Read-aloud (HIST):
The Statue of Liberty
Lesson: What
different kinds of
weathering can
we see in New
York City?
Field Investigation: Central
Park Glacier Striations Data
Collection.
EQ 2: How can we
model weathering and
erosion of rocks by
abrasion?
EQ: How will the topography
of Central Park affect the flow
of the glaciers that covered
this area during the ice age?
The BIG question: How do
rocks get EVERYWHERE?
EQ 1: What are glaciers
and how do they move?
1.1 Activity:
“Then & Now
Glaciers” What
do glaciers look
like and how do
they change over
time?
Video: An Inconvenient Truth
Discussion (Socratic seminar):
How does global warming
work?
2. What evidence can we see of
global warning in glaciers?
3. What are the consequences
of global warming that affect
us? Is there ANYTHING we
can do?
1.
Lesson: What
causes big rocks to
turn into small
rocks or even sand?
1.2
Demonstration:
“Glacier
Plucking” How
do glaciers
“pluck” up
rocks?
(on-going) Mechanical
weathering LAB: DO all
rocks carried along in a
stream undergo the
same physical changes??
(on-going) Rock Tumbler
LAB: Which rock samples
will be the most
resistant to weathering?
Big idea: weathering is when rocks break
down into smaller rocks that break down
into smaller rocks that break down into
smaller rocks . . . (physical weathering is
caused by wind, water, ice, plants, animals;
chemical weathering is caused by acid rain
and gases in the atmosphere)
Big idea: Glaciers erode the Earth by two
mechanisms: plucking and abrasion.
Plucking is when the glacier “plucks” pieces
of rock from their parent rock (or a
mountain). This occurs through a series of
events, beginning with the glacier melting
a little bit. Scientists believe that the
glacier floats on the melted water. The rock
then freezes to the bottom of the glacier
during seasonal or global cooling. The
water also seeps down into cracks in the
rock, and water that was in the rock cracks
is now ice, which expands the cracks (see
Figures 1 and 2). The glacier itself
accumulates snow and ice on its surface,
and under this added weight and pressure,
the glacier slides down the mountainside.
Materials
Then & Now Glaciers
•
•
images (1 per team of 2)
“Glacial hitch hikers worksheet”
Glacier Plucking Model
•
•
Small plastic container, dirt, pebbles, small rocks, water, ice cubes
“Glaciers: Then and Now”
Mechanical Weathering of Rocks Lab
•
Goggles
•
Granite, halite (20 g each per group)
•
Magnifier
•
Small vials (2 per group)
•
“Neo/Sci Student’s Guide Mechanical and Chemical Weathering of Rocks” lab
Rock Tumbler Lab
•
five different rock samples, each approximately 7.5 cm in diameter by 2.5 cm in width
•
rock tumbler
•
sand
•
water
•
Balance
•
“Take a Tumble” Lab
Glacial Striation Lab
•
Compass
•
“Glacial Striations Lab”
An Inconvenient Truth
•
DVD, or Netflix
•
“Global Warming: The Film ‘An Inconvenient Truth’” viewing guide
•
“Socratic Seminar Discussion Notes"