Fossil Fuels
Days 1-10
Social Studies
Lesson Plan
2013-2014 School Year
Grade: 7th
Lesson Title: May the Force Be With You, Earth! The Resources and Physical Forces of Our Planet.
STRANDS
Economics
Geography
LESSON OVERVIEW
Summary of the task, challenge, investigation, career-related scenario, problem, or community link.
This lesson is focused on Earth’s physical geography, from the resources it provides, human consumption of such resources and impact on Earth, as well as the forces
that shape the way our world looks to us. The content and curriculum standards are strongly tied to the science content and students will be making calculations in a
variety of activities pertaining to energy consumption. Nearly every day of this unit requires students to write, either expository or reflective. The strong cross-curricular
ties are particularly evident in the unit culminating event, Journey to the Center of the Earth.
MOTIVATOR
Hook for the week unit or supplemental resources used throughout the week. (PBL scenarios, video clips, websites,
literature)
The motivators for the days in this unit are primarily video clips that are hip and engaging. Students will also practice answering state achievement practice questions as
they get approach the state testing.
DAY
Objectives
Materials & Resources
Instructional Procedures
Differentiated
Instruction
(I can….)
1
I CAN
distinguish
between
renewable
and
nonrenewable
resources.






iPad
Socrative.com
Video: Coal Energy
Drink (Appendix A)
Doceri App (or other
whiteboard iPad
application)
U.S. Energy
Consumption 2001
Graph (Appendix B)
Socrative.com
PBS NOVA Video:
“Energy Defined”
Assessment
Essential Question:
Enrichment:
Formative
What is energy?


What is the difference between renewable and nonrenewable
resources?


I.
II.
Activating Strategy:
a. Play the “Coal Energy Drink” video for students.
b. Ask students to discuss the impressions made by the
video with their classmates.
Teaching Strategy:
a. Ask students what they thing of when they hear the
word “energy”. Record their answers on the Doceri
app.
b. As a class, develop definitions for the word “energy”
and term “energy source” (Definitions may include: the
ability to do work and something that can be tapped to
provide heat, chemical, mechanical, nuclear, or radiant
energy, respectively). Encourage students to use their
prior knowledge to develop definitions.
c. Have students “Think-Pair-Share” in order to create a
list of as many energy sources as they can. Write this
list on a new slide using the Doceri app (examples may
include biomass, coal, geothermal, hydro, oil, solar,
nuclear, etc.)
d. Tell students that their list of energy sources can be
placed into two categories: renewable and
nonrenewable. Display the following definitions:
Heterogeneous
grouping
Peer Tutoring
High achieving
students may
paraphrase the
facts
presented to
them instead
of filling in the
blanks on the
assignment
sheet
Remediation:




Heterogeneous
grouping
Peer Tutoring
Extended time
on
assignments
for selected
students
Check often for
understanding


Classroom
discussion
Student
observation
Exit ticket
Summative

Student
mastery of the
content
standards will
be assessed
with an
assessment at
the end of the
unit.
i. Renewable – Energy resources that are
replaced by natural processes at a rate
comparable to their use.
ii. Nonrenewable resources – energy sources that
are limited and can eventually run out; these
energy sources cannot be replaced on a
timespan of human significance.
e. Using these definitions, ask students to identify the list
of energy sources by circling each source in either
green (renewable) or black (non—renewable).
f. Ask students to guess how much of the energy we use
in the United States comes from renewable resources.
Then, display the U.S. Consumption Pie Graph.
g. To give context to the percentage of renewable energy
consumed in the United States, ask students to list as
many uses of renewable resources as they can.
III.
Summarizing Strategy:
a. Using the short answer function on Socrative.com,
have students respond to the following prompt:
Take a mental trip into the future. It is fifty years from
today. Half of all of the energy we use in the United
States comes from renewables. Think of inventions that
have made this possible. How are offices, schools, and
houses heated and lighted? Where does the energy
used to run factories come from? What do people use
as means of transportation? Construct your answer in a
well-developed paragraph.
b. Alternatively, the PBS NOVA video, “Energy Defined”
may be played to summarize the content covered
during class.
of subject
matter
2
I CAN
demonstrate
how energy
consumption
impacts the
availability of
energy
sources.






