One of the crown jewels of the club is our program for making earth science teaching sets for schools. Who better to create “jewels” than a gem and mineral society? The idea is that when one of the HGMS members gives a talk at a school, the member can use a collection of rocks, minerals, or fossils and LEAVE it behind! If an HGMS member gives such a talk on one or two sets at a school, the set or sets on which the member talks will be left behind with the teacher.

HGMS is the grateful recipient of a grant to assist in the creation of these sets. ConocoPhillips provides $2,500 each year toward buying boxes and hard-to-find items for the sets. Club members provide the expertise, labor, and about ¾ of the specimens.

Each set includes a listing of the minerals or fossils included in the set and a feedback questionnaire to be completed by the teacher. The completed questionnaire should be mailed to HGMS, and we in turn will forward it to ConocoPhillips so they can see that their donation is going to good use.

Click on the various components of a a set to see those items. (Acrobat Reader is necessary for opening PDF files.)

for details of the School Daze Earth Science program!

for information about our show September 26, 27, and 28, 2008.

* Free Shark's Tooth Material:
Free shark tooth concentrate is available from the PCS Phosphate plant in North Carolina. Send your request on your school letterhead and give a school address suitable for UPS.

The contact person for the shark tooth concentrate is Curtis Ormond, Public Affairs, PCS Phosphate. His telephone number is 252-322-8296, and his e-mail address is cormond@pcsphosphate.com. You can also contact him by mail at
Curtis Ormond, PCS Phosphate, P.O. Box 48, 1530 NC Hwy. 36 South, Aurora, NC 27806.