Alfred Wegener:CRAZY or GENIUS?

You may remember the name from the geography ofWalking with dinosaurs.

How will we investigate Alfred Wegener’s theory?

• Recall the names and positions of the continents.

• Create a supercontinent map to demonstrate Alfred Wegner’s Theory of continental drift.

• Summarise your learning on the theory

Warm up - Can you recall the 7 continents of the World and where they are located?

• The continents have not always been this way.• Wegener thought they drifted.• This is caused by movement of the earth’s tectonic

plates.

• In 1910 Alfred Wegenerwas the first scientist to suggest the idea of continental drift, but this idea was rubbished.

• He said that some of the continents seem to fit together like jigsaw-puzzle pieces.

• But he could not suggest how it would happen and he didn’t have any evidence.

Watch the clips to find out more about Wegener, his theory and

what people thought of his ideas.

• Ha Ha Wegener Clip

But then similar fossils were found in South America & South Africa and people started to think that maybe

they were once joined.

• All modern continents are now thought to have come from a single ancient continent called Pangaea.

• This “supercontinent”split and gave us the modern-day continents.

Have ago a making your own supercontinent using the following link. http://planeta42.com/geography/pangaeapuzzle/

OrTo make the Pangaea puzzle activity, you’ll need the following supplies:

ScissorsGlue stickPrintable Pangaea Puzzle (Copy in the geography folder)

1. Cut out the land as one whole piece.

2. Then cut the pieces apart. I used the black lines as general guides.

3. Practice putting the pieces together to form the complete supercontinent.

4. Glue the continents down and use colour. We would love to see your supercontinents . Send a picture in to your teacher

Evidence for Continental Drift

Alfred Wegener was not a trained rock scientistIn 1910 many scientists believed his theory was crazy!!!!!

Scientists who did not agree thought

• The Shape of the continents suggest they where one part of the same land mass.

• The same type of fossilized plants and animals have been found on different continents.

• The movement of continents could not be detected• There could have been a land bridge that once connected

continents.

• 50 Years after Wegener’s idea, the evidence supporting was strong.

• This resulted in the Theory of plate tectonics

• The continents are still moving and millions of years from now the world will be very different.

TASK: summarise your learning in a spider diagram. Wagener’s theory of continental drift

Who was Alfred Wegener?

When did he start his theory?

What was his theory?

How did other people rubbish his ideas?

What were the 2 main bits of evidence to support Wegener’s theory?

What do scientists and geographers think today?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RgJZ0ySEKYg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KB7HzF2O3Kg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p-vNSqUy0l4

What happens at the tectonic plate boundaries? The occurrence of Earthquakes and volcanoes supports Wegener’s theory.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/topics/z849q6f/articles/zj89t39

https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/topics/z849q6f/articles/zd9cxyc

Use these clips and links to help with your research.