2013/2014
Earth Science A
Teacher: Laura Clarke
Course Description:
Earth Science Semester A consists of 47 lessons, which address major concepts such as the materials which
compose Earth, the rock cycle and types of rocks, Earth's resources, formation and movement of soil, glaciers,
deserts, and alluvial landscapes, earthquakes, volcanoes, plate tectonics, mountain building, and geologic time.
Additionally, students learn about science as a process. Laboratory concepts appear in videos and key scientists
are called out through portraits and biographies.
Syllabus:
Unit 1: Introduction to Earth Science
MHSCE Standards: STANDARD E1 Inquiry, Reflection, and Social Implications; E2 Earth Systems; E2.1
Earth Systems Overview; E2.2 Energy in Earth Systems
Objectives: Students will be able to:
- Define the terms hypothesis and theory.
- Describe Earth science.
- Describe the formation of Earth and the solar system.
- Describe Earth's four major spheres.
- State the value of the theory of plate tectonics to Earth science.
- Locate points on Earth's surface by their latitude and longitude.
- Describe the advantages and disadvantages of different types of maps.
- Explain what makes topographic maps different from other maps.
- Describe the primary goal of Earth system science and define the term system.
- Describe Earth's two major sources of energy.
- Explain how humans affect Earth's system.
- Describe how the impact of natural hazards varies depending on population.
Unit 2: Minerals
MHSCE Standards: E3 Solid Earth; E3.p2 Rocks and Minerals (prerequisite)
Objectives: Students will be able to:
- Explain how elements are related to minerals.
- Identify the kinds of particles that make up atoms.
- Explain the differences between ions and isotopes.
- Explain what compounds are and describe why they form.
- Compare and contrast the three major types of chemical bonds.
- List five characteristics of minerals.
- Describe the processes that result in mineral formation.
- Explain how minerals can be classified and the usefulness of color, streak, luster, crystal form, and
hardness in identifying minerals.
- Distinguish between cleavage and fracture.
- Explain density and how it can be used to identify substances.
- Describe some other properties that can be used to identify minerals.
- Identify different minerals using simple tests.
Unit 3: Rocks
MHSCE Standards: E3 Solid earth; E3.1 Advanced Rock Cycle
Objectives: Students will be able to:
2013/2014
Earth Science A
-
Teacher: Laura Clarke
Define the term rock.
Describe the rock cycle and the three major types of rocks.
List the forces that power Earth’s rock cycle.
Compare and contrast intrusive and extrusive igneous rocks.
Classify igneous rocks by texture and describe how the rate of cooling affects texture.
Classify igneous rocks by composition.
Describe the major processes involved in the formation of sedimentary rocks.
Distinguish between clastic sedimentary rocks and chemical sedimentary rocks.
Identify the features that are unique to some sedimentary rocks.
Predict where most metamorphism takes place and distinguish contact from regional metamorphism.
Identify the three agents of metamorphism and explain what changes they cause.
Classify metamorphic rocks as foliated or nonfoliated.
Unit 4: Earth’s Resources
MHSCE Standards: E2.4 Resources and Human Impacts on Earth Systems
Objectives: Students will be able to:
- Distinguish between renewable and nonrenewable resources.
- Identify which energy resources are fossil fuels; Predict which energy resources might replace
dwindling petroleum supplies in the future.
- Describe the processes that concentrate minerals into large deposits as they form.
- Recognize how nonmetallic mineral resources are used.
- Evaluate the advantages of solar energy.
- Explain how nuclear power plants use nuclear fission to produce energy.
- Evaluate wind power's potential for providing energy in the future.
- Relate how geothermal energy and hydroelectric power contributes to our energy resources.
- Relate how tidal power contributes to our energy resources.
- Explain why fresh water is a vital resource.
- Recognize why the chemical composition of the atmosphere is important.
- Identify Earth's important land resources.
- Identify the first laws passed to deal with water pollution.
- Name the most important law passed to deal with air pollution.
- Explain what is involved in protecting land resources.
Unit 5: Weathering, Soil and Mass Movements
MHSCE Standards: E3.3 Plate Tectonics Theory; E4.1 Hydrogeology; E2.4 Resources and Human Impacts on
Earth Systems
Objectives: Students will be able to:
- Describe mechanical weathering.
- Explain chemical weathering.
- Identify the factors that affect the rate of weathering.
- Recognize the major components of soil.
- List the most important factors in soil formation.
- Explain how soil varies with depth.
- Compare and contrast the three common types of soil.
- Demonstrate how human activities affect the rate of soil erosion.
- Describe mass movement and identify the factors that trigger mass movements.
2013/2014
Earth Science A
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Teacher: Laura Clarke
Classify mass movements.
Unit 6: Running Water and Groundwater
MHSCE Standards: E4.1 Hydrogeology; E2.4 Resources and Human Impacts on Earth Systems
Objectives: Students will be able to:
- Explain how the water cycle circulates Earth's water supply in an unending cycle.
- Describe the ability of a stream to erode and transport material.
- Compare and contrast the changes in gradient and discharge between a stream's headwaters and mouth.
- Describe base level.
- Explain how streams erode their channels and transport sediments.
- Explain how stream deposition occurs.
- Identify the two general types of stream valleys.
- Predict the causes of floods and describe major flood control measures.
- Explain the relationship between streams and drainage basins.
- Describe the location and movement of groundwater.
- Describe the formation of springs and wells.
- Explain environmental threats to water supplies.
- Describe the formation of caverns.
- Describe landforms in karst areas.
- Explain how the permeability of soil affects its ability to move water.
