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MT. ST. HELENS FLIPBOOK
In 1979 a 'bulge' began to grow on the side of Mt. St. Helens, in Washington state. It was caused by gas and magma building up inside the mountain. On May 18, 1980 a small earthquake caused the bulge to collapse and slide down the mountain. The pressure of the gas inside the mountain blew an enormous cloud of rock and ash into the air. The entire north side of Mt. St. Helens was blown off.
Topics and Connections:
Materials:
Directions:
Teacher:
- Copy the flipbook master onto heavy paper if possible.
- Have students cut along the dark lines to make the 15 'frames' of this movie.
- Have students place them in order from 1 to 15, with 1 on top. Staple each flipbook as close to the edge as possible. This flip-book is a simplified drawing of what happened at the Mt. St. Helens volcano on May 18th, 1980.
Questions To Ask:
- What do you expect to see when a volcano erupts. Do you see it in the flipbook?
- Was there anything unexpected in this "movie"?
- Have you ever been to a mountain?
- How big is a mountain?
- Scientists say that Mt. St. Helens was 'uncorked'. Can you see this in the flipbook? Where?
Follow Up:
- Have the whole class press against a wall of the classroom together, to try to push it over. Imagine how much harder it is to move an entire mountain the way an eruption can!
- Was there anything unexpected in this "movie"?
- Research other volcanoes, like Pinatubo (in the Philippines) or Kilauea (on Hawaii). Make a flip-book depicting what happened at this volcano, showing what happened to the shape of the volcano, debris, lava, ash, etc.
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