EMSE 3123Math and Science in Education

Earth and Space Sciences: Lesson Ideas And Activities

Presented byFrank H. Osborne, Ph. D.

© 20151

Earth ScienceEarth Science is the study of the structure,

dynamics, and geophysical systems of the Earth. Key components include:

• Earth’s properties and materials

• The atmosphere and water

• Processes that shape the Earth

• How we study the Earth

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Earth ScienceK-2 Level Investigations

Earth’s Properties and Materials

Observe and describe rocks and soil

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Earth Materials

Properties of Minerals

• Hardness

• Luster

• Color

• Streak (the mark it makes on unglazed porcelain)

• How it breaks (crystal cleavage and fracture)

• Density

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Earth Materials

Properties of Rocks

• Rocks are mixtures of various minerals

• Rocks are like chocolate chip cookies

• Rocks can be separated according to their properties

• Key to rocks gives some examples

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Earth Materials• Types of Rocks

– Rocks can be igneous, sedimentary or metamorphic depending on mode of formation and composition.

– The Rock Cycle relates the three types of rocks.

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Earth Materials

• Igneous Rocks– Intrusive igneous rocks crystallize underground.

• They cool slowly.

• Their formation is relatively stable.

• They have larger crystals.

– Extrusive igneous rocks are emitted by the Earth as volcanoes and other related phenomena.

• They cool rapidly.

• Their formation is relatively violent.

• They have smaller crystals.7

Earth Materials

• Granite and its components

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Earth Materials

Marble shake boxes

• Clear marbles represent quartz, black represent mica, and blue represent feldspar.

• Gentle cooling gives larger crystals (granite)--violent cooling gives small ones (rhyolite).

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Earth Materials

Properties of Soils

• Soils contain very fine rock and mineral particles mixed with organic materials such as decayed leaves

• Soils can be categorized according to their predominant components– Sandy soils have large amounts of sand

– Clayey soils have much finer mineral particles

– Loamy soils are rich in organic matter

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Earth Materials

Properties of Soils

• The properties of soil vary from place to place and will affect the soil’s ability to support life.

• Germinate bean seeds in various types of soils (sandy soil, clay, loamy garden soil) and see which ones tend to grow better given equal amounts of water.

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Earth Materials

• Erosion--wearing down and destruction of rocks.– Freezing and thawing– Abrasion by wind– Glaciation

• Settling occurs after rock particles are carried by rivers to the ocean. How far out they are deposited depends on their size. – Large particles settle quickly--deposited near shore

– Small particles settle slowly--deposited far from shore

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Earth Materials

Mineral Properties

• Mineral particles in soil result from the weathering of rocks.

• Weathering of granite– Quartz crystals weather slowly. They remain

intact. They predominate in sand.

– Feldspar and mica weather rapidly into tiny silt and clay particles. They are deposited farther out in the ocean.

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Earth Materials

• Shake bottles for sedimentation

• Water (control), gravel, cat litter, sand

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Earth Materials

• Sedimentary Rocks

• Once particles have settled, they form many layers of material. As the layers accumulate, heat and pressure turns the lower layers into rock.

• Sedimentary rocks are made of accumulated sediments. They form in layers that are horizontal if they are not disturbed.

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Earth Materials

Rocks resemble the materials that formed them.

• Silt becomes siltstone

• Mud becomes mudstone or shale

• Gravel becomes conglomerate

• Limy deposits and shells become limestone

• Sand turns to sandstone

• Many sedimentary rocks contain fossils

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Earth ScienceK-2 Level InvestigationsAtmosphere and Water

• 1. Identify the sources and uses of water.

• 2. Recognize that water can disappear (evaporate) and collect on cold surfaces (condense).

• 3. Describe current weather conditions and recognize how those conditions affect our daily lives.

• 4. Describe daily and seasonal changes and patterns in the weather. 17

Earth ScienceK-2 Level InvestigationsHow we Study the Earth

• 1. Record observations that describe the features of the natural world in their local environment.

• Example: What is a rock?

• Differences between natural and artificial materials.

