Science is an imaginative adventure of the mind seeking truth in a world of mystery.
Sir Cyril Herman Hinshelwood

Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Vermilion Cliffs National Monument

Photo: Navajo Bridge, Arizona

Rock of Ages

Millions of years in the making, Vermilion Cliffs National Monument remains a little-known wonder.

By Verlyn Klinkenborg
Photograph by Richard Barnes
 
Check out the article at http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2012/02/vermilion-cliffs/klinkenborg-text

Monday, January 30, 2012

Jan 30th- Feb 3rd

Weekly Lesson Plans January 30th-February 3rd

Monday- Bellringer #31 1. What is erosion? 2. How does wind cause erosion? 3. How does water cause erosion? 4. How does ice cause erosion? Students will take notes and have discussion over Chapter 21 Section 4 about Weathering and Erosion.  Then students will have time to work on their Homework - Section 4 Review Questions on page 761 #1-9.

Tuesday- Students will have the entire period to work on their Chapter 21 study guide.  The study guide is due on Thursday.

Wednesday- Students will watch the video Raging Planet: How the Grand Canyon was formed. 

Thursday- Students will trade and grade their chapter 21 study guide.  Then we will play the gameshow review.  Students need to study for the test on Friday.

Friday- Chapter 21 Test!

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Geology Website

Check out http://geology.com/ for information on a variety of Earth Science topics we have been discussing in class. They have the latest geology news, visuals, maps, videos etc.

glacial sand
The glacially deposited sands around Lake Winnibigoshish, Minnesota, contain abundant sediments from the igneous and metamorphic minerals of the Lake Superior basin. A sample includes pink garnets, green epidote, iron-rich red agates, black magnetite, and hematite. Image Copyright © 2008 Dr. Gary Greenberg, All Rights Reserved.

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Jan 23-27

Weekly Lesson Plans January 23rd-27th

Monday- Students will watch a video clip about Rocks of Ages.  Students will take notes and have a discussion about Ch 21 S.3 Sedimentary and Metamorphic Rocks. Homework- Using Seafloor Sediments to Unravel Past Climate Changes.

Tuesday- Students will be Identifying a variety of characteristics about rocks and minerals.  Students will be focusing on rocks and minerals #1-10.  Students will have to identify the rock name, type, color, luster, streak color, hardness, magnetism, cleavage or fracture, uses, and weight for each rock or mineral.

Wednesday- Students will be Identifying a variety of characteristics about rocks and minerals.  Students will be focusing on rocks and minerals #11-20.  Students will have to identify the rock name, type, color, luster, streak color, hardness, magnetism, cleavage or fracture, uses, and weight for each rock or mineral.

Thursday- Students will be Identifying a variety of characteristics about rocks and minerals.  Students will be focusing on rocks and minerals #21-30.  Students will have to identify the rock name, type, color, luster, streak color, hardness, magnetism, cleavage or fracture, uses, and weight for each rock or mineral.

Friday- Students will be Identifying a variety of characteristics about rocks and minerals.  Students will be focusing on rocks and minerals #31-40.  Students will have to identify the rock name, type, color, luster, streak color, hardness, magnetism, cleavage or fracture, uses, and weight for each rock or mineral. Homework- Rock Analysis questions.

~ All of the identifyinig rocks and minerals lab is work done in class.

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Jan 16th-20th

Weekly Lesson Plans January 16th-20th

Monday- No School

Tuesday- Students will be working with a partner on an activity called Finding the Epicenter of an Earthquake.  Students will calculate the distance from sourrounding seismometers to an earthquake's epicenter, find the location of the epicenter, and explain the relationship between seismic waves and the location of an earthquake's epicenter.  Students should be able to get the activity done in class so they will not have any homework.

Wednesday- Mentoring Day.  Bellringer #28- read "Volcanoes and Humans" page 747 answer question one in your journal.  Students will take notes and have a discussion over Ch 21 S.2 volcanoes.  Homework- Ch 21 S.2 Review questions page 746 #1-8.

Thursday- Bellringer #29 Read "What are rocks good for?" page 755 answer both questions in your journal. Students will watch a 7 minute video clip about Monitoring the Mt. Augestine Volcano. Students will take notes and have discussion over Ch 21 S.3 about Minerals. Homework- a worksheet about Hydrothermal vents and volcanoes and climate change.

Friday- Bellringer #30 How would you characterize a mineral?  Students will watch a 9 minute video clip about how to identify  minerals.  Students can add to their bellringer answer duiring the clip.  Students will take notes and have a discussion over Ch 21 S. 3 Mineral physical properties and Igneous Rocks.  Homework- Asbestos: What are the Risks?

