Final Unit Plan

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Exploring Earth (Chapter 3: Our Planet Earth)
A Unit Plan developed by:
Courtney P. Shear
Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements of EDI 331- Science Teacher Assisting
Seminar
Grand Valley State University
December 5, 2016

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Table of Contents:
 Philosophy of Education…………………………………………………………………. pg. 3
 Introduction………………………………………………………………………………. pg. 4
 Student Population Description……………………………………………………...........pg. 4
 Concepts Overview………………………………………………………………………..pg. 5
 Schedule………………………………………………………………………………….. pg. 9
 Lesson Plan 1: Earth’s Systems……………………………………………………….....pg. 10
 Overview and Background…………………………………………………..……....pg. 11
 Lesson Timeline……………………………………………………….......................pg. 16
 Supporting Materials/Assessments………………………………………………......pg. 37
 Data Supported Reflection ………………………………………………………......pg. 62
 Lesson Plan 2: Interactions of Earth’s Systems………………………………………….pg. 65
 Overview………………………………………………………..................................pg. 66
 Lesson Timeline……………………………………………………….......................pg. 72
 Supporting Materials/Assessments…………………………………………………..pg. 85
 Data Supported Reflection …………………………………………………………pg. 110
 NOTE: Lesson Plan 2 is the one chosen to be formally evaluated.
 Overall Chapter 3 Assessment Data…………………………………………………….pg.117
 Final Reflection………………………………………………………………………….pg.119
 Self-Assessment………………………………………………………………………...pg. 123

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Philosophy of Education:
I believe learning is done best and achieves the highest outcome when it is not forced, but
natural, engaging and relatable. As a science major, I may seem biased toward science and its
methods of discovery and inquiry; however, I believe this method of questioning and
engagement while using a systematic series of questions can be used to best facilitate many
subjects beyond just science. To best facilitate learning we should excite our students about the
idea of learning and as teachers try to make the material relatable utilizing assimilation. I also
believe that we need to teach our students not just what to learn, but how to learn. We should
help students build the skills to decipher material and gather information on their own. Helping
students become problem solvers is a huge goal of mine because life is like a big story problem.
I also think that the atmosphere in which students learn is critical. I think that the typical
cold classroom with metal chairs and desks may not be the best environment. When I picture
quality learning, I picture a comfortable environment that allows students to be mobile and hands
on when necessary. Also, as the teacher it is important to let the students know that being
incorrect is okay, and a lot of times being wrong is when the most learning can occur. Fostering
that open environment, I think is crucial for facilitating learning. It is easy to talk about what I
believe to be the best way to facilitate learning; however, I then ask myself how I would apply
these pedagogical strategies in my own classroom. I have some experience tutoring and being an
SLA facilitator, and a lot of times I tried to apply some of my ideas about teaching in those
sessions. I would use mini demonstrations to spark interest and questions, and I would want to do
this in my own class. It would be great to start every class with some sort of applicable
demonstration or experiment that would engage students and relate to the topic being discussed. I
also mentioned trying to make the material relatable and authentic. To do this, I would use
examples or relate things to ideas students are familiar with such as sports, friendships or the
work environment. Building on children’s prior knowledge is essential in the construction of new
knowledge according to the constructivist model. I would also strive to help students realize the
importance of education and learning, and helping them realize the benefits of being a lifelong
learner. I once had a teacher that every day at the end of class would give a description of a type
of job that related to the topic we were learning about in class. I think doing this helps students
see the importance of learning in general and that topic specifically.
Also in my class, as I do during tutoring sessions, I would focus a lot on the process of
thinking things through systematically. I like to model with my students the way I think about a
problem logically, and I give them examples by talking out loud through problems. This kind of
relates to metacognition, or thinking about your own thinking. This skill to me is a quality that
takes a student from an average to exemplary learner. Facilitating learning with the goal of
thinking about, dissecting and questioning your own thoughts and processes I believe strengthens
the learning process. I too often see students that have no idea why they are doing an experiment
the way they are or solving a math problem in fashion that they are. As a future educator, I want
to strive to teach students to think outside the box, be creative and think critically instead of
linearly.