Unit 7: Glaciers, Deserts, and Wind
MHSCE Standards: E4.2 Oceans and Climate; E4.p3 Glaciers (prerequisite)
Objectives: Students will be able to:
- Describe the different types of glaciers and where each type is found.
Explain how glaciers move.
- Explain the effects of the most recent ice age.
- Explain how glaciers erode the land.
- Identify the landscape features created by glacial erosion.
- Identify the landscape features created by glacial deposits.
- Identify the depositional features caused by glaciers.
- Describe how running water affects deserts.
- Describe different landscape features of the desert.
- Describe two ways that wind can cause erosion.
- Identify types of landforms that are deposited by the wind.
- Describe how sand dunes differ.
Unit 8: Earthquakes and Earth's Interior
MHSCE Standards: E3.4 Earthquakes and Volcanoes; E3.2 Interior of the Earth
- Objectives: Students will be able to:
- Compare and contrast the epicenter and focus of an earthquake.
- Identify the cause of earthquakes and the three types of seismic waves.
- Describe how seismic waves are recorded.
- Describe the different ways earthquakes are measured.
- Explain how to locate the epicenter of an earthquake.
- Identify the major hazards associated with earthquakes.
2013/2014
Earth Science A
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Teacher: Laura Clarke
Describe how earthquake damage can be reduced.
List the layers of Earth based on composition.
List the layers of Earth based on physical properties.
Explain how scientists determined Earth's structure and composition.
Unit 9: Plate Tectonics
MHSCE Standards: E3.3 Plate Tectonics Theory
Objectives: Students will be able to:
- Describe the hypothesis of continental drift.
- Evaluate the evidence in support of continental drift.
- Identify the main objections to Wegener's hypothesis of continental drift.
- Identify mid-ocean ridges and deep-ocean trenches.
- Explain the processes of sea-floor spreading and subduction.
- Explain the evidence for sea-floor spreading, including paleomagnetism and magnetic reversals,
earthquake patterns, and the age of the ocean floor.
- Explain the theory of plate tectonics and describe lithospheric plates.
- Identify divergent, convergent and transform fault boundaries.
- Relate the unequal distribution of heat in Earth and the mechanism of mantle convection to the
movement of tectonic plates.
- Compare the mechanisms of slab-pull and ridge-push as contributing to plate motion.
Unit 10: Volcanoes and Other Igneous Activity
MHSCE Standards: E3.4 Earthquakes and Volcanoes; E3.2 Interior of the Earth
Objectives: Students will be able to:
- Describe the origin of magma.
- Explain the relationship between plate tectonics and volcanism, including intraplate volcanism.
- Explain the factors that determine the type of volcanic eruptions that occur.
- Describe the various types of volcanic materials that are ejected from volcanoes.
- List the three main types of volcanoes.
- Distinguish how the different types of volcanic landforms form.
- Describe the major intrusive igneous features, such as dikes, sills, and laccoliths, and how they form.
- Describe batholiths and how they form.
Unit 11: Mountain Building
MHSCE Standards: E3.4 Earthquakes and Volcanoes; E3.3 Plate Tectonics Theory; E3.2 Interior of the Earth
Objectives: Students will be able to:
- Identify the factors that determine the strength of a rock and explain how rocks permanently deform.
- Distinguish among the types of stresses that affect rocks.
- Explain how isostatic adjustment is involved in mountain formation.
- List the three main types of folds; Identify the main types of faults.
- Describe folded mountains and fault-block mountains and explain how they form.
- Describe plateaus, domes, and basins and explain how they form.
- Identify the types of mountains associated with the various types of convergent and divergent plate
boundaries.
- Describe the role of accretion in the formation of continents and mountain building.
2013/2014
Earth Science A
Teacher: Laura Clarke
Unit 12: Geologic Time
MHSCE Standards: E5.3 Earth History and Geologic Time; E5.3x Geologic Dating
Objectives: Students will be able to:
- List three main ideas that geologists use in studying Earth's history.
- List the key principles of relative dating and describe how geologists use relative dating in their work.
- Describe how geologists use inclusions, unconformities, and correlation of rock layers to interpret the
rock record.
- Describe the different types of fossils and how they form.
- Explain how the principle of fossil succession and the theory of evolution help scientists interpret the
fossil record.
- Describe how geologists use fossils to correlate rock layers and reconstruct past environments.
- Describe radioactivity and half-life.
- Explain radiometric dating.
- Describe how carbon-14 is used in radiometric dating.
- Explain how radiometric dating of igneous rock layers can help date sedimentary rock layers indirectly.
- Describe the geologic time scale.
- Identify the eons, eras, periods and epochs of the geologic time scale.
Unit 13: Earth's History
MHSCE Standards: E5.3 Earth History and Geologic Time; E5.3x Geologic Dating
Objectives: Students will be able to:
- Describe the major geologic developments of Precambrian time.
- Describe the major developments in the evolution of living things during Precambrian time.
- List the kinds of environmental changes that have affected the evolution of life over geologic time.
- Describe the major developments in Earth's geology and life forms during the Cambrian, Ordovician,
Silurian, Devonian, Carboniferous, Permian, Triassic, Jurassic, Cretaceous, Mesozoic, Cenozoic,
Tertiary and Quaternary periods.
- State the cause of the mass extinction at the end of the era.
- Explain why mammals became widespread and successful in the era.
Grading Categories:
In this course your grade will consist of the following:
Unit Tests: 93%
Final Exam: 8%
Grading Scale:
A 95-100
A- 90-94
B+ 88-89
B 84-87
BC+
C
C-
80-83
78-79
74-77
70-73
D+
D
DE
68-69
64-67
60-63
0-59
Additional Student Resources:
Graphic Organizers
Study Guides