ALEX Classroom Resources

   View Standards     Standard(s): [SC2015] (2) 8 :

8 ) Make observations from media to obtain information about Earth's events that happen over a short period of time (e.g., tornados, volcanic explosions, earthquakes) or over a time period longer than one can observe (e.g., erosion of rocks, melting of glaciers).

[SC2015] (4) 14 :

14 ) Explore information to support the claim that landforms are the result of a combination of constructive forces, including crustal deformation, volcanic eruptions, and sediment deposition as well as a result of destructive forces, including erosion and weathering.

[SC2015] ES6 (6) 5 :

5 ) Use evidence to explain how different geologic processes shape Earth's history over widely varying scales of space and time (e.g., chemical and physical erosion; tectonic plate processes; volcanic eruptions; meteor impacts; regional geographical features, including Alabama fault lines, Rickwood Caverns, and Wetumpka Impact Crater).

Weathering and erosion are continuous processes that gradually change the natural environment over time. Weathering is the process of wearing down materials into the sediment. Erosion occurs when this sediment is moved.

The classroom resource provides a video that will describe how weathering and erosion shape Earth's surface over a long period of time. There is also a short test that can be used to assess students' understanding.

   View Standards     Standard(s): [SC2015] ES6 (6) 4 :

4 ) Construct explanations from geologic evidence (e.g., change or extinction of particular living organisms; field evidence or representations, including models of geologic cross-sections; sedimentary layering) to identify patterns of Earth's major historical events (e.g., formation of mountain chains and ocean basins, significant volcanic eruptions, fossilization, folding, faulting, igneous intrusion, erosion).

[SC2015] ES6 (6) 5 :

5 ) Use evidence to explain how different geologic processes shape Earth's history over widely varying scales of space and time (e.g., chemical and physical erosion; tectonic plate processes; volcanic eruptions; meteor impacts; regional geographical features, including Alabama fault lines, Rickwood Caverns, and Wetumpka Impact Crater).

[SC2015] ES6 (6) 9 :

9 ) Use models to explain how the flow of Earth's internal energy drives a cycling of matter between Earth's surface and deep interior causing plate movements (e.g., mid-ocean ridges, ocean trenches, volcanoes, earthquakes, mountains, rift valleys, volcanic islands).

Volcanoes produce some of the Earth's most violent geologic changes, but they are not always violent. Different kinds of volcanoes, including shield, cinder cone, composite, and ashflow caldera, produce different kinds of eruptions.

The classroom resource provides a video that will describe the different varieties of volcanoes and how their eruptions cause changes to Earth's surface. This resource will provide background information to students before they create their own models. There is also a short test that can be used to assess students' understanding.

   View Standards     Standard(s): [SC2015] ES6 (6) 4 :

4 ) Construct explanations from geologic evidence (e.g., change or extinction of particular living organisms; field evidence or representations, including models of geologic cross-sections; sedimentary layering) to identify patterns of Earth's major historical events (e.g., formation of mountain chains and ocean basins, significant volcanic eruptions, fossilization, folding, faulting, igneous intrusion, erosion).

[SC2015] ES6 (6) 5 :

5 ) Use evidence to explain how different geologic processes shape Earth's history over widely varying scales of space and time (e.g., chemical and physical erosion; tectonic plate processes; volcanic eruptions; meteor impacts; regional geographical features, including Alabama fault lines, Rickwood Caverns, and Wetumpka Impact Crater).

This is the second of a strand of three lessons entitled Great Rivers: Where Ecology Meets History. The lessons address the concept of large rivers as dynamic ecological systems that have had vital influences on human history. This lesson focuses on flooding, both because of its importance to human history, and because it is often misunderstood. Central to this lesson is the concept that while some floods may be predictable in a general way (i.e., in the springtime), floods do not occur on a schedule.

   View Standards     Standard(s): [SC2015] ES6 (6) 4 :

4 ) Construct explanations from geologic evidence (e.g., change or extinction of particular living organisms; field evidence or representations, including models of geologic cross-sections; sedimentary layering) to identify patterns of Earth's major historical events (e.g., formation of mountain chains and ocean basins, significant volcanic eruptions, fossilization, folding, faulting, igneous intrusion, erosion).

[SC2015] ES6 (6) 5 :

5 ) Use evidence to explain how different geologic processes shape Earth's history over widely varying scales of space and time (e.g., chemical and physical erosion; tectonic plate processes; volcanic eruptions; meteor impacts; regional geographical features, including Alabama fault lines, Rickwood Caverns, and Wetumpka Impact Crater).

This is the third lesson of a three-part series entitled Great Rivers: Where Ecology Meets History. These lessons address the concept of large rivers as dynamic, ecological systems that have had vital influences on human history. This lesson consists of a variety of brief sketches that illustrate how rivers have influenced human history from the dawn of civilization.