Download LESSON 5 - PANGEA STAGE ONE: Lesson is designed to be taught

LESSON 5 - PANGEA
STAGE ONE:
Lesson is designed to be taught in one 55 minute period.
Mastery Objective of the Lesson: “By the end of the lesson students will be able to
demonstrate an understanding of plate tectonics:

This lesson is an introduction to plate tectonics. In this first lesson, students will learn
that the continents are not stationary and have moved considerable over geologic time.
Language Objectives(s)
Academic Language we will use:
Crust – the outermost layer of the Earth.
Conduction - the process of transferring heat from one point to another through a solid
medium. This transfer does not involve movement of the material carrying out the process.
Continental crust – the crust that forms the Earth’s landmass composed mostly of granite.
Oceanic crust – the crust below the Earth’s oceans consisting of a volcanic rock called basalt.
Mantle – the layer of the Earth that lies between the crust and the outer core composed of
silicate rocks that are rich in iron and magnesium.
Outer core - a liquid layer of the Earth about 1,408 miles thick composed of iron and nickel
which lies above the Earth's solid inner core and below its mantle.
Inner core - innermost part of the Earth (primarily solid ball with a radius of about 1,220 km
consisting primarily of an iron–nickel alloy.
Formative Assessment of student understanding: (How will you know whether the
objectives have been met?)
A series of whole class discussion will be held to gauge student understanding at multiple
points in the lesson.
B. The Plan
Opener: How the lesson begins (5 minutes)
ENGAGE & ELICIT (prior understandings)
Show students a map of the Earth as Pangaea. Ask students if they know what planet this is,
and if it looks familiar. Discuss and write down any ideas that the students come up with on the
board.
EXPLORE (20 min)
In the early 1900's a scientist, Alfred Wegener hypothesized that long ago the seven continents
were joined together, forming a super-continent that he named Pangaea. He believed that the
continents slowly moved to the current position by a movement he called continental drift.
Students will be broken into groups and will research the internet to find information that will
support or disprove Wagener's theory of a super continent (examples may include: plant
fossils, animal fossils, rock scratches, rock formations).
Each student group will take a position on the existence of Pangaea and provide evidence to
support their position.
Any example of evidence that supports the existence of Pangaea is the fact that the modern
continents seem to fit together like a jigsaw puzzle.
EXPLAIN (15 min)
We talked about the early theory of Continental Drift which was proposed by Alfred Wegener
in 1912. Wegner proposed that 400 million years ago there was only one supercontinent he
called Pangaea. Last Friday I asked you to research the evidence that Wegener based his
theory on. Remember, in 1912, Wegener has no deep-sea submersibles, sonar, GPS, or a
worldwide network of seismographs. I asked you to look into three different categories of
evidence:
1. Fossils/Biological;
2. Geologic; and
3. Climatic.
Let’s review your findings:
Review student’s evidence for or against the existence of Pangaea and discuss. Review the
student’s evidence to determine whether it is based on valid scientific principles regardless of
which position they take. Inform the students that existence of Pangaea generally accepted by
most scientists.
After discussion elaborate on the evidence identified by students and discuss any that was left
out.
One prominent example of continental coastline fitting together is to fit the coastline of the
West Coast of Africa with the coastline East Coast of South America. It can be seen that they fit
well, like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle. This helps to prove that these continents were once joined
together as one whole Pangaea and broke away to form these two land masses now.
Matching fossil of reptiles have been found in Africa and South America, further proving that
these two continents were actually so close to each other or even joined, that reptiles could
travel to and fro between them easily. Identical fossil ferns have also been found in all
southern continents, and also embedded in the same layer sequence, suggesting the proximity
the southern continents were in millions of years ago that allowed the growing of these ferns in
the same climate and soil.
Geologists have discovered that the geological structures of the rocks in South West Africa and
South East Brazil were distinctively identical, and the age of the rocks at these two areas was
the same. This distinctive rock strata shared by the two land masses suggests that these two
areas were once joined together.
Coal can be found underneath the cold and dry Antarctic ice cap, though coal can only form in
warm and wet conditions. This could mean that Antarctica was once together with the other
continents as part of the Pangaea, and was once in a warm and humid region. Coal was
formed before Antarctica drifted away to its present cold and dry climate. That is why the coal
can be found buried under the thick layer of ice and snow.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_5q8hzF9VVE
ELABORATE (15 min)
EVALUATE (Summative)
EXTEND (10 min)
STAGE TWO
Connection to MA State Framework and BPS Standards:
Mass State Framework
3. Earth Processes and Cycles
Central Concepts: Earth is a dynamic interconnected system. The evolution of Earth has been
driven by interactions between the lithosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere, and biosphere. Over
geologic time, the internal motions of Earth have continuously altered the topography and
geography of the continents and ocean basins by both constructive and destructive processes.
3.9 Explain the relationship between convection currents in Earth’s mantle and the motion of the
lithospheric plates.
How will you follow up on this lesson? (How
How have students been prepared for this
lesson (How does it connect to what they have will future lessons build on today’s work?)
done before?)
Students will have learned about the properties This lesson will be followed by the first in a
of the mantle and crust during previous
series of lectures on plate tectonics.
lectures.
Anticipated student strengths/obstacles/difficulties
Strengths – Students will have knowledge about the layers of the Earth and their properties from
earlier lectures. Weaknesses – Student may be confused by the different ways heat energy can
be transferred and how it is transferred. In addition, students will be asked to design a
convection cell using only simple materials. There may be some reluctance to this activity
because they do not have explicit instructions.
Technology
Computers
Internet access
Laboratory Safety
No laboratory exercise has been assigned for this lesson.
Differentiated instruction:
English-language learners may not be familiar with many terms used in this lesson. Thus they
will be pre-taught the academic vocabulary.
Students with learning disabilities may have trouble with some the concepts in this lesson.
Therefore, where possible visual aids will be used.
Deaf/Hard of Hearing (D/HH) students may need to lip read. Thus the teachers should always be
facing the students while lecturing and should be in good lighting.
Students who have difficulties in math will be allowed to use calculator when necessary.