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Introduction:
The big idea or big picture for this Unit on “Our Planet Earth,” is “how can you describe
Earth?” This unit focuses on giving students hands on experience with various systems and
interactions on Earth in order to build their scientific knowledge, background and vocabulary to
be able to discuss pertinent issues and topics relating to Earth, and their personal impact here on
our planet. This unit helps bring light to processes and interactions that students may have seen
before but to then give them scientific meaning and significance via assimilation of prior
knowledge and experience with new knowledge. Via backwards design, scientific inquiry,
projects and a 5E approach, my goal is for students to be able to describe the atmosphere,
biosphere, geosphere and hydrosphere in terms of characteristics, function and types of
interactions.
By using personal photographs, news reports, videos and inquiry-based lab activities, I
will strive to relate the importance of what we are learning in class to important social, political
and global issues occurring outside of class. For making material authentic and relevant is a
necessary component in the construction of a meaningful classroom. For example, I will inform
students on issues related to these spheres of Earth, such as pollution, flooding, droughts, overuse
of resources, political issues of water usage and historical concepts describing the development
of Earth to make my students more informed citizens that can participate in a democratic society.
Description of Student Population:
I am Teacher Assisting at Coopersville Middle School in Coopersville, Michigan. The
building is a 6th
through 8th
grade building, and I am with two 6th
grade classes and one 7th
grade
class. The class sizes are between 28 and 32 students, with about an even male to female ratio.
There are about 615 students enrolled for the three grades in the school, and there are around 28
teachers and 6 paraprofessionals that work alongside the students. Each of the hours that I am
there also has anywhere from two to six students with IEP’s or 504 plans. However, Coopersville
has a great supplemental support staff and there is usually a paraprofessional in each of the hours
to assist the general education teacher and myself. The student population would be defined by
low diversity, and consists primarily of students of Caucasian decent with a large German and
Dutch influence. There are also a few Latino and African American students per class. A
majority of my students are middle to low socioeconomic status and come from working-class
homes. There is a large percent, about 40%, of the students that are considered economically
disadvantaged and receive free and or reduced lunch. The community is driven by agriculture
and manufacturing; however, there are also students from the upper middle to upper class.
Furthermore, a majority of the students come from a home with very active parents and or
guardians that support the students’ academic success and educational experience more so than
some other schools in the Grand Rapids Area.

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Concepts Overview:
1) Major concepts, theories, and laws - Include important historical people and events
associated with the development of theories and laws
a. Major Concepts
i. The Earth functions in Cycles/Cycles versus Flow
1. Rock Cycle
2. Water Cycle
ii. The sun and the energy it delivers provides the energy for many processes
on Earth.
iii. The Earth is one complex system constructed of many interacting systems
or “spheres”
iv. The Earth is dynamic and constantly changing by transformation of Earth
Materials.
b. Theories (explanations)
i. Theory of plate tectonics in relation to the crustal formation and
destruction and uplift.
1. Alfred Wegner proposed this theory in 1912 but he lacked a
mechanism for the crustal movement so a lot of people dismissed
his idea. It wasn’t until almost a half a century later the theory was
accepted when Harry Hess and R.Deitz published similar
hypotheses about plate tectonics providing the mechanism based
on mantle convection or sea floor spreading.
a. http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/geology/techist.html
c. Laws (rules that describe patterns)
i. Law of Conservation of Matter
1. Matter is not created or destroyed, only transformed.
2. Antoine Laurent Lavoisier 1785
a. http://www.chemteam.info/Thermochem/Law-Cons-Mass-
Energy.html
ii. Law of Conservation of Energy
1. Energy is not created or destroyed, only transformed.
2. Julius Robert Mayer 1842
a. http://www.chemteam.info/Thermochem/Law-Cons-Mass-
Energy.html
2) Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS):Earth’s Systems
a) MS-ESS2-1. Develop a model to describe the cycling of Earth's materials and the
flow of energy that drives this process. [Clarification Statement: Emphasis is on
the processes of melting, crystallization, weathering, deformation, and
sedimentation, which act together to form minerals and rocks through the cycling
of Earth’s materials.] [Assessment Boundary: Do not include the identification
and naming of minerals.]

