Heat and Energy in the Earth System

Students will plan and conduct a variety of investigations to explore the properties of particulate matter and how energy flows into and out of systems as observed in macroscopic and global phenomena. Through hands-on inquiry activities, students will observe everyday phenomena -pinwheels, steam engines, and the floating and sinking of matter due to differences in density.

Computer simulations will allow students to further explore the relationship between particle motion and energy, and how energy transfers through heat in microscopic systems to create macroscopic phenomena. Students will be expected to demonstrate understanding by planning and conducting an investigation using video technology to recreate observable convection currents. A second and third set of inquiry rotations will allow students to observe how energy is converted and transferred into different forms of kinetic and potential energy, while being conserved. Then, students will again plan, design, and conduct “engines” that demonstrate energy conversions through the motion of vehicles, such as rotary boats, steam engines, and rockets.

Lastly, students will develop a scale model of Earth’s interior to describe and explain how Earth’s tectonic plate movement is driven by mantle convection (Cause and Effect, Systems and Models, Stability and Change). Students will build the model by analyzing data, evaluating evidence and applying the DCI concepts learned at a microscopic scale to help explain how thermal convection can cause tectonic movement at a macroscopic scale.