Weathering is the process that breaks solid rock into pieces of rock called sediment and into ions dissolved in water and can involve physical and/or chemical processes. All rocks eventually crumble and break down by the processes of weathering at
the surface of the Earth. All rocks do not break down at the same rate, however, and the difference in rates of weathering are
the result of environmental conditions as well as the composition of the rocks.
Students collected rocks from the four areas marked in the photo. The only condition was rock size: rocks should range from
tennis ball size to soft ball size. Students recorded location of rocks as well as all visible characteristics.