Essential Question: How does energy consumption impact the
Socrative.com
availability
of energy sources now and in the future?
Paper bags filled
with 100 beans—94
of one color and 6 of
another (one per
I.
Activating Strategy:
group)
a. Using the short answer function on Socrative.com,
Extra beans of each
have students respond to the following questions:
color.
Student data sheet
Do you use the same amount of energy all day, or does
(Appendix A)
the amount of energy you use vary at different times.
OnlineChartTool.com
Does energy use vary with the season? Do you use
Renew-A-Bean
more or less energy than your parents did when they
Follow Up Questions
were in school?
(Appendix B)
II.
Teaching Strategy
a. Explain to students that they will participate in a
simulation known as “Renew-A-Bean”, meant to model
the affects of varying rates of energy consumption.
b. Procedures:
i. Show the class one of the paper bags filled
with beans. Explain that the beans represent
energy sources and then have students predict
what type of energy
(renewable/nonrenewable) each color
represents.
Enrichment:
Formative




Heterogeneous
grouping
Peer Tutoring
Higher
achieving
students may
be assigned
more difficult
variations
during round
two of
“Renew-ABean” (e.g.
change in
resource and
consumption
levels)
Remediation:


Heterogeneous
grouping
Peer Tutoring

Student
observation
Class
discussion/info
rmal
questioning
Summative

Student
mastery of the
content
standards will
be assessed
with an
assessment at
the end of the
unit.
ii. Tell students that they will draw beans from
the paper bag in order to simulate energy use
over time. Students in each group will take
turns drawing a predetermined number of
beans from the bag. Each drawing represents
one decade.
iii. When a “renewable” bean is drawn, they
should return it to the bag after they have
tallied the beans drawn (i.e. before the next
student draws). When a “nonrenewable” bean
is drawn, students should set it aside as it had
been used up.
iv. In the first round, students should draw 10
beans per decade, drawing until all of the
nonrenewable sources are used up.
v. Students should record their results on their
data sheets.
c. Once all of the groups are finished with round one, ask
students: “How many decades did it take to run out of
nonrenewable energy sources? After they were gone,
was there enough energy to meet the next decade’s
energy needs? How could you make the energy supply
last longer?
d. Instruct students to begin round two using one of the
following variations. Students will need to compute the
number of beans to draw before beginning the round:
i. Energy consumption increases by four percent
per decade.
ii. Energy consumption decreases by two percent
per decade
iii. Energy consumption decreases by four percent
per decade.
iv. Renewables increase by six percent per
decade; energy use remains constant.



Extended time
on
assignments
for selected
students
Check often for
understanding
of subject
matter
Choice:
Students who
need
remediation
with math
skills may
choose a
variation that
meets their
skill level.
v. Renewable increase by ten percent per
decade; energy use remains constant.
III.
3
I CAN identify
changes in the
physical
environment
that occur as
a result of
human
activity.






Socrative.com
iPad
Article: The Poor
Need Cheap Fossil
Fuels (Appendix A)
Article: Beijing Smog
Is So Bad They’re
Now Calling It a
‘Nuclear Winter’
(Appendix B)
Article:
Mountaintop
Removal Coal Mining
Poisons Appalachia’s
Waterways
(Appendix C)
Organizational
Reading Chart
(Appendix D)
Summarizing Strategy
a. Discuss with students the differences between the two
rounds.
b. For homework, Instruct students to graph their results
from both rounds in a line graph using
OnlineChartTool.com.
c. Additionally, students should answer the “Renew-ABean Follow Up Questions” for homework as well.
Essential Question: How does the extraction and consumption of fossil Enrichment:
fuels impact earth’s physical environment and people?
 Heterogeneous
I.
Activating Strategy:
grouping
a. Ask students to raise their hand if they have already
 Peer Tutoring
used fossil fuels in their daily activities.
 Require
b. After a few answers and/or probing questions,
students to
reiterate to students just how much modern society
research a
relies on fossil fuels, emphasizing that this can be both
potentially
positive and negative.
harmful
practice
II.
Teaching Strategy:
pertaining to
a. Instruct students to read the first article, The Poor
either the
Need Cheap Fossil Fuels. Students will individually read
extraction or
the article and record the main ideas and correlating
consumption
evidence/details on the Reading Organizational Chart.
of fossil fuels.
Instruct students to lock their iPad to indicate when
In response,
they have finished reading.
students will
b. Once all students have finished reading, within
write a letter
collaborative groups of three or four, give students
to a
Formative:



Student
observation
Class
discussion
Reading
Organizational
Chart
Summative:

Student
mastery of the
content
standards will
be assessed
with an
assessment at
time to share their main ideas and supporting
evidence.
c. Repeat for the subsequent articles, Beijing Smog Is So
Bad They’re Now Calling It a ‘Nuclear Winter’ and
Mountaintop Removal Coal Mining Poisons
Appalachia’s Waterways.
III.
Summarizing Strategy
a. Review with students the three problems related to
fossil fuels they encountered in the reading for the
day.
policymaker on
the local, state,
or federal level
voicing their
concern and
proposing a
solution.
Remediation:




4
Essential Question:
Heterogeneous
grouping
Peer Tutoring
Extended time
on
assignments
for selected
students
Check often for
understanding
of subject
matter
the end of the
unit.
Project Day – Refer to Unit Plan
Journey to the Center of the Earth
5
I CAN explain
the forces of
weathering,
erosion, and
deposition.




