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Earth Science A
Course Summary
This is the first of two courses that comprise Earth Science. This course is designed to prepare the
student to confidently enter and complete college-level Earth science courses. The Prentice Hall text,
Earth Science, provides the basis for the course content.
This course consists of varied curriculum that provides the student the opportunity to explore,
compare, research, reflect, and make real-world connections. The student will engage in hands-on
explorations and virtual simulations, which will enhance traditional lesson formats.
During this course, the student will identify the branches of Earth science, locate geographic features
on topographic maps, conduct hands-on experiments with minerals and rocks, compare and contrast
weathering and erosion, explore plate tectonics with relation to earthquakes and volcanoes, and
investigate the formation of mountains.
1. Introduction to Earth Science
1. What Is Earth Science?
 Define Earth science
 Describe the formation of Earth and the solar system
2. A View of Earth
 Describe Earth's four major spheres
 Differentiate among the three parts of the geosphere
 State the value of the theory of plate tectonics to Earth science
3. Representing Earth's Surface
 Locate points on the Earth's surface by their latitude and longitude
 Describe the advantages and disadvantages of different types of maps
 Explain what makes topographic maps different from other maps
4. Earth System Science
 Describe the primary goal of Earth system science and define the term system
 Describe the Earth's two major sources of energy
 Explain how humans affect Earth's systems
 Distinguish between renewable and nonrenewable resources
5. What Is Scientific Inquiry?
 Define the terms hypothesis and theory
6. Unit Review
 Review the concepts presented in the unit
7. Unit Test
There are no objectives for this lesson.
2. Minerals
1. Matter: Part 1
 Explain how elements are related to minerals
 Identify the kinds of particles that make up atoms
 Explain the differences between ions and isotopes
2. Matter: Part 2
 Explain what compounds are and describe why they form
 Compare and contrast the three major types of chemical bonds
3. Minerals
 List five characteristics of minerals
 Describe the processes that result in mineral formation
 Explain how minerals can be classified
 List some of the major groups of minerals
4. Properties of Minerals
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Explain why color is often not a useful property in identifying minerals
Define the terms luster, crystal form, streak, and Mohs scale
Distinguish between cleavage and fracture
Explain density and how it can be used to identify substances
Describe some other properties that can be used to identify minerals
5. Lab: Mineral Identification
 Explain some of the simple tests that can be used to identify minerals
 Differentiate among some of the common rock-forming minerals
6. Unit Review
 Review the concepts presented in the unit
7. Unit Test
There are no objectives for this lesson.
3. Rocks
1. The Rock Cycle
 Define the term rock
 Identify the three major types of rocks and explain how they differ
 Describe the rock cycle
 List the forces that power Earth's rock cycle
2. Igneous Rocks
 Compare and contrast intrusive and extrusive igneous rocks
 Demonstrate how the rate of cooling affects an igneous rock's texture
 Classify igneous rocks according to texture and composition
3. Sedimentary Rocks
 Describe the major processes involved in the formation of sedimentary rock
 Distinguish between clastic sedimentary rocks and chemical sedimentary rocks
 Identify the features that are unique to some sedimentary rocks
4. Metamorphic Rocks
 Predict where most metamorphism takes place
 Distinguish contact metamorphism from regional metamorphism
 Identify the three agents of metamorphism and explain what changes they
cause
 Recognize foliated metamorphic rocks and describe how they form
 Classify metamorphic rocks
5. Lab: Rock Identification
 Explain some of the simple tests that can be used to identify rocks
 Differentiate among some of the common rocks
6. Unit Review
 Review the concepts presented in the unit
7. Unit Test
There are no objectives for this lesson.
4. Earth's Resources
1. Energy and Mineral Resources
 Distinguish between renewable and nonrenewable resources
 Identify which energy resources are fossil fuels
 Predict which energy resources might replace dwindling petroleum supplies in
the future
 Describe the processes that concentrate minerals into large deposits as they
form
 Recognize how nonmetallic mineral resources are used
2. Alternate Energy Resources
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Evaluate the advantages of solar energy
Explain how nuclear power plants use nuclear fission to produce energy
Evaluate wind power's potential for providing energy in the future
Relate how hydroelectric power, geothermal energy, and tidal power
contribute to our energy resources
Water, Air, and Land Resources
 Explain why fresh water is a vital resource
 Recognize why the chemical composition of the atmosphere is important
 Identify Earth's important land resources
Protecting Resources
 Identify the first laws passed to deal with water pollution
 Name the most important law passed to deal with air pollution
 Explain what is involved in protecting land resources
Lab: Products that Conserve Resources
 Measure the dimensions of three different-sized juice cartons
 Calculate the surface area of each carton
 Compare the amount of cardboard used in each carton
 Evaluate the packaging for which conserves resources the best
Unit Review
 Review the concepts presented in the unit
Unit Test
There are no objectives for this lesson.