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b) MS-ESS2-4. Develop a model to describe the cycling of water through Earth's
systems driven by energy from the sun and the force of gravity. [Clarification
Statement: Emphasis is on the ways water changes its state as it moves through
the multiple pathways of the hydrologic cycle. Examples of models can be
conceptual or physical.]
c) 5-ESS2-1.Develop a model using an example to describe ways the geosphere,
biosphere, hydrosphere, and/or atmosphere interact. [Clarification Statement:
Examples could include the influence of the ocean on ecosystems, landform
shape, and climate; the influence of the atmosphere on landforms and ecosystems
through weather and climate; and the influence of mountain ranges on winds and
clouds in the atmosphere. The geosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere, and biosphere
are each a system.]
d) 5-ESS2-2. Describe and graph the amounts and percentages of water and fresh
water in various reservoirs to provide evidence about the distribution of water on
Earth. [Assessment Boundary: Assessment is limited to oceans, lakes, rivers,
glaciers, ground water, and polar ice caps, and does not include the atmosphere.]
e) 5-ESS3-1. Obtain and combine information about ways individual communities
use science ideas to protect the Earth’s resources and environment.
3) Crosscutting Concepts - Identify the appropriate Crosscutting Concepts from the Next
Generation Science Standards (NGSS) that your unit will reinforce with the students.
a. Cause and Effect-The relationship may be used to predict phenomena in natural or
designed systems.
i. This will be addressed in relation to humans’ effect on the Earth and its
Cycles, as well as the effect of interactions between Earth’s different
spheres and systems.
b. Energy and Matter-Within a natural or designed system, the transfer of energy
drives the motion and or cycling of matter.
i. This will be addressed in relation to the Rock Cycle and Water Cycle.
c. Stability and Change- Explanations of stability and change in natural or designed
systems can be constructed by examining the changes over time and processes at
different scales, including the atomic scale.
i. This will be discussed in relation to the fact our Earth is a dynamic
system. Also, we will be discussing the difference between weather and
climate in relation to changes and or stability in weather conditions.
Furthermore, we will discuss the processes of uplift, weathering, erosion
and deposition which will have students examine the factors that are stable
over time and what factors cause change at different scales.
d. Scale, Proportion, and Quantity- Standard units are used to measure and describe
physical quantities such as weight, and volume. (5-ESS2-2)
e. Systems and System Models- A system can be described in terms of its
components and their interactions. (5-ESS2- 1 &5-ESS3-1)

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4) Science and Engineering Practices –
a. Developing and Using Models
i. Students will be able to develop and use models to understand the Rock
and Water Cycle.
ii. Students will be able to develop a model to explain a component of the
water cycle.
iii. Students will be able to develop a model to understand weathering,
erosion and deposition.
b. Constructing Explanations and Designing Solutions
i. Students will be able to explain why the Earth’s systems are separate yet
interacting spheres.
ii. Students will be able to design a solution or management plan to help
protect one of the spheres of the Earth whether it is the geosphere,
hydrosphere, atmosphere, biosphere or cryosphere.
c. Using Mathematics and Computational Thinking. (5-ESS2-2)
d. Obtaining, Evaluating, and Communicating Information.(5-ESS3-1)
5) Nature of Science Concepts- Identify the appropriate Nature of Science characteristics your
unit will address. Refer to the table in the NOS assignment. Refer to the McComas (2004)
and Padilla (1990) papers in the course documents folder.
a. Science demands and relies on empirical evidence.
i. Empirical evidence was required to best understand the crust of the Earth
including its formation and destruction in relation to seafloor spreading.
ii. Defining the layers of the Earth required data from scientific
investigations.
b. There are historical, culture, and social influences on science.
i. The original establishment of the Theory of Plate tectonics by Alfred
Wegner was not accepted until later mechanisms were described.
ii. Different cultural and social views affect how different people and parts of
the world view Earth and our responsibility as humans to protect and
maintain the planet.
c. Laws and theories are related but distinct kinds of scientific knowledge.
i. Laws are rules that describe patterns.
1. The Rock and Water Cycle consider:
a. The Law of Conservation of Matter.
b. The Law of Conservation of Energy.
ii. Theories are explanations that help us understand phenomenon.
1. The layers of the Earth and their function consider:
a. The Theory of Plate Tectonics.

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6) Objectives:
a. Students will be able to analyze the importance of the Sun in relation to Earth’s
Systems.
b. Students will be able to identify the differences between a cycle and a flow as it
pertains to the energy and materials in Earth’s systems.
c. Students will be able to explain the major characteristics and or functions of the
four main spheres of Earth including the atmosphere, geosphere, hydrosphere and
biosphere.
d. Students will be able to distinguish the layers of the atmosphere according to
composition, temperature and function.
e. Students will be able to diagram the external and internal structure of Earth.
f. Students will be able to describe the approximate distribution of water on Earth.
g. Students will be able to evaluate the interactions between Earth’s spheres as it
relates to processes such as the Water Cycle and Rock Cycle.
h. Students will be able to develop and use a model to illustrate the phase changes
and cycling of water in the Hydrologic Cycle and Rock Cycle.
i. Students will be able to synthesize information about what humans can do to help
protect Earth’s systems and interactions through the lens of being a member of the
biosphere.
7) Assessments
a. Lesson 1:
i. Exit Slip Quiz on Earth’s Systems (McGraw Hill)
b. Lesson 2:
i. Exit Slip Quiz on Interactions of Earth’s Systems (McGraw Hill)
ii. Rube Goldberg Machine Project and Presentations
iii. “Can Rocks Change?” Lab Quiz
iv. Quizlet Live
v. Quizizz Test Review
vi. Chapter 3 Summative Assessment

