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Make a 2-D or 3-D Earth layers diagram that’ll wow your teacher
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If you have to make a model of the Earth’s layers (i.e., the crust, upper mantle, lower mantle, liquid outer core, and solid inner core) for a school project, we’ve got you covered! There are many ways to make a model of the layers of the Earth, but the easiest and most common are to use sculpting clay or styrofoam for a 3D model or make a flat paper representation. Below, you’ll find three fun and easy project ideas for your assignment.
Earth Layers: 3 School Project Ideas
- Styrofoam Model : Cut a quadrant out of a foam ball and paint five distinct layers on the inside to represent each layer of the earth. Paint the outside blue and green like a globe.
- Clay Model : Wrap four different-colored layers of clay around a small ball at the center to create a multi-layered sphere. Slice the ball in half to get a cross-section of the Earth.
- Paper Model : Cut out five circles of different colors and gradually larger sizes. Glue them on top of one another from largest to smallest so that each layer is visible.
Steps
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Use a marker to divide a foam ball (5–7 in (130–180 mm) diameter) into quarters. Identify what you see as roughly the center of the foam ball . If you’re struggling to find the approximate center, imagine a pole running through the middle of the ball—choose your center point as where either end of that pole would be sticking out of the ball. Then, hold a ruler to that point and hold a pencil in place above the ruler. [1] X Research source- Have a helper rotate the ball horizontally while you hold the pencil and watch the line form around the center.
- When the ball returns to its starting point, rotate it vertically and repeat the above step.
- When you’re finished, you should have two pencil lines that dive the ball into quarters.
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Cut a single 3D quadrant out of the ball. The two lines around the foam ball should be divided into approximate quarters. Position the foam ball so that one of the lines is facing straight up. Place a serrated knife onto the face-up line and gently slice back and forth until you reach the center of the ball (which is where the other line should be). [2] X Research source
- Reposition the ball so that the other line is now facing up.
- Gently slice again until you reach the center of the ball.
- Wiggle the cut-out quarter of the ball until it loosens and can be removed from the ball. You can throw away this quarter-piece unless you have another use for it.
- Parental supervision is strongly recommended for this step.
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Paint the outside of the ball like a globe with continents and oceans. Sketch the continents in pencil and paint them with green acrylic paint . Then, paint the leftover outside portions of the ball with blue acrylic paint to represent the ocean. Let the globe dry completely before moving on to the next step. -
Draw the layers of the Earth inside the cut-out portion of the ball. Use a pencil to sketch the layers of the Earth inside the quarter that you cut out of the foam ball. Start by drawing a small circle in the very center of the ball—this is your inner core . Then, draw a slightly larger circle around the inner core—this is your outer core . Draw two more layers to take up almost the entirety of the remaining space, with a very thin line left just around the edges. These layers are your lower mantle , upper mantle , and crust , from inside to outside. [3] X Research source- Once each line has been sketched, color them in with a different paint shade for each layer.
- We recommend using yellow acrylic paint for the inner core , orange acrylic paint for the outer core , two different shades of red acrylic paint for the upper and lower mantle , and brown acrylic paint for the crust .
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Label each layer with a toothpick and a small paper tag. Cut out a small strip of paper and wrap it around one end of a toothpick. Tape the paper in place so it’s secured to the toothpick. Repeat this step to make a label for each layer (five in total). Write the name of each layer onto each piece of paper, then stick each toothpick into the foam ball so that each layer is properly labeled.- Alternatively, write the labels directly on the ball.
EXPERT TIPMath and Science InstructorJessie Antonellis-John is a Math and Science Instructor who teaches at Southwestern Oregon Community College. With over 10 years of experience, she specializes in curriculum development. Jessie earned her PhD in Teaching & Teacher Education from the University of Arizona, her Master of Education from Western Governors University, and her BS in Astrophysics from Mount Holyoke College. She’s also co-authored several peer-reviewed journal articles in professional publications.Demonstrate Earth's layers using chocolates with different textures. Making Earth layers with chocolate is fun and teaches about states of matter! Different chocolate textures represent the rocky mantle, liquid outer core, and solid inner core. Cutting it open shows the inside structure in a tasty way!