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Earth ScienceK-2 Level InvestigationsHow we Study the Earth

• Natural limestone outcrop in Texas

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Limestone outcrop

Cut limestone

Limestone boulder

Painted concrete

Asphalt

Brick

Earth ScienceK-2 Level InvestigationsHow we Study the Earth

• Limestone walls

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Natural limestone outcrop cut with a circular saw

Natural cut limestone blocks used to fill a space in the wall

Concrete curb stones

Earth ScienceK-2 Level InvestigationsHow we Study the Earth

• Concrete decorative garden blocks

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Earth ScienceK-2 Level Investigations

• Maps--basics

• Rocks/Soil• Weather Basics• States of Water

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Earth Science3-5 Level Investigations

Earth’s Properties and Materials

• 1. Observe that most rocks and soils are made of several substances or minerals.

• 2. Observe that the properties of soil vary from place to place and will affect the soil’s ability to support life.

• 3. Recognize that fossils provide evidence about the plants and animals that lived long ago and the nature of the environment at that time.

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Earth Science3-5 Level InvestigationsAtmosphere and Water

• 1. Recognize that air is a substance that surrounds us, takes up space, and moves around us as wind.

• 2. Recognize that most of Earth’s surface is covered by water and be able to identify the characteristics of those sources of water.

Oceans Underground sourcesRivers GlaciersLakes

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Earth Science3-5 Level InvestigationsAtmosphere and Water

3. Observe weather changes and patterns by measurable quantities such as temperature, wind direction and speed, and amounts of precipitation.

4. Observe that when liquid water disappears, it turns into a gas (vapor) in the air and can reappear as a liquid when cooled, or as a solid if cooled below its freezing point.

5. Observe that rain, snow, and other forms of precipitation come from clouds, but that not all clouds produce precipitation.

6. Recognize that clouds and fog are made of tiny droplets of water and possibly tiny particles of ice.25

Earth Science3-5 Level Investigations

Processes that Shape The Earth• 1. Recognize that some changes of Earth’s

surface are due to slow processes such as erosion and weathering, and some changes are due to rapid changes such as landslides, volcanic eruptions, and earthquakes.

• 2. Recognize that moving water, wind, and ice continually shape the Earth’s surface by eroding rock and soil in some areas and depositing them in other areas.

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Earth Science3-5 Level InvestigationsHow we Study the Earth

1. Use maps to locate and identify physical features of the Earth.

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Earth Science• Types of maps• Rock cycle• Fossil imprints• Weather station• Classifying minerals

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Astronomy and Space Science

The origin, evolution, and structure of the Universe.

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Astronomy and Space ScienceAstronomy and Space Science concerns

itself with the study of the origin, evolution, and structure of the Universe.

Key components include:

• The Earth, Moon, Sun System

• The Solar System

• Stars

• Galaxies and the Universe

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Astronomy and Space ScienceK-2 Level Investigations

Earth, Moon, Sun System

1. Recognize that the sun supplies light and heat to the Earth.

2. Observe the patterns of day and night and the movements of the shadows of objects on the Earth during the course of a day.

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Astronomy and Space ScienceK-2 Level Investigations

• Day/night• Solar system basics• Objects in the sky

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Astronomy and Space ScienceK-2 Level Investigations

Solar System

• 1. Recognize that the sun can only be seen during the day, but the moon can be seen sometimes at night and sometimes during the day.

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Astronomy and Space ScienceK-2 Level Investigations

Stars• 1. Observe that stars are many, scattered, and

different in brightness.

• 2. Observe that the position of the stars, with respect to each other (constellations) is unchanging.

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Astronomy and Space Science 3-5 Level Investigations

Earth, Moon, Sun System

• 1. Observe patterns that result from the Earth’s position relative to the sun and rotation of the Earth on its axis.

• 2. Recognize and describe the phases of the moon.

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Astronomy and Space Science 3-5 Level Investigations

Solar System

• 1. Describe Earth as one of several planets that orbit the sun and the moon as a satellite of the Earth.

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Astronomy and Space Science 3-5 Level Investigations

Stars

• 1. Observe that stars are not all the same in brightness, size, and color.

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Astronomy and Space Science 3-5 Level InvestigationsGalaxies and Universe

• 1. Recognized that images of celestial objects can be magnified and seen in greater detail when observed using binoculars and light telescopes.

• 2. Observe and record short-term and long-term changes in the night sky.

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The End

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