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Schedule:
October 19, 2016 – November 4, 2016
Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday
17 18 19
Earth’s 4 Main
Spheres
Introduction
20
Chapter 2 Test
21
Earth’s 4 Main
Spheres
Biosphere
24
Atmosphere
25
Hydrosphere
26
Geosphere
27
Interactions of
Spheres in My
Life
28
Rock Cycle
31
Water Cycle
1
Water Cycle
Project Work
Day
2
Project
Presentations
Rock Cycle
Review
3
Free-Write
Chapter 3
Review
4
Chapter 3
Review
Chapter 3 Test

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Next Generation Science Standard: Earth’s Systems
*5th
Grade Standards are covered because the Coopersville Elementary School largely focuses
on Math and English, so the Middle School has to cover some elementary standards first.
Performance Expectations:
f) 5-ESS2-1.Develop a model using an example to describe ways the geosphere,
biosphere, hydrosphere, and/or atmosphere interact. [Clarification Statement:
Examples could include the influence of the ocean on ecosystems, landform
shape, and climate; the influence of the atmosphere on landforms and ecosystems
through weather and climate; and the influence of mountain ranges on winds and
clouds in the atmosphere. The geosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere, and biosphere
are each a system.] [Assessment Boundary: Assessment is limited to the
interactions of two systems at a time.]
a. Aligned Activities:
i. Day 6: Elaborate- Science in My Daily Life
g) 5-ESS2-2.Describe and graph the amounts and percentages of water and fresh
water in various reservoirs to provide evidence about the distribution of water on
Earth. [Assessment Boundary: Assessment is limited to oceans, lakes, rivers,
glaciers, ground water, and polar ice caps, and does not include the atmosphere.]
a. Aligned Activities:
i. Day 4: Engage- Where’s the World’s Water
ii. Day 4: Explain- The World’s Water on a 5 gallon scale
Science and Engineering Practices:
1. Developing and Using Models.(5-ESS2-1)
2. Using Mathematics and Computational Thinking.(5-ESS2-2)
Disciplinary Core Ideas:
1. ESS2.A: Earth’s Materials and Systems- All Earth processes are the result of energy
flowing and matter cycling within and among the planet’s systems. This energy is derived
from the sun and Earth’s hot interior. The energy that flows and matter that cycles
produce chemical and physical changes. (5-ESS2-1)
2. ESS2.C: The Roles of Water in Earth’s Surface Processes- Water continually cycles
among land, ocean, and atmosphere via transpiration, evaporation, condensation and
crystallization, and precipitation, as well as downhill flows on land. Global movements of
water and its changes in form are propelled by sunlight and gravity. (5-ESS2-2)
Cross Cutting Concepts:
1. Scale, Proportion, and Quantity- Standard units are used to measure and describe
physical quantities such as weight, and volume. (5-ESS2-2)
2. Systems and System Models- A system can be described in terms of its components and
their interactions. (5-ESS2- 1)

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Nature of Science:
Science demands and relies on empirical evidence.
- Empirical evidence was required to best understand the crust of the Earth including its
formation and destruction in relation to seafloor spreading.
- Defining the layers of the Earth required data from scientific investigations.
There are historical, culture, and social influences on science.
- The original establishment of the Theory of Plate tectonics by Alfred Wegner was not
accepted until later mechanisms were described.
- Different cultural and social views affect how different people and parts of the world
view Earth and our responsibility as humans to protect and maintain the planet.
Laws and theories are related but distinct kinds of scientific knowledge.
- Laws are rules that describe patterns.
a. The Rock and Water Cycle consider:
i. The Law of Conservation of Matter.
ii. The Law of Conservation of Energy.
- Theories are explanations that help us understand phenomenon.
a. The layers of the Earth and their function consider:
i. The Theory of Plate Tectonics.
Objectives:
1. Students will be able to explain the major characteristics and or functions of the four
main spheres of Earth including the atmosphere, geosphere, hydrosphere and biosphere.
2. Students will be able to distinguish the layers of the atmosphere according to
3. Students will be able to analyze the difference between a rock and a mineral, and the
different kinds of rocks.
4. Students will be able to diagram the external and internal structure of Earth.
5. Students will be able to describe the approximate distribution of water on Earth.
6. Students will be able to synthesize information about what humans can do to help protect
Earth’s systems and interactions through the lens of being a member of the biosphere.
Safety Considerations and Precautions:
1. During the lesson on the geosphere, large rock samples will be used for observation in
lab. Students and Teachers must be careful in the transportation of these rocks if moving
them is needed.
2. No caustic chemicals or materials will be used during this lesson plan that would require
special protection or goggles.

