There’s a world of minerals inside your smartphone. Now, the Canadian Museum of Nature has opened up this world and captured it as an immersive educational kit for Canadian students in Grades 4 through 7. Along with the discovery and examination of minerals, the purpose of the new edukit, Connected through Minerals, is to familiarize students with natural resource literacy. By developing knowledge, skills, and experiences about issues related to natural resources and the environment, students can make informed choices about the materials they use in daily life. By engaging in hands-on activities and examining real minerals and cell phone parts, students discover what’s in a smartphone. The edukit also emphasizes an important point—using rocks and minerals comes with costs. “It takes a lot of energy to transform them—we have to consider the human and environmental consequences,” says Marcus Winchester, Education Programs Leader. “Smartphones are amazing! But they’re made with rare elements and non-renewable resources. What lessons can we take from this?” The edukit is available for schools to use for two or more weeks, and can serve one or multiple classes. Contents are condensed into a suitcase-sized package for ease of shipping and set-up in classrooms. Organized into seven thematic modules, the edukit provides lesson plans, worksheets, explanations, and interpretive panels. It also includes videos, an interactive mapping challenge, and specimens from the renowned Mont Saint-Hilaire mineral locality, approximately 50 km east of Montreal, famous for its rare-earth elements that are essential for smartphones and many technologies we take for granted. For information about rental, booking, learning objectives and curriculum links, visit: nature.ca/en/teacher-zone/minerals-edukit.
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