Our Changing Earth: Teacher’s Guide
Grade Level: 6-8
Curriculum Focus: Earth Science
Lesson Duration: Two class periods
Program Description
The End of Dinosaurs—Explores the various theories of how the dinosaurs became extinct. Earth’s
Changing Landscape—Explores the history of Earth’s variety of vast terrains. Great Quakes—
Explores how poor structural planning of buildings in Kobe, Japan, contributed to the damage
wrought during an earthquake. Tsunami!—Explores how tsunamis form and how people can
protect against them.
I. The End of the Dinosaurs (6 min.)
II. Earth’s Changing Landscape (7 min.)
III. Great Quakes (28 min.)
IV. Tsunami! (6 min.)
Onscreen Questions
Segments I & II
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How is the Earth constantly changing?
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What are the evidences of this change?
Segments III and IV
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What natural disasters help change the shape of the Earth?
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How are people protecting themselves against natural disasters?
Lesson Plan
Student Objectives
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Discuss the experience of the Kobe earthquake.
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Research an historic or recent quake.
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Create a work of art or writing that expresses the experience of the earthquake.
Our Changing Earth: Teacher’s Guide
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Materials
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Our Changing Earth video and VCR, or DVD and DVD player
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Computer with Internet access
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Print resources about earthquakes
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Markers, glue, poster board, paint, and other art materials
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Color printer for printing Web research images (optional)
Procedures
1. The video uses images and scientific and personal accounts to illustrate the 1995 Kobe
earthquake. Ask students to brainstorm words, images, and quotes that describe the destruction
and express the experience of this quake. Examples might include flames, state of chaos,
expressway fallen on its side, tracks twisted like spaghetti, buildings toppled over, people
trapped in homes, terrifying, horrifying experience, “I thought I was going to die.”
2. 2. Tell students that they will work in small groups to research an historic or recent earthquake.
Through personal accounts, photographs, and newspaper reports, they will learn what it was
like to live through that experience. Assign each group to research one of following
earthquakes:
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San Francisco, California (1906)
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Loma Prieta, California (1989)
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Hebgen Lake, Montana (1959)
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Owens Valley, California (1872)
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New Madrid, Missouri (1811-1812)
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Lisbon, Portugal (1755)
3. Refer students to the Web sites below for their research. (Groups may choose to assign one Web
site to each member.) As students proceed with their research, encourage them to write down
the most vivid quotes from personal accounts or newspaper articles, and print out (or describe
in writing) the most dramatic photographs or drawings. Give students at least one class period
(and perhaps a homework assignment) to review these sites, and one class period to share their
research with the rest of the group.
San Francisco, California (1906)
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http://www.sfmuseum.org/1906/06.html
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http://neic.usgs.gov/neis/eqlists/USA/1906_04_18.html
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http://www.exploratorium.edu/faultline/1906/1906_2.html
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http://www.crustal.ucsb.edu/ics/understanding/accounts/london.html
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http://www.notfrisco.com/calmem/earthquake/1906.html
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Our Changing Earth: Teacher’s Guide
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Loma Prieta, California (1989)
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http://www.exploratorium.edu/faultline/loma_prieta/index.html
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http://geology.about.com/library/weekly/aa101799.htm
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http://www.sfgate.com/cgi bin/article.cgi?file=/ chronicle/archive/1999/10/12/MN41QUA.DTL
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http://www.notfrisco.com/calmem/earthquake/lomaprieta.html
Hebgen Lake, Montana (1959)
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http://www.seis.utah.edu/NEHRP_HTM/1959hebg/1959he1.htm
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http://neic.usgs.gov/neis/eqlists/USA/1959_08_18.html
Owens Valley, California (1872)
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http://www.crustal.ucsb.edu/ics/understanding/accounts/muir.html
New Madrid, Missouri (1811-1812)
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http://hsv.com/genlintr/newmadrd/index.htm
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http://www.eas.slu.edu/Earthquake_Center/SEISMICITY/Nuttli.1973/nuttli-73-app.html
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http://www.neic.cr.usgs.gov/neis/eqlists/USA/1811-1812.html
Lisbon, Portugal (1755)
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http://geology.about.com/library/bl/bllisbon1755eq.htm
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http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/1755lisbonquake.htm
4. After students have shared their research with group members, ask them to recall the most
memorable story, image, quote, or fact they found related to that quake. What do they think it
was like to live through the earthquake or experience the destruction it caused? As a final
assignment, ask each student to create a work of art or writing that expresses the experience of
the earthquake they studied. Students might write a poem or a fictional first-person journal,
paint a picture, or create a collage. They may want to focus on that single striking story, image,
or quote. Encourage students to title their work and include the earthquake’s location and date.
