The next time you have a field trip planned and are in the Arkansas driving distance you should head to Crater of Diamonds State Park. Located near Murfreesboro, Arkansas the mine will let you mine all day and keep any gemstones you find for $4 for 6-12 and $7 for adults. That is a bargain to get through to any student in Geology. If you tell them to bring a small garden shovel then you don’t have to rent any equipment either. The crater is thought to be formed by a deep eruption that spread ejecta over the crater about 100million years ago. Once the ejecta turned green and started to wear away in the elements the diamonds–being more substantial–stayed behind creating a gemstone rich environment. There are some people that go after it rains and walk along the plowed fields looking for the glint of a freshly uncovered gem.

There have been impressive finds at the park and a few that were not so impressive however any gem found at the park is worth more that one of similar weight and quality anywhere else because of the story and location. Local grown diamonds are said to fetch prices that sometimes double their foreign counterparts. While the park does not allow the use of heavy machinery on the park they do plow the soil regularly so the ground is easily searched through.

Think of the lessons that you could get to click on a students level when you mention the word diamond or gemstone the next lesson. Even if they don’t find anything spectacular they can always say that they went looking for diamonds in the USA’s only diamond mine.

Just keep in mind, if you find a big one, you may want to invest in ADT home security to protect it!