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Earth

Driving Question: How did the formation and evolution of Earth increase complexity?

Earth, the planet where we make our home, didn’t appear overnight. Earth took billions of years to slowly evolve into its current form—4.567 billion years to be exact.

Learning Objectives:

  1. Describe the formation of the Earth.
  2. Explain how Earth changed over time, including evaluating the evidence for plate tectonics.
  3. Analyze the physical processes that shaped Earth’s surface.

Vocab Terms:

  • collective learning
  • continental drift
  • Earth
  • geology
  • gravity
  • planet
  • plate tectonics
STEP 1

Opener: Earth

Teaching Tools

To teach this lesson step, refer to page 2 of the Lesson 2.6 Teaching Guide Locked .

Check out how other teachers have approached plate tectonics by checking out this conversation External link in the OER Project Teacher Community.

STEP 2

The Early Earth

Teaching Tools

To teach this lesson step, refer to page 3 of the Lesson 2.6 Teaching Guide Locked .

Check out our Video Guide for suggestions on incorporating videos in the classroom.

The early days of the Earth were a time of fire and liquid metals. Imagine you’re in a super-safe spacesuit, traveling across a very different planet than the one you’ve known.

What Was the Young Earth Like? External link

The early Earth was not a pleasant place to be. How did it change to become a place that supports life?

Key Ideas

As this video progresses, key ideas will be introduced to invoke discussion.
STEP 3

The Theory of Plate Tectonics

Teaching Tools

To teach this lesson step, refer to page 4 of the Lesson 2.6 Teaching Guide Locked .

Looking to do more with maps? Check out OER Project’s collection of maps here External link .

For decades people believed that something as huge as a continent could not move. But the discovery of plate tectonics proved them wrong.

STEP 4

Continents in Motion

Teaching Tools

To teach this lesson step, refer to page 5 of the Lesson 2.6 Teaching Guide Locked .

Check out the BHP Reading Guide for some approaches to teaching reading.

Now you know a little about plate tectonics! But it’s just important to know how we as humans made these discoveries. Your claim-testing skills are about to come in handy.

STEP 5

Closer: Earth

Teaching Tools

To teach this lesson step, refer to page 7 of the Lesson 2.6 Teaching Guide Locked .

Want to know how other teachers are using the Unit Notebook. Check out this thread External link for some great ideas on bringing this routine into the classroom.

From the Big Bang to the formation of Earth, you’ve covered a lot of time and space. Now that you’re back on solid ground, how has your thinking changed?

Extension Materials
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Plate tectonics was a pretty “Earth-shaking” theory. Try this graphic biography and assessment to learn how it became widely accepted.
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A “Girl Talk” Geological Revolution

Teaching Tools

To teach this lesson step, refer to page 8 of the Lesson 2.6 Teaching Guide Locked .

Marie Tharp spent much of her career in the shadows of male scientists. Yet her work helped prove the theory of continental drift and our understanding of plate tectonics.