’s education, we expect a high turnout of parents with their children. Our offer of free admission is applicable only to one adult per one child. Additional adults will need to pay $10 for admission to the show.

Leave backpacks in your vehicle: Backpacks are not allowed. Feel free to leave your snacks and water in the car. There will be two food trucks on the parking lot if you need to buy food.

Consider your route through the show: The age-appropriate, TEKS-aligned scavenger hunts for different grade levels have different routes to minimize the likelihood that any one area in the HCC becomes overcrowded. We encourage large homeschool groups to divide the students by grade level with an adult family member or chaperone accompanying the group. If you are just one adult bringing multiple children at different grade levels, consult with the check-in volunteers to see how you can align or combine the children’s route through the show.

Practice active learning: The dealers at our show encourage questions. Many dealers have touch items for students to explore. However, some dealers have expensive specimens and do not allow handling them. Please ask before allowing students to touch items. We thank you for not only chaperoning your students through our diverse earth science experience but also guiding them in how to observe, because the TEKS emphasizes collecting data through observation with the senses.

Review our safety precautions: Running and horseplay are not allowed. Our security personnel will ask that you remove any student creating a disturbance. Any student caught shoplifting will be removed from the show. Police will be onsite to respond to any unlawful behavior.

Support HGMS with your purchases: As a not-for-profit 501(c)3 organization, HGMS is dedicated to study in the areas of earth science and related fields and arts. We fund these educational activities—including our free Kids Day—primarily through our Annual Show. In addition to shopping opportunities, games are available in the Youth Section and cost $0.25 a play.

Collect your souvenir rock when you check out: Check out from the show at the east exit to the Civic Center, where each child will receive a rock specimen as a token of our appreciation for your attendance at Kids Day.

Resources:

Rock and Mineral Links

Mineral information and uses page from the rocksandminerals.com website.

https://rocksandminerals.com/MineralInformation/MineralFinderHome.html#uses

The MEC’s mission is to develop and deliver accurate and timely K-12 education materials and activities and conduct public awareness outreach about mining and minerals. https://mineralseducationcoalition.org

Canadian site packed with pages of information and a Teacher’s Corner. http://www.rocksforkids.com/index.html

Paleo and Fossil Links

Part of the stellar University of California, Berkeley Museum of Paleontology site.

This section has excellent activities for both primary (Dino Cookie Dig is a favorite) and secondary students,

focusing on the ways fossils indicate the relative ages of geologic strata.  Very high quality information.

https://ucmp.berkeley.edu/fosrec/Learning.html

A hypertext online book about dinosaurs; contains many levels of information.

https://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/dinosaurs/index.html

Build your own Trilobite https://eadn-wc02-3368391.nxedge.io/cdn/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/TRILOBIT.pdf

Geology and Earth Science links

USGS Geology Home Page; good resource for upper grades https://www.usgs.gov

Education web for K-12 students and teachers https://www.usgs.gov