Jonathan started his lesson by reviewing a web site which discusses all of the causes of weathering of rock. Jonathan has already discussed earthquakes and volcanos. The topic today was about how ice jams, flash floods and sandstorms can affect the weathering of rock. Jonathan read from different web sites. He developed a drawing to depict two of the subjects that we discussed. Jonathan learned the Arabic word Haboob, which means sand storm. He developed an excellent drawing and labeled it with the causes of the sandstorm, showing the cumulonimbus cloud and the warm air rising, creating an updraft which lifts the sand into the air. He read about various reports of sandstorms rising anywhere from 50 feet into the air to 1000 feet into the air. Jonathan wanted to study the impact of the sandstorm on life. He reviewed pictures of the sandstorm moving into a town in places like Arizona and New Mexico. Jonathan also heard me tell him about the great "Dust Bowl" period in the 1930's in America where the drought was so great and the crops were all dead from lack of water. Jonathan then studied flash floods. We discussed the presence of levees on the sides of the Mississippi which were meant to hold back the flooding of the river when the waters rise due to a hurricane. We discussed the incident of Hurricane Katrina where the levees did not hold and much water flooded the city of New Orleans which is below sea level. Jonathan told me that he was born during Hurricane Sandy. He was aware of the flooding and sand damage that took place during this natural disaster. We discussed the causes of flash floods. Jonathan then made an outstanding picture of a house in a flood. He showed the house more than half under water and the presence of a boat being used for transportation. Jonathan made tiny flash cards to add onto his picture for discussion. He wrote about levees, flash floods, and floods. We discussed the concept of hail. Jonathan was on a web site with me showing the sizes of hail stones. The information also included the fact that hailstones do not get larger by going above the thunder cloud, but rather being tossed within it. The hail stone can move up and down, but it can also move from side to side. The hailstone will finally drop when it is heavier than the updrafts. The largest hailstones witnessed were the size of large grapefruits. There was also a statistic of 8 inches in diameter. Jonathan learned the meaning of the vocabulary word diameter. Jonathan was very immersed in this entire lesson.