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Requisite Knowledge:
1. Students should understand that the sun provides Energy for the Earth and its inhabitants.
2. Students should know the different phases of water including the vocabulary words of
solid, liquid and gas as they relate to an increase and decrease in energy.
3. Students should be have the ability to do basic lab skills such as measure mass, length
and time in order to record observations about a phenomenon.
4. Students should be know the typical activities involved in scientific inquiry in order to
make observations about natural and artificial phenomenon to provide explanations based
on empirical and observable evidence.
5. Students should be able to construct diagrams and use models to help solve problems.
Misconceptions:
1. The atmosphere, hydrosphere, lithosphere, and biosphere do not cause changes in one
another; these systems operate independently on Earth.
2. Landforms look similar today as they did years ago, and wind and water have no effect
on landforms shape and size (AAAs Project 2061, n.d.).
3. The atmosphere is made up solely of air.
4. Oxygen is the most prominent gas in the atmosphere.
5. The % of oxygen in the atmosphere fluctuates depending on plant life.
6. All bed-rock is solid, non-porous material.
7. All rocks are more or less the same (a rock is a rock!)
8. Many students have an alternative conception regarding groundwater. It has been found
via classroom studies that students view ground water in a very static way, and think of it
as an underground lake or water trapped beneath the Earth’s surface (Ben-zvi-Assarf and
Orion, 2005). Students do not conceive the dynamic nature and flow of the underground
water reservoirs creating a very problematic misconception when attempting to teach the
cyclic nature of the water cycle. This misconception may be due to the fact that it’s hard
for students to understand processes they may not be able to directly see, such as
groundwater (Ben-zvi-Assarf and Orion, 2005). Consequently, when a phenomenon is
not able to be directly visualized and observed by the student, their brain makes short
work of filling in the gaps with information, sometimes these conceptions our brain
comes up with are incorrect. Consequently, students cannot directly observe underground
water so they relate it to above ground water (Ben-zvi-Assarf and Orion, 2005).

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Scientific Background:
To better understand the Earth and the interactions it undergoes, scientists have broken
down the Earth into four main “spheres” or systems. These four spheres include the atmosphere,
hydrosphere, geosphere and biosphere.
The atmosphere includes what people think of as the “air” but in reality the atmosphere is
a lot more complex than many believe. The atmosphere is 78% Nitrogen and about 21% Oxygen.
The remaining 1% is trace gases such as argon, carbon dioxide and water vapor. Besides gasses,
there are also many particles in the atmosphere like aerosols or
dust that can act as condensation nuclei for water vapor to
condense on and form clouds that will eventually release some
form of precipitation. The atmosphere is broken up into layers.
The first layer is the troposphere. This layer is about 15 km,
and all of the weather that we experience occurs. The
troposphere is dense with particles and contains most of the
mass of the atmosphere. Here the temperature also decreases
with altitude. The second layer is the stratosphere. This layer
extends from about 15 km to 50 km, and the temperature
increases with altitude due the presences of the ozone in this
layer. Ozone is a special gas made up of 3 oxygen atoms that
has the ability to reflect ultraviolet radiation, shielding Earth and its inhabitants from some of the
damaging events of UV light. The next layer is the Mesosphere which extends from about 50 km
altitude to about 85 km. Here, the temperature goes back to decreasing as the altitude increases,
like the troposphere. The last layer is the thermosphere which includes the ionosphere (auroras
occur here) and exosphere, and in this layer the temperatures go back to increasing with altitude
due the atmosphere getting closer to the sun. These layers extend from about 85 km to 100 km
and then into space. Many people say the atmosphere is about 100 km; however, the outer layer
or the exosphere in actuality extends into space but the air has such a low density that it does not
actually account for many of the particles and gasses that make up the atmosphere. Between each
layer is a “pause” that indicates the transformation to a new layer of the atmosphere.
The hydrosphere considers the various storage areas and states of water. The states of
water visible on Earth include solid, liquid and gas. Water can be stored in all the different
spheres of Earth including the atmosphere as water vapor, the biosphere in plants and animals
and water can also be stored in the rocks making up the geosphere. The main reservoirs of water
include the oceans, lakes, rivers, ground water and glaciers. Nearly 97% of the World’s water is
stored in the ocean but the ocean does not make for economical extraction of freshwater due to
its salinity from dissolved minerals from rocks and minerals (Integrated IScience). The rest of
the World’s water, 3%, is freshwater (Integrated IScience). About 2.3% of the World’s water, or
79% of the World’s freshwater, is tied up in the cryosphere which is the frozen sphere of Earth
(Integrated IScience). This means the water is tied up in glaciers such as the Himalayan glaciers

