The early 20th-century geologist Alfred Wegener was, in his lifetime, viewed as a crackpot. The maverick scientist pioneered the theory of continental drift—which, when it was accepted into the scientific canon in the 1950s, filled in the blanks geologists had been curious about for years.

This Sunday, we’re holding a Plate Tectonics class for kids. Children love science, and what better way to ignite their curiosity than with some Bill Nye/Mr. Wizard-style experiments and talk of volcanoes and fossils?

Speaking of Mr. Nye, his website is noisy but the “home demos” section has some great earth-science experiments for kids.

[Plate Tectonics: Moving Continents: 01/22/06]