Download Hello this is Venus Ice, and this is a podcast for 6th grade science

Hello and welcome to Ms. Ice’s podcast for 6th grade science. This lesson
meets West Virginia state content standard
SC.O.6.2.25
stating that students will compare and contrast the
continental drift hypothesis to the plate tectonic theory
This lesson also meets National Education Technology Standard #2
Design and develop digital age learning experiences and assessments
After this lesson the students will be able to
 Distinguish the similarities and differences between the continental
drift and the theory of plate tectonics. And also be able to
 Provide evidence supporting Pangea.
Lets begin our lesson with Sir Francis Bacon
Sir Francis Bacon first noticed in the 17th century that the continents of
South America and Africa seem to fit together?
Then
In 1912, a German meteorologist named Alfred Wegener also noticed that
South America and Africa fit together and proposed the existence of an
original, gigantic supercontinent which he named Pangaea.
The original Pangaea represents a hypothesis about how the continents
slowly drifted apart. This hypothesis was called the continental drift.
The continental drift’s 2 basic premises were
a) the continents were a single landmass
b) the landmasses moved by plowing through the ocean floor to get to
current locations.
Other evidence that the continents were once a single huge landmass are
Mountain ranges on different continents match up
Similar ancient rock sequences
Similar fossil species such as 2 pre dinosaur species called the mesosaurus,
and lystrasaurus and a plant fossil called glossopteris.
Other supporting evidence includes glacial grooves
Geologists didn’t take Wegener seriously because he was a meteorologist
and he could not explain what caused the continents to plow through the
ocean floor.
Then in 1947 the army was mapping the ocean floor and discovered the midAtlantic ridge. With this new discovery came a new theory. The theory of
plate tectonics. The tectonic theory says that the earth’s surface is
fragmented into huge slabs called tectonic plates. These chunks of the
earth’s crust move across its surface in response to forces and movements
deep within the planet. The plate boundaries are areas of intense geological
activity. Most volcanoes and earthquakes occur at these boundaries.
Although Alfred Wegener could not accurately explain how the continents
moved, his theory of Pangea has been accepted.
This is the end of the lecture.
Look for a assignment and assessment to be posted on my blog.
Resources used for this podcast were Volcano and Earthquake from
eyewitness books and the Geosphere activity manual which was compiled
by dr. deb hemler