SS 4 Standard 3 Combo
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Standard Indicator
4.3.7
Name That Sphere!
Purpose
Students will describe Earth’s atmosphere, lithosphere, hydrosphere,
and biosphere, and explain how these systems affect life in Indiana.
Materials
curriculum
Science
For the teacher: chalkboard, chalk, water, watering can
For each student: copy of Black Line Master (BLM) An Indiana
Farmer, pencil
For each group of students: clear, plastic, shoebox-sized container;
1
/2 gallon of gravel; quart of sand; quart of clay; quart of potting soil;
handful of grass seeds
Activity
(continued)
Have students research
the causes and effects
of the greenhouse
effect and global
warming. Encourage
students to propose
solutions to the
problem and theorize
what might happen
if nothing is done.
extending
THE
ACTIVITY
Take a field trip to a
state park. Ask a park
employee to point out
the types of rocks, soil,
waterways, plants and
animals in the park,
and have students
note which of the four
categories (atmosphere,
biosphere, hydrosphere,
and lithosphere) each
item fits into.
Standards Links
4.3.3, 4.3.5, 4.3.6
page 199
Standard 3
A. Here a Sphere, There a Sphere, Everywhere a Sphere
1. Explain to students that sphere usually means a globe-shaped
object but it also means the area in which something lives. Say
to students: “For example, the word hydro means water, so the
hydrosphere means what?” Explain that a hydrosphere is the
area in which water exists.
2. Tell students that there are four systems, or spheres, that affect
life in Indiana. These are the atmosphere, hydrosphere, biosphere,
and lithosphere (write each of these on the chalkboard).
3. Explain that the atmosphere is the gases that surround Earth
and includes the air we breathe; the lithosphere is the soil and
rock that form Earth’s surface; the biosphere is all of the plants
and animals on Earth; and the hydrosphere is all the water
on Earth’s surface in addition to the water included in the
hydrologic cycle (precipitation, evaporation, and condensation).
4. Tell students how these systems all affect each other. For
example, rain and soil help plants grow, animals eat plants,
plants and soil help purify the air and water, etc.
5. Ask students: “What is the atmosphere made of?” Explain
that it is made up of gases, such as oxygen and hydrogen,
and that gravity keeps the atmosphere in place around Earth.
6. Ask students: “What is the hydrosphere made of?” Guide students
to suggest rivers, streams, rain, snow, fog, and dew.
7. Ask students: “What types of things make up the lithosphere?”
Guide students to suggest coal, gold, limestone, soil, and sand.
Standard 3 / Curriculum Framework / Activity 8
Indiana Social Studies Grade 4 Standards Resource, February 2003
connecting
across the
SS 4 Standard 3 Combo
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Activity (continued)
8. Ask students: “What is the biosphere made of?” Explain that
the biosphere includes living things, such as insects, fish, birds,
people, crops, trees, and seaweed.
Standard 3
B. Building the Spheres
1. Divide students into groups of three or four. Give each group
a clear plastic container, gravel, sand, clay, potting soil, and
grass seeds.
2. Tell students: “You are going to construct your own models of the
atmosphere, hydrosphere, biosphere, and lithosphere.” Instruct
students to do the following:
Start with a layer of gravel in the bottom of the box.
Add a layer of sand, then clay, and finally topsoil. (Tell
students that they can use the clay below the topsoil to
make ponds or streams.)
Plant the grass seeds in the topsoil. (If it is the proper time
of year, allow students to add insects, such as ladybugs,
earthworms, and fireflies, to the models. Put a lid with holes
punched in it on top of the boxes and be sure to release the
insects after students have completed their models.)
3. After students have constructed their models, go around to
each group with the watering can and help students add the
hydrosphere to their models.
C. A Farmer’s Life in Indiana
1. Give each student a copy of the BLM An Indiana Farmer.
2. Instruct students to read the story and answer the questions
on the BLM.
Questions for Review
Basic Concepts and Processes
While students are building their models, ask questions, such as:
What would happen to the biosphere without the water from
the hydrosphere?
What would happen to the biosphere if the lithosphere were
disturbed; for instance, if the clay or gravel were dug up and
placed over the topsoil?
In what types of ways do humans change these systems?
What might be the effects of these changes?
page 200
Standard 3 / Curriculum Framework / Activity 8
Indiana Social Studies Grade 4 Standards Resource, February 2003
SS 4 Standard 3 Combo
12/30/02
2:10 PM
Page 201
Name:
An Indiana Farmer
Directions: Read the following story and answer the questions that follow.
I live in northern Indiana. I am a farmer. My family has always made a living by using
the resources of the state. We own a big grain and dairy farm. We used to pump water
from the river to water our crops and animals. Now the river is polluted, and we can’t
use the water. A factory dumped oil in the water. We used to plow our fields in the fall.
Now we have to leave old corn stalks and bean plants on the ground until spring.
This keeps the soil from washing away. We also plant trees along the edge of our
pastures and fields. This keeps water and wind from removing the soil and cleans
the air. We used to burn old tractor tires. Now we take them to be recycled. The crops
used to grow easily. Now we have to add fertilizer to the soil to make them grow.
1. Name one thing the family in this story does to protect the lithosphere.
_____________________________________________________________________
2. Name one way the hydrosphere has been hurt by humans.
_____________________________________________________________________
3. Which “sphere” do the animals and crops in this story belong to?
_____________________________________________________________________
4. Name one thing this family does to the lithosphere to help the biosphere.
_____________________________________________________________________
5. What would happen if this family decided to pump the polluted river water
to the crops and animals?
_____________________________________________________________________
6. Name one way this family helps protect the atmosphere.
_____________________________________________________________________
Standard 3 / Curriculum Framework / Activity 8
Indiana Social Studies Grade 4 Standards Resource, February 2003
Black Line Master 1
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SS 4 Standard 3 Combo
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An Indiana Farmer
Teacher Directions
Give each student a copy of the BLM An Indiana Farmer. Instruct students to read the story
and answer the questions on the BLM.
Answer Key
Answers will vary slightly but should be similar to the following:
1. They leave cornstalks on the ground or they plant trees.
2. The river is polluted or the factory put oil in the water.
3. The biosphere.
4. They put fertilizer on the soil or they keep the soil from washing away.
5. The plants and animals may die or the soil may not grow plants anymore.
6. They don’t burn tires anymore or they plant trees to clean the air.
Black Line Master 1
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Standard 3 / Curriculum Framework / Activity 8
Indiana Social Studies Grade 4 Standards Resource, February 2003