Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Planning for and Surviving Earthquakes

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students work in small groups to explore the FEMA for Kids site. They take the role of FEMA officials. Student list three items they may need to survive an earthquake. They complete a worksheet and discuss their results with the rest of...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Effects Of Earthquakes

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students investigate the concept of how earthquakes occur and the after effects of how they effect landforms. They conduct research it using a variety of resources and measure the varying intensities of how earthquakes effect the...
Lesson Plan
Science Matters

Wattsville and Mercalli Booklet

For Teachers 6th Standards
There has been an earthquake! Can you listen to the description of damage given by callers in order to determine the epicenter? The 11th of 20 lessons has pupils read a script of one emergency caller. The class records the information on...
Interactive
Curated OER

Breaking News English: Earthquake in Pakistan

For Students 5th - 10th
In this earthquake in Pakistan worksheet, students read the article, answer true and false questions, complete synonym matching, complete phrase matching, complete a gap fill, answer short answer questions, answer discussion questions,...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Earthquakes

For Teachers 3rd - 6th
Students discuss a natural disaster. In this earthquakes research lesson, students discover why earthquakes happen, what happens after an earthquake, and what to do during an earthquake. They discuss some information as a class and work...
Lesson Plan
Science Matters

Richter Scale

For Teachers 6th Standards
The 12th lesson in a series of 20 opens with a demonstration of exponential functions using pasta. This concept is connected to the Richter Scale, which is also an exponential function. Scholars compare the exponential scale that...
Lesson Plan
Science Matters

Finding the Epicenter

For Teachers 6th Standards
The epicenter is the point on the ground above the initial point of rupture. The 10th instructional activity in a series of 20 encourages scholars to learn to triangulate the epicenter of an earthquake based on the arrival times of...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Earthquake Patterns

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students identify and interpret the cyclical nature of the Parkfield, California earthquakes. They then investigate and graph earthquake occurrences on the Mojave segment of the San Andreas fault and then on the Hayward fault in order to...
Worksheet
Curated OER

USGS Seismometer

For Students 5th - 8th
A large black-line diagram of a seismometer fills this page. It is not a worksheet, but rather an explanation of how a seismometer works. You could make a transparency of it or display it via a video screen when teaching about...
Worksheet
Curated OER

Build a Seismograph

For Students 8th - 10th
For this seismograph worksheet, 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 questions about...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Earth Moves Under My Feet

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students study earthquakes, monitor seismic activity using the Web, and plot real-time activity. They examine movement of the Earth's tectonic plates. They create an earthquake preparedness project.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Shake, Rattle and Roll

For Teachers 6th
Sixth graders explore the causes and effects of earthquakes. They also collect and analyze data in graphs. They also use the Internet to research earthquakes
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Get Ready to Rumble

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Students use the Internet to examine earthquakes. They discover the theory of tectonic plates and analyze faults throughout the world. They also examine the science of seismology to explain how earthquakes are measured.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Model of a Normal Fault

For Teachers 4th - 12th
Young scholars understand what a normal fault is and why it causes an Earthquake.  In this normal fault lesson, students create a model of a normal fault. 
Lesson Plan
Science Matters

Earth Shaking Events

For Teachers 6th Standards
The world's largest measured earthquake happened in 1960 in Chile, reaching a terrifying 9.5 magnitude on the Richter Scale. The second lesson in the 20-part series introduces earthquakes and fault lines. Scholars map where previous...
Activity
DiscoverE

Shake It Up with Seismographs

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Shake up your lessons on earthquakes. A simple seismograph lets scholars record "earthquakes" in the classroom. These earthquakes occur when classmates drop balls from different heights. Young scientists measure these with seismographs...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Measure for Measure

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Young mathematicians work to recognize the relationship between their scale models of the Joides research vessel and the real vessel. They calculate the relationships between various parts of the ship using fractions, ratios, and...
Activity
DiscoverE

Bridges, Buildings and Beyond Activity Packet: Grades 6-8

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Pour a solid foundation of engineering into the minds of future engineers. Scholars take part in three activities to learn about civil engineering. They build a model of a cable-stayed bridge, conduct an experiment to see the effects of...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Making Waves: A Study of Earthquakes and Tsunami

For Teachers 10th - 12th
Students examine plate tectonics and the causative effect of earthquakes.  In this tectonics lesson students differentiate between the types of energy waves that cause earthquakes and tsunamis and how waves travel at different...
Interactive
PhET

Wave on a String

For Students 6th - Higher Ed Standards
The sound waves of thunder are made when lightning very quickly heats the air surrounding it, expanding faster than the speed of sound. Learners explore waves through their own movement of string or set waves to constantly oscillate....
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Plate Tectonic Cycle

For Teachers 4th - 8th
Learners explore the Earth's movements by completing worksheets. In this plate tectonics lesson, students define such natural disasters as volcanoes, earthquakes, tsunamis and mudslides and discuss their connections to plate tectonics....
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Virtual Earthquake

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Learners visit a website that features online interactive geology and biology simulations. They observe and estimate the amplitude of the largest wave and transfer the information to a nomogram. Based on the nomogram students will...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

In Harm's Way: Natural Disasters in My Community

For Teachers 11th
Eleventh graders research and debate natural disasters that have occurred in their community. They assess whether these natural disasters were avoidable or were accidents. They investigate the extent of insurance coverage for disasters.
Worksheet
Curated OER

The World’s Longest Bridge

For Students 5th - 9th
In this comprehension worksheet, students read a story and answer the six multiple choice questions that follow. They identify the longest bridge in the world, what happened during construction, and what possible dangers to the bridge...