- Author:
- Utah Lesson Plans
- Subject:
- Media and Communications
- Material Type:
- Lesson
- Level:
- Middle School, High School
- Tags:
- License:
- Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial
- Language:
- English
- Media Formats:
- Text/HTML
Education Standards
Newsla: Non-fiction Literacy and Current Events
Utah's Online Library
Choosing Research Topics: Plate Tectonics
Overview
Students will read from selected materials about earthquakes, volcanoes, continental features, ocean floor features, rocks and/or fossils, and develop a question to investigate.
Summary
Students will read from selected materials about earthquakes, volcanoes, continental features, ocean floor features, rocks and/or fossils, and develop a question to investigate.
Materials
School Library Catalog to pull appropriate library resources
Background for Teachers
Teachers should review the listed Curriculum Ties for the Library Media Strand, the Science Strand, and the attached list of articles from Gale Research in Context using Utah's Online Library.
Student Prior Knowledge
Students will come prepared with background knowledge on plate tectonics and the structure of the Earth.
Intended Learning Outcomes
Read about the optional topics, choose a topic of interest, and develop a research question to investigate.
Instructional Procedures
SESSION 1
1. Introduction: Review Plate Tectonics and introduce six topics:
- Volcanoes
- Earthquakes
- Continental features
- Ocean floor features
- Rocks
- Fossils
2. Students select a reading on one of the six topics.
3. Instruction on research process:
- Citation
- Read article
- Summarize
- Own ideas and questions
4. Students select another reading and cite and take notes on their own.
5. Wrap Up
SESSION 2
1. Instruction:
Each student is to select one or more additional readings to cite and take notes. Review process as needed from work turned in from the previous session.
2. Students work on their own.
3. Developing research questions: Have students review the questions they formulated as they read to find a question they would like to research.
4. Wrap Up
Strategies for Diverse Learners
Selected materials on every topic will be available on many Lexile® levels and in different formats. Students will choose the topic and sources for their personal research.
Extensions
Students with more interest or deeper research questions can access additional materials on their topics.
Assessment Plan
Students will turn in their note pages on the topic of interest and the research question that they developed.
Bibliography
Reviewed for USBE by Sarah Herron