Case 05 · Earth · Draft, not yet checked
What makes the ground shake?
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Six A4 pages in black and white: one page for you, a cover to colour, then Inspire, Investigate (two pages), and Integrate and Impart. Choose the level by your child, not by age. Siblings can each have their own.
Explorer draws, circles, counts and says (often ages 4–7). Investigator predicts, tests, records and explains (often ages 7–11).
Finished the case?
The ayah: Surah Az-Zalzala 99:1–2
إِذَا زُلْزِلَتِ ٱلْأَرْضُ زِلْزَالَهَا
When the earth is shaken to her (utmost) convulsion,
وَأَخْرَجَتِ ٱلْأَرْضُ أَثْقَالَهَا
And the earth throws up her burdens (from within),
English: Abdullah Yusuf Ali
You will need
About 35 minutes · Things at home
- A clear bowl of water
- Building blocks, plastic cups or sugar cubes
- A tray or baking tin
The journey
- Inspire: Put a cup of water on the table.
- Investigate: Ripples and wobbles · Tall tower or wide tower? · The shake tray
- Integrate: which name of Allah does it remind you of, and a small plan for the week.
- Impart: Show someone the shake tray. Tell them which tower stayed standing.
For grown-ups: the science
The earth's outer layer is made of huge slabs of rock called plates. They move very slowly, and when they slip suddenly the ground shakes. The shaking travels outwards in waves, like ripples in water. Engineers design buildings with wide bases, strong joints and frames that can bend a little, so they stay standing.
- • Earthquakes happen when rocks underground slip suddenly along a fault, sending out seismic waves. Source: USGS, “What is an earthquake?”.
- • Singapore is far from the plate boundaries but sometimes feels faint tremors from large earthquakes in Sumatra. Source: Meteorological Service Singapore. [still being checked]