5. Display students’ work in a classroom earthquake exhibit.
Assessment
Use the following three-point rubric to evaluate students’ work during this lesson.
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3 points: Students actively engaged in class discussions; shared with their group several
relevant, striking images or quotes from their research; created a thoughtful, creative work
of art or writing clearly based on their group’s findings.
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2 points: Students participated in class discussions; shared with their group one or more
relevant, striking images or quotes from their research; created a satisfactory work of art or
writing loosely based on their group’s findings.
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1 point: Students participated minimally or not at all in class discussions; did not share any
images or quotes from their research with their group; created a simplistic work of art or
writing with no relevance to their group’s finding.
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Our Changing Earth: Teacher’s Guide
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Vocabulary
aftershock
Definition: A minor earthquake following a larger one that occurs at or near the same place
Context: Many aftershocks may be felt after a major earthquake.
earthquake
Definition: A shaking or trembling of Earth that is volcanic or tectonic in nature
Context: The 1995 Kobe earthquake was Japan’s most deadly since 1923, when an earthquake in
Tokyo killed 140,000 people.
epicenter
Definition: The part of Earth’s surface directly above the focus of an earthquake
Context: The epicenter of the 1995 Kobe earthquake was in a narrow strait between the city of
Kobe and Awaji Island.
Richter scale
Definition: A scale for measuring the magnitude of an earthquake; for example, 1.5 indicates the
smallest disturbance that can be felt, 4.5 indicates a disturbance that can cause slight damage,
and 8.5 indicates a very devastating disturbance
Context: The 1995 Kobe earthquake measured 6.9 on the Richter scale.
Academic Standards
National Academy of Sciences
The National Science Education Standards provide guidelines for teaching science as well as a
coherent vision of what it means to be scientifically literate for students in grades K-12. To view the
standards, visit http://books.nap.edu.
This lesson plan addresses the following science standards:
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Earth and Space Science: Structure of the Earth system
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Science in Personal and Social Perspectives: Natural hazards
Mid-continent Research for Education and Learning (McREL)
McREL's Content Knowledge: A Compendium of Standards and Benchmarks for K-12 Education
addresses 14 content areas. To view the standards and benchmarks, visit http://www.mcrel.org/.
This lesson plan addresses the following national standards:
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Science—Earth and Space Sciences: Understands Earth's composition and structure
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Language Arts—Viewing: Uses viewing skills and strategies to understand and interpret
visual media; Writing: Uses the general skills and strategies of the writing process, Gathers
and uses information for research purposes, Uses the stylistic and rhetorical aspects of
writing
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Our Changing Earth: Teacher’s Guide
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Support Materials
Develop custom worksheets, educational puzzles, online quizzes, and more with the free teaching tools
offered on the Discoveryschool.com Web site. Create and print support materials, or save them to a
Custom Classroom account for future use. To learn more, visit
•
http://school.discovery.com/teachingtools/teachingtools.html
DVD Content
This program is available in an interactive DVD format. The following information and activities are
specific to the DVD version.
