S6E5: Obtain, evaluate, and communicate information to show how Earth’s…
Obtain, evaluate, and communicate information to show how Earth’s surface is formed. a. Ask questions to compare and contrast the Earth’s crust, mantle, inner and outer core, including temperature, density, thickness, and composition. b. Plan and carry out an investigation of the characteristics of minerals and how minerals contribute to rock composition. c. Construct an explanation of how to classify rocks by their formation and how rocks change through geologic processes in the rock cycle. d. Ask questions to identify types of weathering, agents of erosion and transportation, and environments of deposition. e. Develop a model to demonstrate how natural processes (weathering, erosion, and deposition) and human activity change rocks and the surface of the Earth. f. Construct an explanation of how the movement of lithospheric plates, called plate tectonics, can cause major geologic events such as earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. g. Construct an argument using maps and data collected to support a claim of how fossils show evidence of the changing surface and climate of the Earth. h. Plan and carry out an investigation to provide evidence that soil is composed of layers of weathered rocks and decomposed organic material.
The Georgia Standards of Excellence, Science outcome S6E5 (Earth and Space Science) for Grade 6 says: “Obtain, evaluate, and communicate information to show how Earth’s surface is formed. a. Ask questions to compare and contrast the Earth’s crust, mantle, inner and outer core, including temperature, density, thickness, and composition. b. Plan and carry out an investigation of the characteristics of minerals and how minerals contribute to rock composition. c. Construct an explanation of how to classify rocks by their formation and how rocks change through geologic processes in the rock cycle. d. Ask questions to identify types of weathering, agents of erosion and transportation, and environments of deposition. e. Develop a model to demonstrate how natural processes (weathering, erosion, and deposition) and human activity change rocks and the surface of the Earth. f. Construct an explanation of how the movement of lithospheric plates, called plate tectonics, can cause major geologic events such as earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. g. Construct an argument using maps and data collected to support a claim of how fossils show evidence of the changing surface and climate of the Earth. h. Plan and carry out an investigation to provide evidence that soil is composed of layers of weathered rocks and decomposed organic material.” These 2 Fieldbook units teach it hands-on, with everyday materials and a printable teacher guide and student sheet for every lesson. Official wording: Georgia Standards of Excellence, Science.
Restless Earth: Fossils, Soils, Volcanoes and Plates Grades 4–7 · partly supports this outcome
Press model fossils and read a cliff of layers, shake a jar of soil and watch it sort itself by grain size, plot real volcanoes and earthquakes on a world map to find the edges of Earth's plates, then move model plates and test a building on a shake table. Four hands-on lessons that build on Rocks and Erosion.
- How do fossils form, and what can they tell us? 55–70 min
Teams press shells and leaves into clay to make a mould and a salt-dough cast, build a cliff of coloured layers with a different model fossil in each, and swap cliffs to work out which layer is oldest. They then read a cliff of real fossils and explain that a place once under the sea is now dry land.
- What is soil made of? 45–55 min, plus two 5-minute checks later
Teams shake a sample of soil in a jar of water, let it settle, and measure the layers of sand, silt and clay with floating plant bits on top. They rub the soil between their fingers to feel the grains, then use their results to choose the best soil for a garden bed.
- Where do volcanoes and earthquakes happen? 50–60 min
Teams plot twenty-two real volcanoes and earthquakes from a data table onto a world map using latitude and longitude. They join the dots, find the lines and rings they make, and use the pattern to say which of three cities is most likely to feel earthquakes.
- What do moving plates do, and can a building survive? 80–90 min (easy to split over two periods)
Teams move two foam plates on a tray of syrup to pull them apart and push them together, then slide sandpaper blocks to feel an earthquake build and release. They design and test straw towers on a shake table, compare two designs, and explain how engineers reduce earthquake damage.
Stone, Bamboo and Storms: Building in Vietnam Grades 6–7 · partly supports this outcome
Science and English together, for English learners (CEFR B1). Three investigations from Vietnam: how rain carved the limestone islands of Hạ Long Bay, why builders trust hollow bamboo, and how a roof can survive a typhoon.
- How did rain carve the islands of Hạ Long Bay? 60 min, plus 15 minutes the next day
Science and English together, for English learners at CEFR B1. Teams drop limestone and shells into vinegar, water and soda water, watch for bubbles and weigh what is left the next day. Then they use the evidence to explain to a tour boat guide how weak acid in rain carved the towers and caves of Hạ Long Bay.
Printable practice for S6E5
These pages practise a closely related idea; the match to S6E5 is partial.
- Stone, Bamboo and Storms: Building in Vietnam workbook included with the unit
1 word wall, 1 reading, 1 unit review, 1 unit test, with answer keys.
Need just this outcome? Build a custom pack from these pages, with its answer key, in about a minute. Custom packs come with All-access and school licences.
Compared with NGSS: MS-ESS2-2 (partial).
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