NOAA
Sediments
Calcareous ooze ... what an interesting name! The 15th installment of a 23-part NOAA Enrichment in Marine sciences and Oceanography (NEMO) program focuses on sediments found on the ocean floor. After viewing the slideshow lecture,...
Environment Agency - Abu Dhabi
Sedimentation
Starting with a presentation, pupils learn about how sedimentary rocks form. They then create their own sedimentation bottle to observe the process.
Polar Trec
What Can We Learn from Sediments?
Varve: a deposit of cyclical sediments that help scientists determine historical climates. Individuals analyze the topography of a region and then study varve datasets from the same area. Using this information, they determine the...
Curated OER
Fossil Fuels (Part I), The Geology of Oil
Junior geologists work through three mini-lessons that familiarize them with the formation and location of fossil fuels. Part one involves reading about petroleum and where it comes from via a thorough set of handouts. A lab activity...
Curated OER
Fossil Fuels (Part III), The Geology of Coal
Do not overlook this set of lessons just because your school does not have a data analysis system. There is plenty of material here to administer a complete mini unit on the formation, distribution, and properties of coal. Since it...
Curated OER
Sedimentation Lab Activity
Learners predict how sediments in a water column will settle. In this earth science lesson, students examine the layers of sedimentation. Learners are given sediments to place into a column of water and observe how they settle....
NOAA
Mud is Mud...or is it?
We know that the type of soil varies by location, but does the seafloor sediment also vary, or is it all the same? Scholars compare photos of the seafloor from two different locations: the Savannah Scarp and the Charleston Bump. Through...
Curated OER
Coasts and Reefs: Shallow Marine Processes
A more thorough presentation on coastal systems would be difficult to find! Detailed diagrams illuminate the offshore, shoreface, foreshore, and backshore zones of beach. The sources and movement of sediments along the coastline are...
Curated OER
Erosion Patterns
Students explore erosion when there are multiple types of sediments. They view a soil separation demonstration jar before and after agitation to determine how and why the layers settled. In addition, they conduct experiments with a river...
Curated OER
Sediment Sleuths
Are you looking for a good, solid lesson on sedimentary rocks? This one, produced by the Illinois State Museum, is just such a lesson. Middle schoolers identify common rocks and minerals by analyzing sediments from local water sources....
Curated OER
Permeability and Porosity of Somerset County Sediments
Middle schoolers predict and test the permeability and porosity of sediments in Somerset County, New Jersey. They discuss what how porous they think the sediment of HMS grounds is and why. Students walk around the HMS campus and collect...
NOAA
Ocean Geologic Features
Sediment samples from the ocean bottoms tell scientists about climate change, pollution, and changes in erosion for the area. Groups of learners focus on sediments and their movement through water. During a hands-on activity, they...
Curated OER
The Marvels of Mud
Young scientists roll up their sleeves and get a little dirty in this three-day earth science investigation. Following the scientific method, children monitor the growth of algae in pond water samples in order to determine the role that...
Curated OER
A "Sedimental" Journey-Sediment Collection
Students are asked how they would gather a sample of sediment from a lake, stream, river, pond, or swamp. They discuss safety concerns involving sample collections. Students are instructed to stay out of the water and to be careful not...
It's About Time
Paleoclimates
How do scientists know what the Earth was like in the past? This second installment of a six-part series focuses on paleoclimates and provides an overview of how geologists determine information about past climates using fossil pollen,...
Purdue University
Discovering the Watershed
Human impact on watersheds can make or break an ecosystem. Learners use a game to learn about the impact human choices have on water quality and the organisms that depend on it. The activity includes a game board and game cards that tell...
Curated OER
Let the River Run
Pupils examine deposits found in a river in this science lesson. They collect data of sediment deposit found in the Mississippi river, then graph and analyze their data using the TI.
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Weighing the Evidence for a Mass Extinction: Part 1 – In the Ocean
Extinction events have happen throughout geologic history, but only five mass extinctions occurred over the last 4.5 billion years. Scholars view fossils from a layer of sediment during an extinction event and observe patterns to draw...
Towson University
Looking Backwards, Looking Forward
How do scientists know what Earth's climate was like millions of years ago? Young environmental scholars discover how researchers used proxy data to determine the conditions present before written record. Grouped pupils gain experience...
Curated OER
Soil Composition
Students examine soil. In this soil composition lesson students participate in soil sedimentation and filtration activities. The students discuss what non-living and living things are in soil and why it is so important.
Curated OER
Geography: examining the Glacial Features of Cape Cod
Students examine satellite images of the glacial features of Cape Cod. They analyze where human activity is located in terms of those features. Students make models of the features, including kettle holes. They also use contour maps...
Curated OER
Glaciers Worksheet #1
The landscape impacted by glacier activity is drawn at the top of this worksheet. Ten multiple choice questions follow, some relating to the diagram, and some about the quality of soil left by glaciation. It is not often that you come...
Curated OER
Sediment Study
Eighth graders study sediment and the factors that effect its distribution. In this sediment study lesson students complete a lab activity on sediment distribution.
Curated OER
Biocomplexity Lab Activity: Permeability
Students identify how water moves through materials such as rocks or sand. Students measure the permeability of water through glass spheres to represent the movement of water in sand, an aquifer, or another sediment. During the...