How To Use the DVD
The DVD starting screen has the following options:
Play Video—This plays the video from start to finish. There are no programmed stops, except by
using a remote control. With a computer, depending on the particular software player, a pause
button is included with the other video controls.
Video Index—Here the video is divided into four parts (see below), indicated by video thumbnail
icons. Watching all parts in sequence is similar to watching the video from start to finish. Brief
descriptions and total running times are noted for each part. To play a particular segment, press
Enter on the remote for TV playback; on a computer, click once to highlight a thumbnail and read
the accompanying text description and click again to start the video.
Curriculum Units—These are specially edited video segments pulled from different sections of the
video (see below). These nonlinear segments align with key ideas in the unit of instruction. They
include onscreen pre- and post-viewing questions, reproduced below in this Teacher’s Guide. Total
running times for these segments are noted. To play a particular segment, press Enter on the TV
remote or click once on the Curriculum Unit title on a computer.
Standards Link—Selecting this option displays a single screen that lists the national academic
standards the video addresses.
Teacher Resources—This screen gives the technical support number and Web site address.
Video Index
I. The End of the Dinosaurs (6 min.)
Once the greatest beasts to roam Earth, dinosaurs began a mysterious extinction more than 60
million years ago. Journey back to prehistoric times for a possible explanation of their extinction.
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Our Changing Earth: Teacher’s Guide
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II. Earth’s Changing Landscape (7 min.)
Water and other forces of nature are constantly working to change the Earth’s surface. Travel to
some of the incredible places that have been shaped by these natural forces.
III. Great Quakes (28 min.)
The 1995 earthquake in Kobe, Japan, devastated the city but it was not the country’s first huge
quake. Learn about major earthquakes and Japan’s switch from prediction to preparedness.
IV. Tsunami! (6 min.)
Barely a ripple in the open ocean, a tsunami can cause massive destruction when it comes ashore.
Learn about tsunamis and how we protect ourselves from these giant wave.
Curriculum Units
1. Pangaea Unzipped
Pre-viewing question
Q: How is it possible that the same rock and similar fossils are found on two different continents?
A: Scientific evidence indicates that the Earth’s present continents were once part of a giant
landmass that split up more than 200 million years ago.
Post-viewing question
Q: What was Pangaea?
A: Pangaea was a supercontinent that existed about 260 million years ago.
2. Extinction
Pre-viewing question
Q: What are some natural forces that can change or destroy life on Earth?
A: Possible answers include volcanic eruptions, asteroids, earthquakes, climate changes, and heavy
winds.
Post-viewing question
Q: Which do you think destroyed the dinosaurs: a massive volcanic eruption or an asteroid?
A: Answers will vary.
3. Studying Craters
Pre-viewing question
Q: What do you think the Earth was like when dinosaurs roamed?
A: Answers will vary.
Post-viewing question
Q: What do scientists think happened after an asteroid hit the planet some 65 million years ago?
A: The impact would have created a planet-size fireball, earthquakes, and volcanoes. These would
have sent tons of dust and ash into the atmosphere, where nitrogen, sulfur, and oxygen would have
formed acid rain. About 75 percent of all Earth’s living things would have died.
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Our Changing Earth: Teacher’s Guide
4. Red Rock
Pre-viewing question
Q: What is your favorite type of terrain and why?
A: Answers will vary.
Post-viewing question
Q: What gives the rocks of Red Rock their color?
A: The red comes from hematite, or iron oxide. The rocks formed when dissolved iron from the
ocean combined with oxygen, precipitated out as iron oxide, and settled on the ocean floor.
5. How Water Shaped the Earth
Pre-viewing question
Q: How has water shaped the Earth where you live?
A: Answers will vary.
Post-viewing question
Q: What is basalt?
A: Basalt is a hard, dense volcanic rock, one of the hardest substances on Earth. Only enormous
amounts of water over a long period of time can shape such a hard substance.
6. Los Angeles and Kobe
Pre-viewing question
Q: What do you think is the most difficult aspect of cleaning up after an earthquake?
