earth's INTERIOR

Learning Expectation

The student is expected to develop a model to illustrate how Earth's internal and surface processes operate at different spatial and temporal scales to form continental and ocean-floor features.

Disciplinary Core Ideas:

• Plate tectonics is the unifying theory that explains the past and current movements of the rocks at the Earth's surface and provides a framework for understanding its geologic history.  Plate movements are responsible for most continent and ocean-floor features and for the distribution of most rocks and minerals within Earth's crust.

• Evidence from deep probes and seismic waves, reconstructions of historical changes in Earth’s surface and its magnetic field, and an understanding of physical and chemical processes lead to a model of Earth with a hot but solid inner core, a liquid outer core, a solid mantle and crust. Motions of the mantle and its plates occur primarily through thermal convection, which involves the cycling of matter due to the outward flow of energy from Earth’s interior and gravitational movement of denser materials toward the interior

Iowa Core Correlation:

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. 

HS-ESS2-1: Develop a model to illustrate how Earth’s internal and surface processes operate at different spatial and temporal scales to form continental and ocean-floor features.

HS-ESS2-3: Develop a model based on evidence of Earth’s interior to describe the cycling of matter by thermal convection.

MOES 66: Read-Lesson 5.1

MOES 67: View-Lesson 5.1

MOES 68: Earth's Core and Magnetic Field

MOES 69:  Science Literacy

MOES 70: Read/View-Lesson 5.3

MOES 71:  Read-Lesson 5.4

MOES 72:  Seismic Waves and Earth's Structure

MOES 73:  Earth's Interior

MOES 74: Seafloor Spreading

MOES 75: Plate Boundaries and Landforms

MOES 76: Plate Tectonics

MOES 77: Volcanoes, Earthquakes and Mountains

MOES 78: Dynamic Earth Interactive

MOES 79:  Main Ideas

MOES 80: ACT Prep-Earth’s Layers and Seismic Waves

MOES 81: ACT Prep-Flood Basalt Plateaus

MOES 82: Jeopardy

Objectives:

(a.) Explain and model how seismic waves are used to learn about Earth's interior.

(b.) Describe and model the interior layers of the Earth and summarize how these layers formed.

(c.) Explain the role that Earth's core has in generating the magnetic field, producing heat and causing geologic activity.

Links/Sources:

• Claim: Can seismic waves allow scientists to study the interior of the Earth?

• Tracking Seismic Waves

Objectives:

(d.)  Explain how sea-floor spreading works and analyze evidence that confirms it occurs. 

Links/Sources:

• Interactive Investigation:  How Old is the Atlantic Ocean?

• Seismic Shakeup

Objectives:

(e.) Define continental drift and provide evidence that it occurs. 

Links/Sources:

• Continental Drift

Objectives:

(f.) Describe the theory of plate tectonics and the role plate tectonic activity has on Earth's surface and the carbon cycle.

(g.) Describe how convergent, divergent and transform faults cause geologic activity and summarize how landforms are created by geologic processes.

(h.) Identify and explain where plate tectonic activity occurs. 

(i.) Determine the epicenter of an earthquake.

Links:

• Plate Tectonic Animations

• Nat Geo-Forces of Nature