Description

Turn your kitchen table, classroom, or church basement into a crystal lab with this ready‑to‑run STEM experience for ages 7–15. This digital kit bundles a full lesson plan, hands‑on activities, printable worksheets, and vocabulary cards so learners can explore crystal shapes, grow their own crystals, and talk about them using real science language.​

Product Description

The Crystal Systems & Epsom Salt Lab Pack gives you everything needed to run a complete crystals lesson without starting from scratch. Students learn how atoms arrange into different crystal systems, observe Epsom salt crystals forming under a microscope, and then take home a crystal seed jar to grow over 1–2 weeks. Materials are written for mixed ages (7–15) and work in after‑school clubs, homeschool co‑ops, church programs, and classrooms.​

What’s Included

• Full Lesson Plan (Teacher/Parent Guide)

  • Clear learning targets and NGSS connections for upper elementary and middle school.​

  • Suggested 2‑hour flow with two built‑in breaks, including when to teach shapes, when to use microscopes, and when to set up take‑home jars.

  • Materials list, safety notes for working with glass and warm solutions, and core talking points linking crystal shape to atomic structure.​

• Student Worksheets & Activities

  • Crystal systems reference page (cubic, tetragonal, orthorhombic, hexagonal/trigonal, monoclinic, triclinic) with kid‑friendly descriptions.​

  • “Match the Crystal Shape” pages where students examine real rocks/minerals and record which system they see.

  • Microscope slide page for sketching Epsom salt crystals as they appear while a drop dries, plus prompts about what makes something a crystal.​

  • At‑home crystal growth log so students can track daily changes in their seed crystal jar for 1–2 weeks.​

• At‑Home Epsom Salt Crystal Protocol (Family Handout)

  • Clear, step‑by‑step care instructions for the take‑home jar, using common household locations (pantry, closet, bookshelf).​

  • Guidance on what to expect during the first days and weeks, when to be patient, and how to preserve finished crystals.​

  • Troubleshooting tips for tiny, cloudy, or stalled crystals.

• Vocabulary Cards (Printable)

  • Ready‑to‑cut cards featuring key terms such as crystal, crystal system, cubic, hexagonal, orthorhombic, supersaturated solution, nucleation, acicular, and more.​

  • Each card includes a simple definition and an in‑context example sentence that connects directly to the lab (“Epsom salt forms needle‑like orthorhombic crystals in this experiment.”).

  • Flexible for games (matching, sorting by crystal system, exit tickets, or word walls) in both classroom and club settings.

• Assessment & Reflection Tools

  • Low‑prep options: observation checklists, quick exit questions, and simple drawing checks you can do in minutes.

  • Deeper options: short quizzes on crystal systems, sketch rubrics, and optional lab report prompts for older students who want more challenge.​

Key Features

• Plug‑and‑play: Just add Epsom salt, water, and basic lab supplies—the concepts, prompts, and printables are ready.​

• Mixed‑age friendly: Built‑in supports for younger learners plus extension questions for older students, all in one coherent package.​

• Vocabulary‑rich: Vocab cards, in‑context usage, and notebook prompts help students speak and write like young mineralogists.​

• Printer‑friendly: All pages are designed for black‑and‑white printing and easy photocopying for clubs, classrooms, and co‑ops.

Use this pack as a stand‑alone “wow” crystal day or as the backbone of a short unit on crystals, minerals, and the structure of matter.