Science - Caves

Below you will find many resources for teaching about caves.

Note: Parents are encouraged to watch all videos prior to planning a lesson or showing them to their children.  This is to help parents anticipate and research questions their student may have ahead of time, as well as to be sure that the video is appropriate for your child.  These are not Christian Videos (National Geographic), and because they are not, they say things like "These caves were formed fifty billion years ago."  You may wish to go into a Bible lesson along with these videos, in order to show your child that the Bible says one thing, and common science says another, and explain that sometimes man has the tendency to get things wrong.

Cave Playlist

Cave Links

Lava Beds National Monument - Northern California - Information about lava tube caves

Wiki Caves - A wide variety of information on caves and animals that inhabit them

Discover Caves - A very short page with basic cave information

How-Stuff-Works - Caves - A page with some good vocabulary on caves

Caves.org - A basic page with links to a variety of cave resources including grottos (cave clubs).

Books About Caves

(Note: The below links will take you to these books on Amazon.com.  These are not a free resource.  Some of these books will cost you almost $50.00 new, but you can often find them used for around $5 plus a few dollars shipping).

These are a great resource to order ahead of time when planning on teaching your student all about caves.  The first book on the list is one that I own and love.

I live a short distance from the Lava Beds National Monument in Northern California.  Naturally, all children in the surrounding Southern Oregon and Northern California area learn about caves and take field trips to these 600+ natural lava tubes.

Ideas for teaching about caves (depending on age of student):

• Watch cave videos on playlist above.
• Research caves on the internet via the links above.
• Student does a small or large report on one or more of the following about caves: where they're at, how they're formed, the different types, history of how caves have been used, cave vocabulary, mineral makeup of different types of caves.
• Join a local grotto (caving club) and take your student on some caving adventures in your area.
• Take a field trip to a guided tour cave in your area.
• Find some cave coloring pages online for your younger children to color.
• Discuss and research what types of animals and insects live in caves.
• Read books about caves.
• Discuss the scientists and explorers who study caves, and what type of lives they might lead.
• Discuss caving safety (how to go caving safely), example: what to bring, what to wear, tell people where you're going beforehand, etc.

With all of the possibilities, this can be a one time project, a week long project, or even a month long learning experience, depending on how far you want to take it.  This is also a topic that children will probably not tire of, and can be revisited at different stages of your student's learning development in more or less depth.

Have your own caving resources?  Share them below!

Blessings!