HS-ESS1-5

SCUSD NGSS Curriculum Guide


 * HS-ESS1-5: ** **Evaluate evidence of the past and current movements of continental and oceanic crust and the theory of plate tectonics to explain the ages of crustal rocks.** [Clarification Statement: Emphasis is on the ability of plate tectonics to explain the ages of crustal rocks. Examples include evidence of the ages oceanic crust increasing with distance from mid-ocean ridges (a result of plate spreading) and the ages of North American continental crust increasing with distance away from a central ancient core (a result of past plate interactions).]

Science Background for the Teacher:
The Earth is made up of plates that contain both continents and oceans. These plates are moving at different rates. They collide, separate & move past each other. The evidence can be found at plate boundaries; this includes mountains, volcanoes, earthquakes, fossils, rocks, ancient glaciers & similar climate data.

Key Vocabulary:

 * fossils || rocks || sea floor || ridge || magma ||
 * continental drift || convection currents || tectonic plates || tectonic forces || magnetic reversals ||
 * hot spots || asthenosphere || lithosphere || oceanic crust || continental crust ||
 * trench || fracture zone || plate tectonics || subduction zones || sea floor spreading ||
 * convergent || divergent || transform || mid-oceanic ridge || paleomagnatisim ||
 * subduction zone || rift || slab pull || ridge push || mantle plumes ||
 * mesosphere || inner core || outer core || thermal energy ||  ||

Possible Assessments (formative and/or summative):
comparing different ridge data to analyze plate movement

Key Student Activity:
hot spot activity- measure the distance between islands and track rock age to show plate movement rock dating/paleomagnatisim using data sets and piloting on map to show age difference and patterns Pangaea Puzzle

Key Teacher Demo/Activity:
on-line animation (Tayna Atwater)

Common Student Misconceptions:
All mountains are not volcanoes.

Things to Avoid/Correct:
Multiple pieces of evidence and cause of movement. The Earth is 4.6 billion years old

====Other Resources (text, video, simulations, activities, models, etc..): ====

USGS, National Geographic & IRIS websites