This can definitely help 5th grade students in TEXAS, and I'm hoping it can help other science teachers, too!

Destructive Forces: Chant this "Destructive forces tear land down."
When saying this, start hands above head and make your fingers into downward claws on the words "destructive forces" use the same downward gesture slower for "tear land down" in a staccato version. The first gesture is a slow sweeping down for "destructive forces" and three staccato downward claws for "tear land down."

Gesture for weathering: hands in fists at chest level and shake them in a dance move and chant "weathering: break it down, break it down."

Gesture for Erosion: pretend like you have a broom in your hands and start sweeping and say "e-row-shun, e-row-shun." You can teach them that erosion is the sweeping away of sediment.

Constructive Forces: Chant this "Constructive Forces build land up!" and it's like the destructive force but opposit. Start your hands at the lowest positions with palms up and fingers like you are holding candy or something. Take it all the way up slowly when saying "Constructive Forces" and then three staccato, up-sweeping motions for "build land up!"

Gesture for deposition: using flat hands, one hand goes on top of the other going in the upward direction to show that deposition is constructive and sediment builds on top of sediment. Kinda like when a team puts all their hands in and one hand goes on top and then another on top and then another on top....... You can chant "depa-sishun, depa-sishun."

I teach an extremely diverse classroom, different cultures, different intellectual levels, SPED, you name it, I bet you understand. Two of my most challenging students came up with the gestures for weathering and deposition. We did this at the very beginning of the year. I would say 95% of my students still remember these vocabulary words because of the gestures. This is the most successful method of teaching these abstract vocabulary words that I've ever used. Students come up with the best gestures!!!

Hope this can help any of you science teachers and pleae share your science gestures, too!

Thank you! I was just moved from second grade to 5th and 6th science and NEED some help!! Love the gestures!!

Welcome Barb2a! Glad to see ya here! Where are you teaching?

Farrah Shipley
WBT Texas Kinders
Co-Director Model Classrooms

Hi...I'm in PA...and am looking forward to whole brain help with 5th and 6th grade science especially definitions