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Go for extra credit by writing a story or report about the Earth’s layers. Put some extra effort into your project by adding a written component to present alongside your 3D Earth model. Create a visual infographic or write a brief report with interesting facts about each layer of the Earth. Or, write a fantasy story about what it would be like to travel to the center of the Earth. Incorporate scientifically accurate facts about what it would be like to journey through each layer. Here’s some info about each layer of the Earth to get you started:- There are two types of crust on the Earth: oceanic and continental. Looking at your model, you can see that one part of the crust contains the oceans, and one contains the continents. [4] X Research source
- The mantle is the largest layer, making up about 84% of the Earth’s volume. This layer is mostly solid but behaves like a viscous fluid, the movement of which is responsible for the motion of tectonic plates (aka earthquakes). [5] X Research source
- The Earth’s core is made up of two layers: the outer and inner. The outer core is liquid and made up of about 80% iron, and it’s thought to contribute to the magnetic field of the Earth. The inner core also contains multiple heavy elements but is completely solid. [6] X Research source
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Make your own play dough . Combine 2 cups (280g) flour, 1 cup (273 g) coarse sea salt, 4 tsp (13 g) cream of tartar, 2 tablespoons (30 mL) vegetable oil, and 2 cups (470 mL) water in a bowl until there are no lumps. With parent supervision, add the mixture to a pot and heat on low, stirring constantly until the dough starts to pull away from the sides of the pot. [7] X Research source
- Remove the mixture from heat and let it cool to room temperature, then knead the dough for 1-2 minutes.
- Separate the dough into seven balls: two small golf-ball-sized balls, two medium balls, and three larger balls.
- Add food coloring
to each ball according to the list below and knead until the color is fully incorporated.
- Small balls: One green and one red.
- Medium-sized balls: One orange and one brown.
- Large balls: Two with varying shades of yellow, one blue.
- If you’d prefer to purchase store-bought sculpting clay or Play-Doh , you can skip this step and instead purchase tubs of red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and brown clay or dough.
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Wrap the orange dough around the red ball. Take the small-sized red ball (which represents the inner core ) and roll it between your palms until spherical. Take the orange ball (your outer core ) and flatten it slightly, then wrap it fully around the red ball until you can’t see the red layer underneath.
- Be careful not to smush the red ball while wrapping it. You want the entire model to remain relatively spherical to resemble the shape of the Earth.
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Wrap each yellow dough around the orange sphere. The next layer of the Earth is the mantle, which is composed of two sub-layers: the upper mantle and the lower mantle . Take one of the yellow balls and flatten it slightly, then wrap it around the orange ball, just like you wrapped the orange dough around the red ball in the previous step. Repeat with the second yellow ball. [8] X Research source
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Flatten and wrap the brown layer around the existing sphere. The brown dough will be used to represent the crust , which is by far the thinnest layer of the Earth. Roll out the brown dough until it is quite thin. Then, wrap it around the dough ball as you did with the previous layers. Make sure to pinch all of the edges of the brown dough together so they become one layer covering the entire sphere.
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Decorate the “Earth” with a blue-clay ocean and green-clay continents. Roll out the blue dough and wrap it in a thin layer around your sphere—this will be the final layer added to the model. Shape small pieces of green dough into approximations of the continents, then press them into the ocean in the rough locations of where they belong on a real-life globe. [9] X Research source
- Scientifically, the ocean and continents are part of the “crust” layer, so they don’t count as their own individual layers.
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Use a piece of floss to slice the ball in half. Place the ball on a table and position the floss along the centerline of the sphere—imagine where the equator would be and place the floss there. Gently push the floss through the dough to cut the ball in half.- Each of the two halves should show you a clear cross-section of the five layers of the Earth, plus the oceans and the continents.
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Label each layer with a toothpick and a piece of paper. Make small labels for each layer by wrapping a small piece of paper around a toothpick. Tape each piece of paper to secure it to its toothpick, then neatly write the name of each layer on each toothpick: crust , upper mantle , lower mantle , outer core , and inner core . [10] X Research source- Place one of the halves of your “Earth” on its side so the layers are facing toward the ceiling, then stick the toothpicks into their corresponding layer.
- Because you have 2 halves of the Earth, you can use 1 half with the layers labeled and exposed and present the other half with the ocean and continents face up as a “view from the top.”