Socrative.com
iPad
Photo of the
Colorado River
within the Grand
Canyon (Appendix A)
Activity follow-up
questions (Appendix
B)
Essential Question: What physical forces have shaped and formed
Earth’s physical geography?
Enrichment:


I.
Activating:
a. Display the picture of the Grand Canyon to students.
Then, say to students:
I am the Colorado River. About 6 million years on the

high-level Colorado Plateau, I began to change the
land. What I did is considered by geologists to be one of 
the Seven Wonders of the Natural World. Today, you
will build a model that demonstrates how I might have
changed the land!
II.
Instructional Strategy
a. Demonstrate to students how to set up their “canyon”
using the following instructions and diagram:
i. Hold the foam cup so the water falls onto the
top center of the milk carton. Hold the cup still
while the water is flowing.
Heterogeneous 
grouping
Peer Tutoring

Remediation:



Formative
Activity followup questions
Summarizing
question
submitted to
Socrative.com
Informal
questioning
Heterogeneous 
grouping
Peer Tutoring
Summative
Extended time
 Student
on
mastery of the
assignments
content
for selected
standards will
students
be assessed
Check often for
with an
understanding
assessment at
of subject
the end of the
Tactile learning
unit
activity.
ii. Carefully poke a 1/2-centimeter hole in the
bottom of the foam cup with a nail. This
controls the flow of water.
iii. Spout side of milk carton is down. Cut-out side
is up.
iv. Pack the sand down with a plastic spoon or
your fingers.
v. Keep the cap on the spout until after the sand
is packed down.
vi. Set your catch basin (bucket) on a chair under
the table.
vii. Pour 1/2 the water. Observe and record
results. Pour remainder of water. Observe and
record results.
b.
c. Instruct students to complete the activity questions on
the accompanying handout.
III.
Summarizing Strategy:
a. Using the short-answer function on Socrative.com,
have students answer the following question:
How does today’s activity help to answer the essential
question for the day?
b. Review and assign the activity follow up questions for
homework.
6
I CAN
describe the
processes of
weathering,
erosion, and
deposition.
I CAN connect
weathering,
erosion, and
deposition to
Earth’s
physical
landforms.







Socrative.com
iPad
Apple TV/Projection
System
Video: Weathering
and Erosion
Weathering, Erosion,
and Deposition
Matching Activity
(Appendix A)
Weathering, Erosion,
and Deposition
Matching Pictures
(Appendix B)
Weathering, Erosion,
and Deposition
Matching Text
(Appendix C)
Essential Questions:
Enrichment:
What are weathering, erosion, and deposition?

How are weathering, erosion, and deposition interrelated?
I.
Activating Strategy
a. Using Socrative.com, students will answer a multi ple
choice question pertaining to the activity from the
previous day.
b. Review the homework assignment from day 5.
II.
Teaching Strategy
a. Play the Weathering and Erosion video for students.
Discuss key components of the video with students
and, if necessary, pause the video at key moments to
discuss.
b. Distribute the Weathering, Erosion, and Deposition
Matching Pictures and Text to students in collaborative
groups of three or four.
c. Instruct students to open the Weathering, Erosion, and
Deposition Matching Activity answer sheet. Review the
Formative
Heterogeneous  Class
grouping
discussion
 Peer Tutoring
 Weathering,
Erosion, and
 Shape It Up:
Deposition
An Earth
Matching
Changing
Activity
Erosion
Activity
Summative
Remediation:
 Student
mastery of the
 Heterogeneous
content
grouping
standards will
 Peer Tutoring
be assessed
 Extended time
with an
on
assessment at
assignments
the end of the
for selected
unit.
students

Check often for
understanding
elements of the activity along with the matching
pictures and text.
d. Provide students ample time to complete the matching
activity. As students work, move about the room to
ensure that students are completing the accuracy with
a high level of accuracy.
III.
7
I CAN locate
Earth’s major


Socrative.com
iPad
of subject
Summarizing Strategy
a. Review the results of the Weathering, Erosion, and
Deposition Activity as a class.
b. Assess student knowledge via the “Test Yourself”
Weathering and Erosion quiz.
Essential Question: What are the major landforms and bodies of water
on Earth?
Enrichment
Formative
landforms and 
bodies of

water.




