Curated OER
Forces That Shape the Earth: Plate Movement
In this tectonic plate instructional activity, students learn about the movement of the plates that make up the earth's crust. They read about the Theory of Pangaea, lithosphere, divergence, convergence, and plate transformation....
Curated OER
Earth Forces
High schoolers use geological techniques such as plate tectonics, mountain building, earthquakes, and volcanoes, in order to explain the earth.
Curated OER
MAPPING THE TOPOGRAPHY OF UNKNOWN SURFACES
Students describe in words and graphic displays the elevation or depression profile of sections of Mars' Olympus Mons and/or Valles Marineris. They explain how orbiting spacecraft build up global maps one data slice at a time.
Curated OER
Earth Structure and Materials
Students explain what is meant by term nuclear radiation, describe in detail electromagnetic spectrum, differentiate between ionizing and non-ionizing radiation, understand half-life of isotopes, differentiate between processes of...
Curated OER
Idea Mapping
Students generate, share and display ideas as a group. They break into small groups to work on hand-drawn maps made up of concentric circles. they come before the group and make a similar diagram by charting each other's characteristics.
Curated OER
Map Projections: The Grapefruit Activity
Students partcipate in activities in which they examine different map projections. They discover the positives and negatives of each type. They use grapefruits to help them with the different types of map projections.
Curated OER
How Do Cartographers Find Points on a Map?
Ninth graders describe latitude and longitude and how they may be useful to find things on a map. In this cartography lesson students divide into groups and devise a coordinate system that can be used to communicate a position.
Curated OER
Rivers, Maps, and Math
Students use maps to locate and label the major rivers of North and South America. Using the internet, they identify forests, grasslands, mountain ranges and other landforms on the continents as well. They compare and contrast the...
Curated OER
The Pacific and El Niño
El Nino, and the climate changes that go along with it, are the focus of this Earth Science lesson. Learners pay particular attention to the wind patterns that are established on Earth, and look at weather maps to see how El Nino can...
Curated OER
Micro-Climate
Atmosphere aces investigate the microclimates that exist within a larger area. They use a thermometer to record the varying temperatures and identify the microclimates on a map that they have drawn. This exercise helps them to understand...
Science Matters
Ring of Fire
Over a period of 35 years, earthquakes and volcanoes combined only accounted for 1.5 percent of the deaths from natural disasters in the United States. The 15th lesson in a 20-part series connects the locations of earthquakes and...
PBS
Sea Surface Temperature, Salinity, and Density
Earth's vast ocean is full of mysteries! Science scholars discover the big-picture properties that influence its characteristics at different latitudes using a lesson from PBS's Weather and Climate series. After completing a background...
PBS
Earthquakes and Volcanoes
Earth's surface constantly changes thanks to a variety of geological forces; in fact, Australia currently moves faster than GPS technology. Scholars connect the idea of continental drift to earthquakes and volcanoes with the help of an...
US Environmental Protection Agency
Protecting Your Drinking Water
Having a clean, reliable source of drinking water is essential for any community, but in many cases this is easier said than done. Engage young environmentalists in exploring the five factors affecting vulnerability of a groundwater...
Biology Junction
Mammals
Mammals include more than 4,000 species and represent the most dominant land animals on Earth. Scholars learn about the large variety of mammals, including orders unfamiliar to most. The presentation highlights the characteristics and...
National Wildlife Federation
Go with the Flow
The quality of a watershed has a direct impact on the community it services. Learners study their own watershed using a topographical map. They recreate the watershed components using colored pencils to track the upstream and downstream...
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Finding the Crater
A mass extinction event caused by an impact usually leaves a crater. Scholars use data from 10 different sites around the world trying to determine where to look for the crater. They use data, listing the amount of various minerals to...
Curated OER
Earth's Plate Tectonics
Students identify the different layers of the Earth. In this earth science activity, students create a model of the crusts and continents. They explain how plates movement cause earthquakes and volcanoes.
Curated OER
"Potato Mountain": Reading/Understanding Topographic Maps
Students investigate how to read topographic maps. In this map reading lesson students complete a topographic map activity.
Curated OER
Reading Weather Maps
Fourth graders the symbols that are used on weather maps. They develop five day forecasts based on information they gather from weather maps in the newspaper and on the Internet.
Curated OER
Maps as Models of Earth
Eighth graders use different types of maps to find locations and surface features. In this map-reading lesson students use a compass to find direction.
Curated OER
What Makes Day and Night? The Earth's Rotation
Students discover that the Earth rotates on its axis in a cyclical fashion. They examine how this rotation results in day and night.
Curated OER
Google Earth
In this Google Earth learning exercise, students access the Google Earth website and find the latitude, longitude, and elevation for their house and school. Then they do the same for a variety of world locations. This learning exercise...
Curated OER
The Dynamic Earth
Students participate in assessments related to the layers of the Earth. They read chapters of text, answer questions, watch videos, and identify and label continents and oceans on a map. They design posters, create vocabulary cards,...