We’re making an edible earth project in a cup with kids with minimal fuss. Also, you’ll love this Free Earth Science Lapbook.
With just a few ingredients and you’ll have an earth science lesson with a big impact.
With preschool through elementary, you want to go as hands-on as you can to make the learning fun.
In turn this helps your child understand and remember what they are learning better.
I have also found that the more senses that you can engage in the more fun and memorable an activity is.
With this simple activity, you don’t have to go out and buy many different ingredients.
We are using a couple of items, and you may already find some of them in your pantry to create the layers of the Earth in a cup.
You will also want to have a great reference book that shows a clear image of the layers of the earth.
Layers of The Earth
Of course, one of my favorite resources to use with any science and nature topic is Nature Anatomy by Julia Rothman and you can see a lovely illustration of the earth layers that we can use for reference.
Earth is made up of three layers: the crust, the mantle, and the core.
Each layer is made of different materials so let’s learn a little bit about each with fun facts as we put our edible earth project in a cup together.
I recommend reading off the facts as your child builds each layer.
Crust. This describes the outermost shell of the earth and is made of solid rocks and minerals. All known life in the universe makes its home here on and in the crust.
Mantle. The mantle makes up 84% of the earth’s volume and is mostly solid bulk.
The mantle lies between Earth’s dense, super-heated core and its thin outer layer, the crust. The rocks that make up the bulk of Earth’s mantle are silicates.
Outer Core. The outer core is the third layer of the Earth and is the layer that is responsible for Earth’s Magnetic Field. It is the only liquid layer and is made of iron, nickel, and a few other substances.
Inner Core. This layer is made of iron–nickel alloy with a few other elements. It is a spheroid, a solid shape that is not quite a perfect sphere.
The temperature is estimated at 9800 °F. It helps generate the Earth’s magnetic field through interactions with the outer core.
More Earth Layers and Earth Science Resources
- Cookie Sheet Activities Make Earth Day Cookies & Fascinating Earth Facts
- Make this Gorgeous Layers of the Earth DIY Soap Project and create a craft idea that is not only useful but teaches much about the various layers of the earth.
- Easy Layers of the Earth’s Atmosphere Activity for Kids
- Here is another fabulous hands-on project, the Layers of the Earth Playdough Mat *freebie* that even the youngest members of the family will be able to join in while older children can challenge themselves to add more detail.
- Grab a bucket of LEGO blocks and create this fantastic LEGO Layers of the Earth Project to help your child understand the makeup from the inside out.
- Watch The Geosphere-Layers of The Earth to learn facts about each fascinating layer of our earth with engaging animations.
Finally, look how to make an edible earth project in a cup.
How to Make an Edible Earth Project in a Cup
You will need:
- Vanilla pudding cup
- Food coloring
- Blue and green candies
- Clear cups
Start by separating your pudding cup into thirds.
I left 1/3 in the cup and placed the other two portions in a small bowl.
Add a little bit of orange food coloring to one bowl, mix well, and red to the other, mixing it completely.
Start by scooping the uncolored pudding into the bottom of the cup. This will represent your core.
Next, add a layer of orange, this is the outer core.
Now, make a layer of red pudding for the mantle, because this makes up the bulk of the earth.
You can make this a much thicker layer if you like.
Finally, you can top it with blue and green, M&Ms you sprinkle, colored, coconut, or whatever you have on hand to represent the Earth’s surface, the crust.
Since the crust is made up of both continental (land mass) and oceanic crust we wanted to represent the earth and water with blue and green.
How fun and simple are these easy layers to represent the layers of our earth?