A: Answers will vary.
Post-viewing question
Q: Do you think there is a scientific explanation for why the two earthquakes occurred exactly one
year apart?
A: Answers will vary.
7. Damage in Kobe
Pre-viewing question
Q: How do you think it felt to be in Kobe, Japan, during the earthquake?
A: Answers will vary.
Post-viewing question
Q: Where was the epicenter of the Kobe earthquake?
A: The epicenter of the quake was in a narrow strait between Kobe and Owaji island. When the
fault snapped, much of the energy went directly into downtown Kob.
8. Cleaning Up Kobe
Pre-viewing question
Q: If you were a resident of Kobe, would you have rebuilt or moved after the earthquake?
A: Answers will vary.
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Our Changing Earth: Teacher’s Guide
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Post-viewing question
Q: How did sunflowers wind up across Japan?
A: A young girl who died in the Kobe earthquake had planted a sunflower. When it bloomed, her
family saw the flower as a sign from her. As the story spread, people began to plant sunflowers all
across Japan as a symbolic gesture of sympathy for the people of Kobe.
9. Faulty Engineering
Pre-viewing question
Q: If an earthquake occurred where you live, what do you think would incur the most damage?
A: Answers will vary.
Post-viewing question
Q: What were some reasons that Kobe was so damaged by the quake?
A: Kobe is a densely populated city that sits on an earthquake fault line; soft soil and landfill
surround Osaka Bay. An earthquake here made these soils unstable. Many of the buildings that
were destroyed had been built without proper earthquake design.
10. Quakes in Tokyo
Pre-viewing question
Q: Why do you think Tokyo historically has been the focus for Japanese earthquake safety?
A: Possible answers may be that Tokyo is the capital and, therefore, the most important city in
Japan, it has experienced numerous earthquakes, or the fault line below Tokyo is the most active.
Post-viewing question
Q: How is Tokyo different from Kobe in terms of earthquake safety?
A: Tokyo experiences earthquakes almost daily, so earthquake drills and preparedness are
common. It is feared that Tokyo might one day experience another serious earthquake. The threat
of earthquakes in Kobe had been overlooked.
11. Tectonic Movements in Japan
Pre-viewing question
Q: What are tectonic plates?
A: The layers of the Earth’s crust that move.
Post-viewing question
Q: What kinds of tectonic movements take place around Japan?
A: The Pacific plate is subducting, or plunging beneath the Philippine plate, and the Philippine
plate is plunging beneath the Eurasian plate. When sections of these plates get stuck and then break
free, they create earthquakes.
12. Earthquake Preparedness
Pre-viewing question
Q: Is earthquake preparedness or prediction more important?
A: Answers will vary.
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Our Changing Earth: Teacher’s Guide
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Post-viewing question
Q: How has earthquake prevention in Japan changed since the Kobe quake?
A: The Japanese government now focuses on earthquake preparedness. It is retrofitting older
buildings, and new buildings and bridges have earthquake-proof engineering. It is creating better
response systems and implementing safety drills for schools and businesses.
13. Learning About Tsunamis
Pre-viewing question
Q: What is a tsunami?
A: A tsunami is a large wave created by an earthquake or volcanic eruption on the ocean floor.
Post-viewing question
Q: How are tsunamis created?
A: Underwater earthquakes can create huge surface waves. In the open ocean a tsunami barely
makes a ripple, but as it reaches the shallow water near the shoreline, the water builds up into a
giant swell.
14 Protection from Tsunamis
Pre-viewing question
Q: How can people protect themselves from tsunamis?
A: They can build seawalls in areas prone to tsunamis and use tsunami warning systems.
Post-viewing question
Q: How does a deep-sea pressure-monitoring system work?
A: The pressure gauge lowered into the ocean transmits its measurements to a buoy on the surface,
which then sends the information by satellite. A computer monitors the system by looking for the
unique pattern of a tsunami.
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