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Go the extra mile by writing a story or interesting facts about the Earth’s layers. If you want to really wow your teacher, add an extra element to your project. Look up facts about the composition and thickness of each layer, as well as the density and temperature present, and write up a small report or make an infographic to include with your 3D model. Or, write a creative story about traveling to the center of the Earth—start from the crust and describe what your journey would be like through each layer (with scientific accuracy). Here are some facts about the Earth’s layers to get you started:- The crust is interesting because there are two types of crust: oceanic and continental. This is easily seen by looking at the model and seeing that the crust contains both the oceans and the continents. [11] X Research source
- The mantle takes up about 84% of the Earth’s volume. The mantle is mostly solid but acts like a viscous fluid. Movement within the mantle is responsible for the motion of tectonic plates. [12] X Research source
- The outer core is liquid and is estimated to be 80% iron. It spins faster than the rotation of the planet and is thought to contribute to the magnetic field of the Earth. [13] X Research source
- The inner core is also composed mostly of iron and nickel, with potentially heavier elements such as gold, platinum, and silver present. Because of the massively high pressure the inner core experiences, it is solid. [14] X Research source
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Use a compass to draw five circles of various sizes on different colors of construction paper. Make the inner core white, the outer core blue, the upper mantle orange, the lower mantle red, and the crust brown. Use a geometric compass or circular stencils to make shapes according to the following approximate dimensions: [15] X Research source
- Inner core : diameter of 2 inches (51 mm)
- Outer core : diameter of 4 inches (100 mm)
- Lower mantle : diameter of 7 inches (180 mm)
- Upper mantle : diameter of 8 inches (200 mm)
- Crust : diameter of 8.5 inches (220 mm)
- These dimensions are just suggestions; you can make the circles any size you would like as long as you make the mantle the largest layer and the crust the thinnest layer. [16] X Research source
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Cut out each layer and stack them on top of one another. Once you have drawn the circles, take a pair of scissors and carefully cut each circle out of construction paper . Try to cut as close to the drawn line as possible to make sure each layer is circular. Stack the layers from smallest to largest so you can clearly see the various layers on top of each other. [17] X Research source
- Place the brown crust down first, then place the red mantle on top, the orange mantle next, then the blue outer core, followed by the white inner core.
- Use the glue stick to glue each layer down.
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Glue the stack onto a poster board and label each layer. Glue the 5-layer Earth model to a larger piece of poster board or cardboard. Make five labels out of small slips of paper and glue them down next to the corresponding layer: crust , upper mantle , lower mantle , outer core , and inner core . [18] X Research source- Write down interesting facts about each layer. Add information about the composition of the layer, the average temperatures, and any special features that each layer has. Try to relate your interesting facts to discussions that you may have had during class.
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Add a written component to your project to add more of a “wow” factor. Put your best foot forward (and maybe get some extra credit) by writing an infographic, report , or short story to go along with your Earth diagram. Type up, handwrite, or draw your piece, and include interesting facts about each of the Earth’s layers. Alternatively, make up a fictional story about what it would be like to travel from the Earth’s crust to its core. Just make sure to make your story reasonably realistic so that it demonstrates your knowledge of the Earth’s layers. Here are some facts about each layer of the Earth to get started:- The Earth’s crust is made up of two parts: the oceanic and the continental. [19] X Research source
- The Earth’s mantle accounts for about 84% of the Earth’s volume, which is why it’s separated into two layers (upper and lower). The mantle is mostly solid but acts like a viscous fluid. The motion of this fluid accounts for the movement of tectonic plates. [20] X Research source
- The Earth’s core is composed of the outer and inner cores. The outer core is likely at least partially responsible for the magnetic field of the Earth, and it also spins faster than the Earth itself. It’s mostly liquid, while the inner core is completely solid and composed of many heavy metals, including silver and gold. [21] X Research source
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Community Q&A
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QuestionHow could I make this with cake?Community AnswerYou could bake different colored layers of cake in small round pans and then stack them on top of each other like you would with a regular cake. You can then take toothpicks with small signs on them describing the layers of the earth and stick them through the side of the cake into each corresponding layer.
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QuestionHow do I make the flags?Community AnswerCut out some thin strips of paper. Wrap part of it around a toothpick (leave enough room to write your label on) and fasten it with tape.