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in India that supply millions of people with freshwater via glacial meltwater. In fact, the
cryosphere is so large and important that some consider it the fifth sphere of the Earth. The other
1% of the water is in ground water, lakes, the atmosphere and rivers. Ground water is a huge and
accessible supply of freshwater. However, a common misconception is that ground water is a
static underground lake (Ben-zvi-Assarf and Orion, 2005). People need to be aware of the
dynamic and changing nature of ground water, and citizens also need to be informed of ground
water protection and recharging in order to keep ground water a reliable source for freshwater.
The geosphere, or lithosphere, is the non-living solid sphere of Earth illustrated by rocks,
soils, metals and minerals. Minerals are naturally occurring, inorganic solids with a predictable
crystalline structure made of one type of chemical compound; whereas rocks are a composite of
minerals and may contain organic matter. To identify a mineral we can look at its characteristics
including color, streak, hardness, luster and crystal shape. There are many natural occurring
minerals and they serve as the building blocks for rocks. The categories of rocks include igneous,
sedimentary and metamorphic. Each category has some typical characteristics that may be used
for identification. For example, igneous rocks are volcanic rocks and often have air pockets or
look like glass without any sort of identifiable crystals. Sedimentary rocks are formed from
weathered rock particles and often have visible grains. Metamorphic rocks often have foliation or
layering of different minerals due to rearrangement via heat and pressure. The rocks and
minerals form the Earth, and they are always being transformed.
Just as the atmosphere has layers, the Earth also has various defined layers. The outer and
thinnest layer of the Earth is the brittle crust. There are two types of crust that include continental
and oceanic crust. The oceanic crust is constructed from the
igneous rock basalt and it is dense; hence the reason it lines
the ocean floor. The continental crust forms the continents
and is largely composes of granite which is a sedimentary
rock. In the continental crust you can also find igneous and
metamorphic rocks due to regional uplift and metamorphism.
The middle layer and the thickest layer is the Mantle. The
core is composed of two layers, an inner layer and an outer
layer. The outer core is liquid and made of iron and nickel.
The inner core is also iron and nickel but is solid due to the
immense pressure. The last layer of the Earth is the biosphere
which includes all the living plants and animals on Earth.

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Day 1:
*A Multi-Unit Pretest was already given covering my Unit’s Information.
Engage: What do you see? (30 minutes)(List-Group-Label Strategy)
Materials: Glacier National Park and Hawaii Picture (pg. 37) and Science Journals
Overview:
- Using the List-Group-Label literacy strategy, landscape images will be shown and
students will describe and make observations about the pictures.
Objective:
- 1. Students will be able to explain the major characteristics and or functions of the four
Procedure:
- Teacher will display the image of Glacier National Park and Hawaii to the students and
ask them to take 5-7 minutes to make at least 10 observations about the photograph.
- Students will write down their observations into their Science Journals.
- Teacher will lead a class discussion about the observations and type out the student
responses into Padlet so students can see the classes collective observations projected.
- Padlet is a free online whiteboard compatible with Smart Boards.
- https://padlet.com/
- Teacher will then ask students to think about categories their observations fit into.
- Teacher will ask students:
- What kinds of categories did you think of that fit your observations?
- Students may answer with types of animals and organisms, land features,
common colors, types of plants, forms of water and or things in the sky.
- Teacher will type out the categories that students came up with and as a class they will
organize the observations into categories using Padlet and Smart Board Technology.
- Do you think that these categories could be used for looking at other pictures?
- Students may say yes because these categories are really broad and can cover
a lot of different observations.
- How does doing this make us like scientists?
- Students will say they are collecting data and making observations which are
both things that scientists do.
Assessment:
- Observe and Document: The teacher will consider the written and oral construction of the
typical categories their observations of Glacier National Park and Hawaii fit into.

