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Volcanoes: Second Grade Lesson Plans and Activities
Young geologists explore volcanoes with a series of engaging geology activities. First, they learn the difference between magma and lava before coloring and labeling the parts of a volcano. During the lab, individuals watch a...
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What's Crackin' Under New Zealand
Students construct a model of the Earth using clay and oranges. In this earth science lesson, students explain the causes of earthquakes and volcanic activity. They write their findings in their science journal.
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Changes Inside Planets
Students relate meteorites to the mantle and crust of asteroids. For this planetary lesson students complete experiments to model the separation of light.
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Recent Volcanoes And Earthquakes:
Students investigate the current model for the structure of the Earth. On a world map, they mark areas where they think earthquakes and volcanoes occur and compare those areas with earthquake and volcano location patterns.
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The Volcano Factory
Students examine the process of tectonic plates and why the Mariana Arc is active with volcanoes. They create a model of the Mariana Arc out of clay.
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Landforms in a Tub
Fifth graders use common household items to build landforms and simulate weathering and erosion.
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Creating Craters
Students explore parts of an impact crater and compare and contrast craters found in Earth, the Moon, and Mars. Crater formation is modelled and the relationship of mass, velocity, and size of the projectile to the crater formation is...
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Sea Floor Spreading
Students discuss convection currents in the Earth's mantle, how they form, and how they move as well as the causes of earthquakes. Working in a group, they analyze a color coded World Earthquake Map and try to determine which direction...
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Faulty Movement
Students discover the faults throughout the Earth. They describe the different types of faults and how they are related to earthquakes. They build models of the faults.
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Modeling the Rock Cycle
Students explore the differences in sedimentary, metamorphic, and igneous rocks. They discuss the rock cycle of the different formations. Students discuss how rock is formed into different shapes. They explore, predict, and create each...
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Water, Water Everywhere
Students explore water. For this water cycle lesson, students conduct a scientific investigation that requires build a terrarium models of the earth. Students record their observations of the changes regarding water in the terrarium.
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Plate Tectonics
Students watch a video about plate tectonics. in this Earth Science lesson, students watch a video clip from Bill Nye about Continental Drift and Plate Tectonics. They make a slight crack in a hard boiled egg and manipulate the egg to...
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Volcano!-Thar She Blows!
Students describe how volcanoes are formed. They name the types of boundaries where volcanoes occur. They utilize models to illustrate the occurence of volcanoes and earthquakes along plate boundaries. They compare and constrast the...
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A Hydrothermal Adventure
Students analyze hydrothermal vents. In this hydrothermal vents instructional activity, students discover the effects of hydrothermal vents on tectonic plates. Students make model hydrothermal vents to understand how they form and operate.
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What in the World?
Eighth graders plot points of longitude and latitude on a world map. In groups, they create a model of the earth's interior and label the parts,
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My Science Box: Seafloor Spreading
Students examine the movement of plate tectonics. In this lesson on the spreading of the seafloor, students use maps and models to observe how the sea floor spreads.
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Up, Up, and Away
Students create a model to explore the water cycle. Students also perform different experiments to witness water changing from a liquid to a gas. Students are asked to if they can find ways for water to go away without pouring the...
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Island Formation
Students create models of how islands are formed by hot spots and then write a summary of their observations and of how they think their model relates to volcanic hot spots and island formation.
Science Matters
Fault Formations
The San Andreas Fault moves about two inches a year, approximately the same rate fingernails grow—crazy! The third lesson in the series allows for hands-on exploration of various fault formations. Through the use of a Popsicle stick,...
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Blast It! (Learning About Copper)
Opening with background information on copper use and mining, this activity assesses junior geologists' reading comprehension. A map activity is available, but the map is not. There is a useful set of vocabulary matching cards and a...
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Plate Tectonics: Second Grade Lesson Plans and Activities
Second graders explore convection currents and how they relate to the movement of tectonic plates. Then, young geologists reconstruct Pangaea with a worksheet and pinpoint plate boundaries on a map using locations of earthquakes and...
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Mid-Ocean Magnetism
Students investigate magnetic evidence that supports the theory of sea floor spreading.
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Hazards: Second Grade Lesson Plans and Activities
Equip learners with safety knowledge in the case of an earthquake. After coloring the places to go to get help after a quake, and label places that wouldn't be safe to go after a quake, young geologists simulate three levels of...
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Rock Solid
Students investigate the three types of material stress related to rocks. They watch a PowerPoint Presentation, view an online animation of the three types of rock stress, identify the various types of rocks, answer true or false...