ACTIVITY: COOKIE MINING
School is back in session across most of Nevada. Incorporating mining lessons at home and in the classroom is a great way to teach students (and adults) about Nevada’s original STEM industry, while providing information about the wide variety of career opportunities mining offers. Learn about one of those activities today: Cookie Mining.
Ages:
4th– 5th grade (activity can be tweaked as needed for other age groups)
Supplies Needed:
Pencil, grid paper, flat toothpicks, round toothpicks, paperclips, Mother’s chocolate chip cookies, Chips Ahoy cookies, Chips Ahoy Deluxe cookies.
What Students Will Learn:
Cookie mining is a fun and simple way to introduce students to the mining process, industry economics, and the importance of land reclamation. Students will be given a budget to spend on land, equipment, and time spent mining. Players will be rewarded for successfully mining chocolate chips out of their cookie, while also ensuring cookie crumbs are back inside the playing area to avoid fines.
Activity Instructions:
Players start with a $19 budget to own and operate their very own mine. They will need to select a type of cookie to mine (Mother’s $3, Chips Ahoy $5, Chips Ahoy Deluxe $7) and a piece of mining equipment (flat toothpick $2, round toothpick $4, paper clip $6).
Players will then take a piece of grid paper and circle the outline of their cookie with a pencil. From there, players will have up to five minutes ($1 per minute) to mine chocolate chips out of their cookie. Chips must be whole, but half pieces can be combined to count as one chip. Chips are valued at $2 each.
Once the cookie has been fully mined, players must use their tools (no hands allowed) to place the cookie crumbs back inside the circle. Every square outside of the players circle with crumbs on it costs $1. The player with the most money at the end of the game wins.
And of course, all players should enjoy a cookie after a hard day of work.