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Explore: Etymology: What’s it all mean? (20 minutes)
Materials: Prefix, Suffix and Root Word Worksheet (pg. 38)
Objective:
Overview:
- The students will work on the skill of etymology by discovering for themselves the
meaning of prefixes and suffixes involved in the vocabulary words used for the spheres
of the Earth including geosphere, atmosphere, hydrosphere, biosphere and cryosphere.
Procedure:
- Teacher will pass out the Prefix, Suffix and Root Word Worksheet.
- Teacher will discuss that etymology is the study of words and their meaning.
- Teacher will discuss the importance of every student being an etymologist because a lot
of times in life and science class we run along words that we are unsure of. Not knowing
what the word means can greatly affect our understanding of a particular passage and we
may not always have the resources to look up the word. Consequently, it is a good skill to
practice breaking words down into simpler, already known parts to help discover the
words meaning.
- Teacher will ask:
- What is a prefix?
- Students responded with it is the beginning part of a word that means
something.
- What is a suffix?
- Students said this is the part of the word that comes at the end.
- Can anyone think of a personal example of them breaking down words and their
meaning to help them understand?
- Students were unsure of an example so teacher will give an example.
- An example of using etymology could be one trying to understand the word
antibacterial. We have all seen antibacterial hand soap but what does that mean?
Well the prefix anti- means against, and bacterial means having something to do
with bacterial. Therefore, I can put the means of the words together and know that
antibacterial hand soap fights against or kills bacteria.
- Students will research what the prefixes and suffixes mean to piece together the meanings
of the words atmosphere, geosphere, biosphere, hydrosphere and cryosphere.
- Teachers will collect and check the students work at the end of the hour.
Assessment:
- Homework Check: The Prefix, Suffix and Root Word Worksheet will be collected and
the teacher will review the results and common mistakes among students to address in the
following days Explain Activity: Earth’s Main Spheres.

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Day 2:
Explain: Reading to Construct Meaning (15 minutes)
Materials: McGraw Hill eBook
Overview:
- Students and Teacher will read to pg. 75-76 out of the eBook. These pages discuss the
four spheres of Earth and their main defining characteristics.
Objective:
Procedure:
- As a class, the students and teacher will read pg. 75-76.
- Students will take notes in their science journal in the form of paraphrasing.
- Paraphrasing is a high-leverage teaching practice and important student skill.
- Teacher will explain that after each section he or she wants the student to paraphrase.
- Teacher will remind students that paraphrasing is putting something into your own words
after reading and processing questions you may have about the passage.
- Teacher will model paraphrasing for the first section of reading. The teacher will use
R.A.P to help remind students of this paraphrasing technique.
- R- Read the paragraph.
- A- Ask yourself what are the main ideas and details.
- P- Paraphrase the important details in your own words.
- Adopted from Dr. Paula Lancaster, Director of Teacher Education at GVSU.
- Teacher will ask students to relate back to the jars of ice, rocks, water, toys and “air” to
explain how each jar is representative of each sphere of the Earth and write a description
of the appropriate jar next to the corresponding sphere they took notes about.
Assessment:
- Observe: Teacher will observe and comment on class discussions and paraphrasing of the
required reading sections.
Elaborate #1: Earth’s Main Spheres (15 minutes)
Materials: Sample Materials and 10 beakers. Teacher must set up beakers on desk prior to class.
Overview:
- Students will work hands on with samples representing the different spheres of the Earth
to put a visual to the definition they constructed the day before using etymology.
Objective:
Procedure:

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- Teacher will have students pull out a piece of paper from their Science Journals and write
atmosphere, geosphere, cryosphere, hydrosphere and biosphere on it.
- Students will cut out these words so each is individually on its own chunk of paper.
- Students will place cut out piece of paper with the name of one of Earth’s Spheres on it in
the extra beaker next to the beaker with what they think is the appropriate material.
- Beakers contain Rocks, Water, “Air,” Toy animals and people, and ice.
- Teacher will go through a few of the student responses in front of the class and read them
allowed.
- Do you think the most common response for this specific beaker was the correct
response and why?
- Students should hopefully say yes, and use evidence based on the
definitions they constructed for the vocabulary words the day prior.
- The teacher is looking for explanations from the students based on
observations and vocabulary knowledge gained during the etymology
activity without providing the students with the correct answer.
- Students will discuss as a class and appropriately argue their stances to determine which
jar of material represents which sphere if there is disagreement.
- Teacher will ask:
- Why was the ice included?
- Students may be unsure as to why the ice was included when we are
talking about the “4” spheres of Earth yet there were “5” beakers. Some
may respond by saying the ice is part of the hydrosphere but it covers a
large amount of Earth and is important so it gets its own category.
- This demonstration shows the materials in separate beakers, do you think in the
real world it is the same and that each different sphere of the Earth doesn’t
interact? Why or why not?
- Students should respond with no they interact. It is pretty obvious that the
Earth and its parts all function together.
- What sphere of the Earth do you think is the most important? Why?
- Responses will vary because this is a slightly subjective question. Some
students may say the Biosphere because we are part of the biosphere.
Really all spheres are important for the overall function of Earth.
Assessment:
- Observe: Teacher will observe students placement of the spheres of the Earth next to the
appropriate or inappropriate jars to determine student comprehension of the topics.
- Thumbs Up/Thumbs Down: Teacher will use this as a quick assessment of students’
knowledge about the four spheres of Earth.

