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Glacial Erosion Projects for Kids

Glacial erosion occurs through abrasion and plucking. In abrasion, sediment and rock that is frozen to the bottom and sides of glaciers scrape the rock surfaces over which they flow. This abrasion can leave gouges or striations, or sometimes a polished surface. Plucking happens after water that got into the cracks of bedrock (over which glaciers flow) freezes. The rock expands and loosens. The glacier can then pick up the rocks and carry them away. There are some projects you can do with kids that illustrate glacial erosion.

Abrasion Project with Clay
- Materials needed are: modeling clay, an ice cube and sand. Record your observations after each step. Take an ice cube and press it against the flattened modeling clay; move it back and forth several times. Now place a small pile of sand on the clay and then place the ice cube on top of the sand. Leave it for one minute. Pick up the ice cube and observe the part of the ice cube that was touching the sand. Place the same side of the ice cube on the sandy part of the clay; move it back and forth several times. Wipe the sand off the clay.
Abrasion Project with Wood
- Materials needed are: gravel, water, a paper cup, plastic wrap, a paper plate, tape and a smooth piece of wood. Fill the paper cup halfway with gravel and then cover it with an inch of water. Tape the plastic wrap on top of the cup, then invert the cup onto the paper plate. Place them in a freezer overnight. The next day, peel off all the paper from the "glacier." Scrape it with the gravel end over the smooth piece of wood. Scrape in one direction; glaciers move only one way.
Glacial Plucking
- Materials needed are: a small plastic container, water, potting soil, small rocks and pebbles and ice cubes. Layer soil, rocks and pebbles (represents land and mountains) about 1 inch thick in the container. Pour the water on top (represents melted glacial ice) and place three ice cubes (representing the unmelted glacier) on top of this mixture. Leave the container in the freezer overnight. This illustrates how rocks become attached to glaciers. The next day, remove the container from the freezer and take glacier out of it by wiggling the sides while it is upside down.
Glacial Plucking Expanded Experiment
- Materials needed are: the frozen glacier model made in the preceding experiment. Place it on top of a half bag of potting soil. The "glacier" had formed on top of the mound along with the rocks frozen inside it. Slowly slide the glacier down the mound. Leave the glacier at the bottom of the mound. Let the glacier melt. Observe the remains of the glacier and the rocks and discuss their new location.

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