Unit Plan
Scholastic

Scholastic: Study Jams! Science: Lithosphere, Hydrosphere, and Atmosphere

For Students 3rd - 5th
A slideshow and a short multiple-choice quiz on the rock surface of the Earth, its water, and the gas layers that surround it.
Unit Plan
American Geosciences Institute

American Geosciences Institute: Dynamic Planet

For Students 6th - 8th
Seven hands-on lessons module where students learn about our dynamic planet. These inquiry-based explorations investigate scientific models, earthquakes and seismic waves, Earth's interior, Earth movements, the lithosphere, plate...
Interactive
PurposeGames

Purpose Games: Plate Tectonics

For Students 3rd - 8th
Gamers will test their knowledge of plate tectonics with this interactive. Know your divergent plate boundaries, hot spots, trenches, lithosphere, and other trivial facts of plate tectonics.
Graphic
NASA

Nasa: Earth: Overview: Our Home Planet

For Students 9th - 10th
Provides a comprehensive look at the planet Earth including photos, how Earth got its name, and facts and figures about its size, seasons, moon, atmosphere, rotation, and lithosphere.
Handout
Oregon State University

Osu: Volcano World: Layers of the Earth

For Students 9th - 10th
This is a website not only on the mantle but also about all the layers of the earth.
Interactive
American Museum of Natural History

American Museum of Natural History: O Logy: Plates on the Move

For Students 9th - 10th
Find an interrelated set of tools--maps, animations, diagrams, photographs, and text--to help you understand tectonic plates and how they move.
Interactive
University of Colorado

University of Colorado: Ph Et Interactive Simulations: Plate Tectonics

For Students 9th - 10th
Windows only - Interact with the tectonic plates of the Earth and see how changing variables affects the plates.
Unit Plan
Georgia Department of Education

Ga Virtual Learning: Plate Tectonics

For Students 9th - 10th
In this interactive lesson you will learn about the theory of plate tectonics and the three types of plate boundaries that are responsible for Earth's geologic features.
Lesson Plan
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: How Mountains Are Formed

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students investigate how mountains are formed. Concepts include the composition and structure of the Earth's tectonic plates and tectonic plate boundaries, with an emphasis on plate convergence as it relates to mountain formation....
Article
National Earth Science Teachers Association

Windows to the Universe: Volcano Formation

For Students 6th - 9th
Explanation of the factors that result in the formation of volcanoes, some basic but helpful animations and photographs.
Interactive
University of Colorado

University of Colorado: Ph Et Interactive Simulations: Plate Tectonics

For Students 9th - 10th
Explore how plates move on the surface of the earth. Change temperature, composition, and thickness of plates. Discover how to create new mountains, volcanoes, or oceans! Java is required.
PPT
Other

University of Texas Arlington: Isostasy, Gravity, Magnetism, and Internal Heat

For Students 9th - 10th
An in-depth look at how isostasy works and the processes taking place during glaciation and the melting of glaciers. Looks at gravity and the effects of density differences within the crust and mantle, and at Earth's magnetic field and...
Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: A Guide to the Energy of the Earth

For Students 9th - 10th
Energy is neither created nor destroyed - and yet the global demand for it continues to increase. But where does energy come from, and where does it go? This video examines the many ways in which energy cycles through our planet, from...
Unit Plan
Center for Educational Technologies

Nasa Classroom of the Future: Environment Module: Uv Menace

For Students 9th - 10th
This site provides information and activities for classes to learn more about ozone depletion and UV radiation.
PPT
Other

Interactions Between the Atmosphere & Hydrosphere [Pdf]

For Students 9th - 10th
A discussion of the interactions between the four spheres of Earth and how they affect weather and climate. The slideshow is divided into two parts. The first deals with interactions between the atmosphere and the hydrosphere and the...
Graphic
Other

Jules Verne Voyager: Gem Global Strain Rate Map

For Students 9th - 10th
GEM GSRM uses a texture underlay grid showing the 2nd invariant of lithospheric strain rate, with an image overlay of coastal outlines in white - which forces the texture underlay to have a black background in regions of zero strain...
Unit Plan
National Institute of Educational Technologies and Teacher Training (Spain)

Ministerio De Educacion: Los Cambios en El Medio Natural I

For Students 9th - 10th
In this unit you can learn about the internal structure of the Earth. It has 13 interactive activities.
Interactive
University of Colorado

University of Colorado: Ph Et Interactive Simulations: Ph Et: Interactive Simulations: Plate Tectonics

For Students 9th - 10th
Students studying plate tectonics will better understand its concepts with this virtual experiment that tests how plates move on the surface of the earth. Temperature, composition, and thickness of plates can be changed to create new...
Lesson Plan
Science Education Resource Center at Carleton College

Serc: Let's Build the Earth!: The Structure of the Earth's Crust and Interior

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
In this activity, students will make observations then construct a "sample" model representation of the Earth's layers. They will compare and contrast the movement and material in each layer explaining the location and what it contains.
Unit Plan
National Institute of Educational Technologies and Teacher Training (Spain)

Ministerio De Educacion: Los Cambios en El Medio Natural Ii

For Students 9th - 10th
In this unit you can learn about the deformation of rocks, magmatism, plutonism and seismic waves. It has 16 interactive activities.
Unit Plan
National Institute of Educational Technologies and Teacher Training (Spain)

Ministerio De Educacion: Estructura Interna De La Tierra

For Students 9th - 10th
In addition to exploring the inside of the earth, this unit will explore the consequences on the dynamics of the outer layers; it will deepen the knowledge of plate tectonics and the movement of the plates in the past. It includes 16...
PPT
Other

Plate Tectonic Theory [Pdf]

For Students 9th - 10th
Check out this slideshow on Plate Tectonics-The unifying theory for all other theories in the Earth sciences-Has resulted in a more detailed understanding of Earth history-Has enabled geologists to more precisely(and cheaply) discover...
Handout
US Geological Survey

Usgs: Inside the Earth

For Students 3rd - 8th
This is a website to learn not only about the inner and outer core, but also about the crust and the mantle of the interior of the earth.
Lesson Plan
National Association of Geoscience Teachers

Nagt: Geology Map Observations

For Teachers 5th - 8th
In jigsaw groups, students construct the Earth's tectonic plates using geologic maps. Skills such as careful observation, presentation, and synthesis are used to create a map that shows the type and location the plates.