5. Sculpturing Earth's Surface
1. Weathering
 Define mechanical weathering
 Explain chemical weathering
 Identify the factors that affect the rate of weathering
2. Soil
 Recognize the major components of soil and list the most important factors in
soil formation
 Explain how soil varies with depth
 Compare and contrast the three most common types of soil
 Demonstrate how human activities can affect the rate of soil erosion
3. Mass Movements
 Define mass movement
 Identify the factors that trigger mass movements
 Classify mass movements
4. Lab: Effect of Temperature on Chemical Weathering
 Determine the relationship between temperature and chemical weathering
5. Running Water
 Explain how the water cycle circulates Earth's water supply in an unending
cycle
 Explain how the water cycle is kept in balance
 Describe the ability of a stream to erode and transport material
 Compare and contrast the changes in gradient and discharge between a
stream's headwaters and mouth
 Define base level
6. The Work of Streams
 Explain how streams erode their channels and transport sediments
 Explain how stream deposition occurs
 Identify the two general types of stream valleys
 Predict the causes of floods and describe major flood control measures
 Explain the relationship between streams and drainage basins
7. Water Beneath the Surface
 Describe the location and movement of groundwater
 Describe the formation of a spring
 Explain environmental threats to water supplies
 Describe the formation of caverns
 Describe landforms in karst areas
8. Unit Review
 Review the concepts presented in the unit
9. Unit Test
There are no objectives for this lesson.
6. Glaciers, Deserts, and Wind
1. Glaciers
 Describe the different types of glaciers and where each type is found
 Explain how glaciers move and describe the different types of glacial drift
 Identify the landscape features that glaciers form
 Explain the causes of the most recent ice age
2. Lab: Interpreting a Glacial Landscape
 Use a topographic map to identify geographic features formed by glaciers
 Infer how geographic features were formed
3. Deserts
 Describe how running water affects deserts
 Explain the roles mechanical and chemical weathering play in the formation of
deserts
4. Landscapes Shaped by Wind
 Describe two ways that wind can cause erosion
 Identify types of landforms that are deposited by the wind
 Describe how sand dunes differ
5. Unit Review
 Review the concepts presented in the unit
6. Unit Test
There are no objectives for this lesson.
7. Earthquakes and Earth's Interior
1. What Is an Earthquake?
 Compare and contrast the epicenter and focus of an earthquake
 Identify the cause of earthquakes
 Compare and contrast aftershocks and foreshocks
2. Measuring Earthquakes
 Identify the three types of seismic waves
 Describe how seismic waves are recorded
 Describe the different ways earthquakes are measured
 Explain how to locate the epicenter of an earthquake
3. Earthquake Hazards
 Identify the major hazards associated with earthquakes
 Describe how earthquake damage can be reduced
4. Earth's Layered Structure
 List the layers of the Earth based on composition and physical properties
 Describe the composition of each layer of Earth
 Explain how scientists determined Earth's structure and composition
5. Lab: Locating an Earthquake
 Determine the location of an earthquake epicenter
6. Unit Review
 Review the concepts presented in the unit
7. Unit Test
There are no objectives for this lesson.
8. Plate Tectonics and Other Igneous Activity
1. Continental Drift
 Describe the hypothesis of continental drift
 Evaluate the evidence in support of continental drift
 Identify the main objections to Wegener's hypothesis of continental drift
2. Sea-Floor Spreading
 Identify mid-ocean ridges and deep-ocean trenches
 Explain the processes of sea-floor spreading and subduction
 Explain the evidence for sea-floor spreading, including paleomagnetism and
magnetic reversals, earthquake patterns, and the age of the ocean floor
3. Theory of Plate Tectonics
 Explain the theory of plate tectonics
 Describe lithospheric plates
 Identify the three types of plate boundaries
4. Mechanisms of Plate Motion
 Relate the unequal distribution of heat in Earth and the mechanism of mantle
convection to the movement of tectonic plates
 Compare the mechanisms of slab-pull and ridge-push as contributing to plate
motion
5. Lab: Paleomagnetism and the Ocean Floor
 Learn how the paleomagnetic patterns on the ocean floor are used to
determine the rate of sea-floor spreading
6. Volcanoes and Plate Tectonics
 Describe the origin of magma
 Explain the relationship between plate tectonics and volcanism, including
intraplate volcanism
7. The Nature of Volcanic Eruptions
 Explain the factors that determine the type of volcanic eruptions that occur
 Describe the various types of volcanic materials that are ejected from
volcanoes
 List the three main types of volcanoes
 Distinguish how the different types of volcanic landforms form
8. Intrusive Igneous Activity
 Describe the major intrusive igneous features such as dikes, sills, and
laccoliths, and how they form
 Describe batholiths and how they form
9. Unit Review
 Review the concepts presented in the unit
10. Unit Test
There are no objectives for this lesson.
9. Mountain Building
1. Forces in Earth's Crust
 Identify the factors that determine the strength of a rock and explain how
rocks permanently deform
 Distinguish among the types of stresses that affect rocks
 Explain how isostatic adjustment is involved in mountain formation
2. Folds, Faults, and Mountains
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List the three main types of folds
Identify the main types of faults
Describe folded mountains and fault-block mountains and explain how they
form
 Describe plateaus, domes, and basins and explain how they form
Mountains and Plates
 Identify the type of mountains associated with the different types of
convergent plate boundaries
 Identify the type of mountains associated with divergent plate boundaries
 Describe the role of accretion in the formation of continents and mountain
building
Lab: Investigating Anticlines and Synclines
 Measure the angles of rock layers in diagrams of an anticline or a syncline
 Determine whether a fold is an anticline or a syncline
 Visualize how rocks are oriented in anticlines and synclines
 Make a block diagram to show the appearance of an eroded fold
Unit Review
 Review the concepts presented in the unit
Unit Test
There are no objectives for this lesson.
10. Final Review and Exam
1. Earth Science A Final Review
There are no objectives for this lesson.
2. Earth Science A Final Exam
There are no objectives for this lesson.