P5BE are very interested in our new theme ‘Blowing Yer Top’. We have been learning about the layers of the Earth, and how the outer layer (the crust) isn’t actually smooth, but has lots of cracks. Underneath the crust is the mantle - a layer of rock which when it is extremely hot can move like a liquid. We watched a demonstration to show us what happens to the mantle when the Earth cracks. Mrs Esler used a plate to represent the crust, and lots of custard underneath to represent the mantle. We cracked the plate and it separated, like the Earth does along it’s crack lines - the tectonic plates. When we cracked the plate the custard pushed up through. This is like the mantle pushing up and forming mountains and volcanoes. We also noticed how the plates can slide over one another as they are moved by the mantle - this happens in real life too!
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