Year 7 have been learning about the topics Separating Mixtures & Rocks & minerals in Science during Term 4.

In particular, the process of crystallisation as a separation technique and a natural phenomenon has been explored. 

Crystallisation is the process by which the atoms of a substance arrange themselves in well-defined three-dimensional lattices. The most practical and common use of crystallisation as a separation process occurs during salt making. 

Crystallisation has application in X-ray crystallography and is also the cause of the intricate patterns seen in snowflakes! Pictured below are a half dozen copper sulfate egg-geodes grown by Year 7. 

Note, a geode is a small cavity in rock lined with crystals or other mineral matter.