In this quick activity, you’ll focus on the Organization row of the BHP Writing Rubric so that you can become familiar with how the presentation and ordering of ideas in an essay can enhance the argument being made. This should also help you understand that a well-executed argument is one that has a clear introduction, progresses logically, and concludes effectively. As part of this activity, you will think about how the claim tester logic is a natural part of a well-crafted argument.

In this activity, you’re going to take a few minutes to focus on Organization, another row of the BHP Writing Rubric. However, instead of starting by discussing how important a particular element of writing is, like you usually do with these activities, we’re going to go with a “less talk, more action” approach.

Start by cutting up the sample essay included in the Analyzing Investigation Writing – Organization Worksheet into pieces according to the guidance on the worksheet. Once you have the essay cut into pieces, rearrange it in two different ways. Both arrangements must convey the same argument and make sense. You’ll probably notice that one arrangement is better than the other. Fill out the worksheet to record your two arrangements and put a star next to the one you feel is strongest.

Now, look at the Organization row of the BHP Writing Rubric and review the criteria for Organization with your class. Then, using your knowledge of essay organization, write a few sentences about why your starred arrangement is superior. Be prepared to discuss your ideas with the class!

By now, you should be familiar with the DQ Notebook activity. Although you probably won’t feel that you know much about Unit 4 at this point, it’s important that you begin to think about the unit’s driving question.

Think about this question: How and why do theories become generally accepted?

Use the DQ Notebook Worksheet – Unit 4 to respond to this question as best as you can. Be prepared to talk about these ideas with your class.

This repeated activity should help you become familiar with a process for understanding unfamiliar words anytime you encounter them in the course.

Take out your vocab tracker and be sure to record new and unfamiliar words on it according to your teacher’s instructions.

The layers of the Earth were—and still are—constantly moving, and it was this movement that resulted in the creation of separate continents. Life on each of the continents evolved independently until the continents were reunited much, much later in our story.

This video explains what life was like on the Early Earth and asks us to think about what it would have been like to live on the Earth back at that time. It wasn’t pleasant, and it highlights the challenges emerging life forms had to overcome to survive. This video also previews the idea of plate tectonics, which will be the focus of the next two lessons in this unit. Understanding both the history of the Earth and plate tectonics are critical to understanding how the Earth became a place that could support life.

Preview

In its early years, the Earth didn’t look anything like it does today. Now that we’ve covered the process of accretion and how planets form, it’s helpful to think about what the Earth might have looked like during this time. Is this a place any of us would have wanted to live?

Key Ideas – Factual

As you watch this video, use these questions to help you check for understanding.

Part I

1. What challenges would humans have faced if they lived on the early Earth?
2. Why was the early Earth so hot?
3. Why is it important that the inner core of the Earth is metal?
4. How is the mantle different from the core of the Earth?
5. How is the crust different from the mantle?
6. How did the Earth’s atmosphere form?

Part II

7. What important hypothesis did Alfred Wegener make about the Earth, and what was his evidence?
8. What was this supercontinent called?
9. Why were many scientists unwilling to accept Wegener’s hypothesis?
10. When and how did an explanation for the movement of the Earth’s plates come together?
11. How does continental crust differ from oceanic crust?
12. How were the Andes and Himalayas formed?
13. What is plate tectonics?

Thinking Conceptually

Is the Earth still forming today? Can you think of examples of accretion elsewhere in the solar system?

The atmosphere of the Earth keeps changing and adapting to the conditions around it. There is a never-ending cycle of warming, cooling, and recovery from traumatic events.

The atmosphere, like the Earth, has evolved over time. These changes in the atmosphere can be traced to changes on Earth. Many factors can influence the climate, but geological forces such as increased volcanic activity, and biological changes such as the development of photosynthesis, are two examples. It’s important to understand that the atmosphere is part of a larger system, and changes in that system can bring about changes in the atmosphere.

Preview

After the Earth was formed, the atmosphere began to develop and stabilize. Driven by a series of traumatic events on the Earth’s surface, the atmosphere formed and re-formed before achieving its current state.

Key Ideas – Factual

As you watch this video, use these questions to help you check for understanding.

1. How did the first atmosphere of the Earth form?
2. What is the “greenhouse effect,” and how did the conditions on the early Earth allow for its development?
3. How did the formation of the moon impact the Earth?
4. How did the Earth’s atmosphere change during the Hadean Eon?
5. How did the Earth’s atmosphere change during the Archean Eon?
6. What was the Great Oxidation Event and why did it happen?
7. How did the buildup of oxygen in the atmosphere impact that Earth’s climate?

Thinking Conceptually

It may come as a surprise to you that oxygen could have had such a devastating impact of some early forms of life. Can you think of other examples of elements or substances that are deadly to some species and not others?

In this activity, you’ll search for and read news articles that reveal new connections between today’s world and the formation of Earth and the Solar System. This will help you see the relationship between what you’re learning in class about Threshold 4: Earth and the Solar System and our world today. In doing so, you’ll be able to better connect to and understand the course content.

Reading, claim testing
As part of this activity, you’ll be reading news articles online. These will vary in difficulty and style, so, where possible, use the skills you’ve learned as part of the Three Close Reads process to help you better understand these texts. When searching for information online, you’ll also use claim testers to evaluate credibility of the sources you encounter.

The formation of planets represents an increase in the complexity of the Universe. Planets are more chemically diverse than stars, and a planet that is neither too far from its star nor too close has the potential to support life. Until about 20 years ago, most scientists believed that there were no exoplanets—planets outside of our Solar System. The discovery of hundreds of exoplanets has generated a great deal of excitement in the scientific community and has provided another potential source of evidence for understanding how our Solar System and its planets formed.

You can join in this process of discovery by searching for news stories about Earth and the formation of the Solar System.

Before you start your research, review the questions to ask to determine a source’s credibility:

• What person or group is behind the website where you found the article?
• Why are they sharing this information?
• What authority do the author and website have about the topic?
• How does the author’s perspective impact their argument?

Finding consensus, or agreement, is another tool you can use to determine credibility. To find consensus between sources, ask yourself:

• Are there other sources that agree with the claims in this article?

The more you can find consensus between different sources about the same topic, the more likely that argument is credible. However, don’t forget that those articles and websites still need good evidence to back up their claims. Another thing you should look for is if all the authors are using the same source information, such as they are all citing the same scientific study. If you discover this is the case, it may mean that the scientific community has accepted this new finding, but it doesn’t necessarily mean that these conclusions are supported by multiple studies or different types of evidence.

First, find one article or website you think is credible. Use some of the suggested websites below, or find ones on your own that highlight new information that you think contributes to a discussion of stars today. After you’ve done that, try to find another article or website that supports the claims being made in the first article to see if there is consensus on the topic.

Try to find a total of three articles and/or websites that generally agree on the same topic. One good way to do this is to open multiple tabs in the same browser, each with a story about similar topics, or websites that cover similar subjects. You can compare across the tabs to see if the information you’re finding is in agreement or disagreement. You can also evaluate whether each source is discussing the same topic in the same way. Do they agree about the significance of the topic? Do they emphasize the same elements of a story? You might find that multiple news articles exist about the same announcement from NASA or another organization. Are there differences in how the information is are presented?

Here are some websites you might find helpful (but feel free to use others):

• Live Science: The Most Interesting Articles, Mysteries & Discoveries
• ZME Science: Not Exactly Rocket Science
• Space.com: NASA, Space Exploration and Astronomy News
• Smithsonian Magazine: History, Travel, Arts, Science, People, Places
• Science News Magazine

As usual, you’ll be asked to fill the This Threshold Today worksheet as part of this activity.