Change in Rocks
What happens in the rock cycle?
Goal:
Goal:
Wind, water, and living things change rocks into sediments. Sediments are small pieces of rock that have been crushed or dissolved. The sediments may form new rocks by being squashed down by a huge amount of pressure. Sometimes, rocks buried underneath the ground are squeezed and heated so much that they melt. They become hot liquid rock, or magma, once again. When this material cools and hardens again, it forms a new rock.
Every rock experiences weathering. Eventually, the rock breaks down and goes into the Earth. Later, it emerges in a new form. How is this similar to other cycles of nature? All of nature is constantly building up and tearing down. The seed grows to be a flower, the flower dies, and the seed is extracted so that a new flower may bloom in the next cycle.
Rocks, too, are constantly being acted upon so that new shapes, textures, etc. may be created--and then these rocks go back into the Earth again, to start over. Nature has provided for constant change. There is a cycle for everything in nature. Plants and rocks do not need to do anything except naturally take part in these very predictable cycles that happen again and again, year after year.