Students explore tsunami through various hands-on activities. In this earth science lesson, students explain how they are formed. They create tsunami and earthquake models in the lab to observe how they are generated.

In this seismograph instructional activity, students build a device to record the motion of a simulated earthquake. They give details of their structure and explain how it works. They present their device to the class and answer...

Fifth graders continue their investigation of the plate tectonics cycle with an exploration of the movement of Earth's crust. During the lab, young geologists conduct an experiment to discover the result of different types of...

The pre-lab portion of the lesson introduces emerging geologists to the various layers that make up Earth. After completing a sheet on the identification of the layers, class members simulate plate boundaries and their...

Young geologists begin exploring volcanoes of different structures and states: active, extinct, or dormant. During the lab, they make three models and compare different types of volcanoes, including composite, cinder cone, and...

In the pre-lab, kindergarteners mimic the movements of the eruption of a volcano and discover various volcanoes around the United States. Then, pupils sort different types of volcanic rocks in the lab before learning how volcanoes grow...

Introduce young geologists to types of volcanoes during the pre-lab. First graders explore how different liquids flow with an experiment on viscosity to simulate how different types of lava flow. Next, they learn...

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 instructional activity in a 20-part series connects the locations of...

Does increasing the pressure between two moving plates provide a stabilizing force or create more destruction? The hands-on lesson encourages exploration of strike-split fault models. The sixth lesson in a 20-part series asks...

After comparing earthquake and volcanic hazards to one another, fifth graders take a closer look at damage associated with a volcanic eruption. They then create a simulation of mudslides due to a volcanic eruption. Using different...

Sixth graders explore the damage associated with an earthquake by designing a structure that can withstand earthquake intensities on a shaker board. They then view tips for preparing for an earthquake, and what...

Bring a set of pre-lab, lab, and post-lab lesson plans on volcanoes to your earth science unit. Sixth graders explore the three types of volcanoes found on Earth, plot the specific locations of these volcanoes on a map, and...

Here is a set of pre-lab, lab, and post-lab lesson plans on plate tectonics. After completing the previous labs on volcanoes and earthquakes, sixth graders use the gained knowledge to explore plate boundaries and the movement of...

Fifth graders explore volcanoes and the rocks they produce using the Internet. The lab portion of the lesson prompts young scientists to compare and describe igneous rocks. Next, they critique a pair or more of...

This unit focuses primarily on plate tectonics and plate boundaries surrounding continents. It contains pre- and post-lab sections that walk young geologists through plate movements in order to visualize what's going on inside Earth.

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...

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...

A set of first grade geology lessons focuses on plate tectonics and movement of plate boundaries. During the pre-lab, learners experience three types of plate movement through a kinesthetic demonstration. The lab...

Examine the environmental hazards associated with volcanoes with a three-part science lesson. In the pre-lab, first graders learn that gas, landslides, ash, and lava are all hazards that come from volcanoes. They then explore...

The San Andreas Fault moves about two inches a year, approximately the same rate fingernails grow—crazy! The third instructional activity in the series allows for hands-on exploration of various fault formations. Through the use of a...

Many people think they can't observe plate tectonics, but thanks to GPS, we know that Australia moves at a rate of 2.7 inches per year, North America at 1 inches per year, and the Pacific plate at more than 3 inches per year! Scholars...

What can layers of rock teach us about the climate? Young scientists solve a mystery about who stole a cookie by applying the law of superposition. Then, they apply the same concept to solve a more difficult mystery, trying to determine...

Learners discover hazards related to volcanoes and predict the effects these hazards have on people and land. As blossoming geologists explore various volcanic eruptions, including the hazards associated with them, they...