Wednesday, January 11, 2012

Earthquakes

Anything you ever wanted to know about earthquakes. Follow @USGSted (USGS Twitter Earthquake Dispatch). Check out http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/

Sunday, January 8, 2012

Jan 9th-13th

Weekly Lesson Plans January 9th-13th

Monday- Bellringer #26 List the 3 layers of the Earth and their temperatures.  Look at page 730. Students will continue to take notes over Chapter 21 about Plate Boundaries.  Homework will be the Chapter 21 Section 1 Review Quesitons on page 737 #1-8.

Tuesday- Bellringer #27 1. What is the Richter Scale? 2. What is the greatest magnitude on the Richter Scale? 3. Where would an earthquake of this magnitude be felt? Students will continue taking notes over Chapter 21 starting Section 2 about Earthquakes.  Homework will be a worksheet about Earthquakes East of the Rockies.

Wednesday- Students will be participating in the Discovery Education Testing that all of the subject areas are required to do. Homework- study for the Chapter 21 vocab quiz.


Thursday- Students will take the Vocab Quiz over the Chapter 21 vocab words.  Then students will watch a video called Smash Lab: Earthquake Proof House. The students will have a worksheet about the video that they will have to complete comparing and contrasting two different houses.

Friday- 11:30 dismissal.  Students will finish watching the Smash Lab: Earthquake Proof House video.  Their questions sheets will be due by the end of the period.

Tuesday, January 3, 2012

Jan 2nd-6th

Weekly Lesson Plans January 2nd-6th
Monday 2nd- No School

Tuesday 3rd- Teacher's Institute

Wednesday 4th- Students will get new seats for 3rd quarter.  I will review my rules.  New students will get their book and other papers that they need.  Bellringer #24 1. What is geology? 2. List four things that geologists study. We will watch a video clip about what geology is.  Students will be able to review and edit their answers for the bellringer during the clip.  Students will take notes on an Introduction to Geology and have some discussion.  Homework will be the Chapter 21 vocab definitions on page 765.  There are 21 words and it is due on Friday.

Thursday 5th- Bellringer #25 What are the three physical environments that the Earth is divided into? Students will take notes and have a discussion over Earth as a System/The Earth's Interior.  Students will watch Inside Our Planet a 7 minute video clip. Homework is to finish the vocab definitions assigned on Wed 4th.

Friday 6th- Students will participate in a activity about Pangea.  They will take notes and have discussion over the Earth's physical layers and plate tectonics. Students will watch Exploring the Eearth a 11 minute video clip. Homework will be a worksheet about Drilling into the Earth and Inge Lehmann.

Chapter 21 Planet Earth

Chapter 21 Overview
This chapter discusses the composition of Earth's interior and the theory of plate tectonics.  The chapter also covers the causes and classification of earthquakes and volcanoes.  The chapter then introduces students to the types and properties of rocks and the rock cycle.  Finally, this chapter covers the concepts of physical weathering, chemical weathering, and erosion. 

Chapter 21 pages 726-769


Chapter Goals- Students will be able to explain:
Chapter 21 S.1 Earth's Interior and Plate Tectonics
1. How is Earth's interior structured?
2. How has the appearance of Earth changed over time?
3. What geologic features are common near tectonic plate boundaries?
Chapter 21 S.2 Earthquakes and Volcanoes
1. Where do most earthquakes occur?
2. How do scientists learn about earthquakes and the Earth's interior?
3. What is a volcano?
Chapter 21 S.3 Minerals and Rocks
1. What minerals make up rocks?
2. How are scientists able to tell how old a rock is?
Chapter 21 S.4 Weathering and Erosion
1. How does physical weathering affect rocks?
2. How are rocks affected by chemical weathering?
3. What is erosion, and what causes it to happen?

Chapter 21 Vocab
crust
mantle
core
lithosphere
plate tectonics
subduction
fault
focus
epicenter
surface wave
seismology
Richter Scale
vent
mineral
igneous rock
weathering
sedimentary rock
metamorphic rock
acid precipitation
erosion
deposition

Snow and Ice Patterns


Beautiful patterns in nature.
Dendrite Snowflake
Photo: A dendrite snowflake

Photograph by Kenneth Libbrecht
Dendrite snowflakes first occur when the temperature hovers between 30 degrees Fahrenheit (-1 degree Celsius) and 27 degrees Fahrenheit (-3 degrees Celsius).

Sectored Plate Snowflake

Photo: Sectored plate snowflake

Photograph by Kenneth Libbrecht
A snowflake's shape depends on the temperature at which it forms. This type of snowflake, called a sectored plate, forms when the temperate dips below about 5 degrees Fahrenheit (-15 degrees Celsius).

 

Plate Snowflake Crystal

Photo: A plate snowflake crystal

Photograph by Kenneth Libbrecht
Scientists aren't sure why temperature affects crystal formation and leads to different shapes of snowflakes.

 

Dendrite Snowflake Crystal

Photo: A dendrite snowflake crystal

Photograph by Kenneth Libbrecht
Scientist and photographer Kenneth Libbrecht, chair of the physics department at the California Institute of Technology, studies snowflakes "in the wild" and grows his own under controlled conditions.