Earth’s Processes
Weathering
• Weathering is the process that
breaks down and changes
rocks
• Also called mechanical
weathering
• Weathering can occur at
different paces
Fast processes
• Volcanoes
• Volcano Erupts in
Japan
• Mount St. Helens
Erupting
Fast processes
• Earthquake
• Alaskan Way Viaduct
- Earthquake
Simulation
Fast processes
• Landslide
• Landslide in
Japan
Slow processes
• Erosion-the moving of weathered
rock or soil
• Caused By
–Wind
–Water
–Ice
–Plant growth
Slow processes
• Water erosion
• Caused by water moving over a surface and
wearing it down
• Grand Canyon
Water Erosion Station
• Slowly drop water onto sand and
write your observation.
• Lay a Kleenex over the top and slowly
drop the water over the surface.
Write you observation.
• Write how you persuade a farmer to
not plow his fields year after year.
Slow processes
• Wind erosion
• Caused by moving sand and small
rocks that crash into Earth’s surfaces.
• Grand Arches National park
Rock Sorting Station
• Sort rocks by how they were
weathered (wind or water)
• What kind would have a smooth
surface and which would be
rough and jagged?
• Write on how you decided which
category to put them into.
Slow processes
• Ice
• Caused by :
–water getting
into cracks and
freezing and
thawing
- ice scraping over
the surface like
glaciers
Slow processes
• Plant growth
• Roots grow inside rocks and break them
apart
Erosion Station
Put these changes caused by
erosion into the proper
sequence.
Check to see if you got them
in the proper order.
Write how you decided to put
the pictures in the order you
chose.
Deposition
• The dropping of material
moved by erosion
• The soil or rock erodes and
then is moved to another
place by wind or water.
Sand dunes
• Caused
by the
wind
picking
up
eroded
material
(sand)
Deltas
Created by moving water
that carries weathered rock
and soil to a new location
and dropping it.
Can you tell where the delta
begins?
Moraines
• Glacial moraines are created by glaciers
(large sheets of moving ice). As the
glacier moves it picks up materials like
rock and soil and deposits it.
• Go inside a moraine created by a glacier
Quiz
1. Imagine a pile of rocks that are large,
smooth and rounded. Near what place
were these rocks most likely formed?
a. River
b. Desert
c. Volcano
Write why you think so. (2 points)
Quiz
2. Of all the processes that change the
surface of the Earth, which one takes the
longest?
a. Earthquake
b. Glacial moraine
c. Landslide
Quiz
3. A student visits a park in the desert and
notices the sand dunes have moved
since the last time she saw them. What
processes most likely caused the
change?
a. Weathering by ice and erosion
b. Erosion by moving water and deposition
c. Erosion by wind and deposition
Quiz
4. Name two likely causes of erosion on a
mountain.
Quiz
5. Compare and contrast sand dunes and
deltas. (2 points)