MacBook Air
Google Earth
Self-created Google
Earth tour or
example from the
Google Earth
Showcase
Google Earth
Outreach web
resource
Creating a Google
Earth tour cheat
sheet (Appendix A)
Landforms & Bodies
of Water assignment
sheet (Appendix B)
I.
II.
III.
Activating Strategy
a. Using Socrative.com, students will answer a multiplechoice question pertaining to weathering, erosion, and
deposition.

Teaching Strategy
a. Explain to students that for the next two class days,
they will be tour guides. Their mission is to create a
Google Earth tour of Earth’s major landforms.
b. Play the self-created/example Google Earth tour to
give students an idea of what they will be creating.
c. Divide students up into collaborative groups of four
students each.
d. Within their groups, have students review the web
resource from Google Earth Outreach. Alternatively,
the teacher could AirPlay the information and discuss
as an entire class.
e. Review the assignment guidelines and then instruct
students to divide the landforms/bodies of water
amongst the team members (approximately four per
student).
f. Allow students the remainder of class to research their
assigned landforms and bodies of water. What is not
finished in class should be completed for homework.
Remediation:
Summarizing Strategy
a. Using the exit ticket function on Socrative.com,
instruct students to write a haiku describing one of the
landforms or bodies of water they researched.

Heterogeneous 
grouping
Peer Tutoring
Google Earth
tour paragraph
descriptions.
Summative




Heterogeneous
grouping
Peer Tutoring
Extended time
on
assignments
for selected
students
Check often for
understanding
of subject

Student
mastery of the
content
standards will
be assessed
with an
assessment at
the end of the
unit
8
Essential Question:
Project Day – Refer to Unit Plan
Journey to the Center of the Earth
9
Essential Question:
Project Day – Refer to Unit Plan
Journey to the Center of the Earth
10
I CAN locate
Earth’s major
landforms and
bodies of
water.








Socrative.com
iPad
MacBook Air
Google Earth
Self-created Google
Earth tour or
example from the
Google Earth
Showcase
Google Earth
Outreach web
resource
Creating a Google
Earth tour cheat
sheet (Appendix A)
Landforms & Bodies
of Water assignment
sheet (Appendix
Essential Question: What are the major landforms and bodies of
water on Earth?
Formative
Enrichment

I.
II.
III.
Activating Strategy
a. Using Socrative.com, students will answer a multiplechoice question pertaining to weathering, erosion, and
deposition.
Activity
a. Review with students (again) the parameters and
requirements of the tour.
b. Allow students a majority of class to record their tours.
It may be necessary to send groups out of the room to
narrate their tour.
c. Once students are all finished, upload the KMZ files to
the learning management system or the cloud. Instruct
students to view at least one other group’s tour on
their iPad. Alternatively, a gallery walk could e
conducted.
Summarizing Strategy
a. Based on what students watched, ask them to make
comparisons between their group’s findings to that of
the other group’s (for the same landforms and bodies
of water.


Heterogeneous
grouping
Summative
Peer Tutoring

Remediation:




Google Earth
tour (final
product).
Heterogeneous
grouping
Peer Tutoring
Extended time
on
assignments
for selected
students
Check often for
understanding
of subject
Student
mastery of the
content
standards will
be assessed
with an
assessment at
the end of the
unit
STANDARDS
Identify what you want to teach. Reference State, Common Core, ACT
College Readiness Standards and/or State Competencies.
GLE 2.03 Understand the changes that occur in the nature, use, distribution, and importance of resources.
7.2.spi.2. Define renewable and nonrenewable resources.
GLE 3.02 Know the location of places and geographic features, both physical and human, locally, regionally and globally.
GLE 3.03 Understand the characteristics and usesof spatial organization of Earth’s surface.
GLE 3.06 Understand how physical processes shape the Earth’s natural landscapes and affect environments.
GLE 3.07 Understand how physical systems and the physical environment affect human systems.
GLE 3.08 Understand how human activities impact and modify the physical environment.
7.3.spi.9. identify the location of Earth's major landforms and bodies of water (i.e., Rockies, Andes, Himalayas, Alps, Urals, Sahara desert, Nile
River Valley, Great Plains, Mississippi River, Amazon River, Thames River, Seine River, Rhine River, Danube River, Tigris River, Eurphrates River,
Ganges River, Volga River, Yellow River).
7.3.spi.11. recognize specific physical processes that operate on the Earth's surface (i.e., erosion, volcanoes, earthquakes, wind and water
currents, plate tectonics, and weathering).
7.3.spi.13. recognize the definitions of modifications on the physical environment (i.e. global warming, deforestation, desert, urbanization).
7.3.spi.18. analyze the environmental consequences of humans changing their physical environment (i.e., air and water pollution, mining,
deforestation, global warming).