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QuestionCan I do this with a normal ball?Community AnswerIf it is hollow, no, you can't, but if it is solid, you can, just paint the layers inside the ball.
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Things You'll Need
Making a Styrofoam Model of the Earth’s Layers
- One large Styrofoam ball (diameter should be 5–7 in (130–180 mm))
- Pencil
- Ruler
- Serrated knife
- Acrylic paint (green, blue, yellow, red, orange, and brown)
- Paintbrush
- Five toothpicks
- Tape
- Five small strips of paper
Making a Clay or Play-Doh Model of the Earth’s Layers
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Sculpting clay
or Play-Doh
in at least six colors, OR:
- 2 cups (280g) flour
- 1 cup (273 g) coarse sea salt
- 4 tsp (13 g) cream of tartar
- 2 tablespoons (30 mL) vegetable oil
- 2 cups (470 mL) water
- Cooking pot
- Wooden spoon
- Food coloring : yellow, orange, red, brown, green, and blue (If you don't have a specific color feel free to use what you have)
- Floss or thin string
Making a Paper Model of the Earth’s Layers
- 5 pieces of different colored (brown, orange, red, blue, and white) construction paper
- Geometric compass or circle stencils of 5 different sizes
- Glue stick
- Scissors
- Small slips of white paper or labels
- A large poster board .
References
- ↑ https://youtu.be/e1V8iyyLY5U?t=120
- ↑ https://youtu.be/e1V8iyyLY5U?t=241
- ↑ https://www.space.com/17777-what-is-earth-made-of.html
- ↑ https://www.gsi.ie/en-ie/education/our-planet-earth/Pages/The-Earth-structure.aspx
- ↑ http://www.universetoday.com/61200/earths-layers/#
- ↑ https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/core/
- ↑ http://www.education.com/activity/article/layers-of-the-earth-project/
- ↑ https://www.coolkidfacts.com/how-to-make-a-model-of-the-earths-layers/
- ↑ http://www.education.com/activity/article/layers-of-the-earth-project/
- ↑ https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/resource-library-earth-structure/
- ↑ https://www.gsi.ie/en-ie/education/our-planet-earth/Pages/The-Earth-structure.aspx
- ↑ http://www.universetoday.com/61200/earths-layers/#
- ↑ https://new.nsf.gov/news/earths-core-spins-faster-earth
- ↑ https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/core/
- ↑ https://www.weirdunsocializedhomeschoolers.com/step-by-step-model-of-earths-layers/
- ↑ http://www.forbes.com/sites/trevornace/2016/01/16/layers-of-the-earth-lies-beneath-earths-crust/#c1e6ddb58e6d
- ↑ https://www.weirdunsocializedhomeschoolers.com/step-by-step-model-of-earths-layers/
- ↑ https://manoa.hawaii.edu/exploringourfluidearth/physical/ocean-floor/layers-earth
- ↑ https://www.gsi.ie/en-ie/education/our-planet-earth/Pages/The-Earth-structure.aspx
- ↑ http://www.universetoday.com/61200/earths-layers/#
- ↑ https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/core/
About This Article
Article Summary
X
You can make a school project on the layers of the earth using either paper or styrofoam to make a model. To make a paper model, you’ll need construction paper of different colors so you can cut out 5 circles of varying sizes. Once you cut out each layer, you can stack them from smallest to largest to illustrate each layer. Then, glue the 5 layers to a larger poster board and label them. To make a styrofoam model, you’ll need to cut a quarter out of a foam sphere with a knife. Then, you can paint the outside of the sphere with the continents and ocean, and use a pencil to sketch the layers inside the quarter that was cut out. Color the layers with different paint colors so you can see them and label each of them with a toothpick so they’re easily identifiable. For tips about how to include interesting facts about each layer, keep reading!
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- "This website is amazing for all types of things! I made the styrofoam ball and it worked amazingly! If any of your children are studying the layers of the earth and need a project, then I definitely recommend all of them, especially the styrofoam ball." ..." more
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"This website is amazing for all types of things! I made the styrofoam ball and it worked amazingly! If any of your children are studying the layers of the earth and need a project, then I definitely recommend all of them, especially the styrofoam ball."
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"This was very helpful, and a great resource to use when making my child's science project. I loved the tips you put in the article."
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