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Elaborate #2: Nature Walk (10 minutes) *Weather Permitting*
Materials: Science Journal
Overview:
- On a short walk outside, students will write in their Science Journals all the things they
observe that are living.
Objective:
Procedure:
- Teacher will take students outside for a short walk.
- Teacher will tell students to write and draw observations they have of things that are
living.
- Students will record observations and pictures in their Science Journals.
- Teacher will lead a class discussion so students can share their observations.
- Teacher will ask:
- What kinds of observations did you guys make?
- Student responses should include (depending on the time of year) birds,
grass, bugs, deer, farm animals and people.
- What were some of the living things that weren’t so obvious to you at first?
- Students may realize that there are things in the ground below their feet
that are living that they cannot see, and there are also things that are so
tiny you cannot see them.
- What other spheres are affected by the biosphere? Or does the biosphere act
independently, or separately, from the rest of the systems?
- Students should realize that all of the spheres incorporate the biosphere
because living things are in the air, water and soil.
Assessment:
- Observe and Document: Teacher will discuss student’s findings as a class to observe and
document the data they collected.
Evaluate: Exit Slip (10 minutes)
Materials: Exit Slip (pg. 39)
Overview:
- Students will hand write responses to a few questions provided by the teacher about the
four spheres of Earth before they leave class.
Objective:

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Procedure:
- What are the main 4 spheres of Earth?
- Students should respond with atmosphere, geosphere, hydrosphere and biosphere.
- Which of the four spheres involve non-living things? What about living things?
- The geosphere, hydrosphere and atmosphere involve non-living things. The
biosphere involves the living portions of the Earth.
- Why did we talk about the cryosphere but it’s not included in this reading?
- Students should respond by saying that we discussed the cryosphere because a
large amount of water on Earth is frozen so it is a significant sphere; however,
technically it falls under the hydrosphere category since ice is frozen water.
- Which sphere do you think most directly affects you and why?
- Students’ responses may vary.
- Students may say that the biosphere affects them most directly because they are
part of the biosphere because they are living organisms, and they need food to eat
to survive.
- Students may say that the atmosphere affects them most directly because they
need oxygen to live.
- Students may say the hydrosphere affects them most directly because they need
water to drink for survival.
Assessment:
- Teacher Check: Teacher will collect and grade the exit slip to return to students.

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Day 3:
Engage: What’s Air Got to do with it? (5 minutes)
Materials: Science Journals, Chrome Books and Coloring Utensils.
Overview:
- Students will use their prior knowledge to explain what makes up the air we breathe.
Objective:
- 2. Students will be able to distinguish the layers of the atmosphere according to
Procedure:
- Teacher will ask students to record in their Daily Science on Moodle what gasses or
“things” they think the atmosphere is made of.
- The teacher will then ask the students what gasses they listed, and to then rank the gasses
with approximate percentages in relation to how much of the atmosphere is that gas.
- Students will write their responses in their science journal by constructing a pie chart
showing the approximate distribution of gasses in the atmosphere. The teacher should
make sure to emphasize that all of their percentages should at up to 100%, and also what
a proper graph with labels should look like. Students may use coloring utensils.
- Teacher will elicit responses from students, and display some of the graphs students drew
on the ELMO. The teacher will take note of misconceptions about oxygen being the most
prominent gas in the atmosphere since it is what people need to breathe.
- Teacher will ask:
- What were the gasses you thought made up the atmosphere?
- Students may say oxygen and carbon dioxide because those are familiar
gasses. Some students may remember that there is nitrogen and water
vapor in the air as well.
- Who put oxygen as the main gas? Why?
- Students may say they put oxygen as the main gas because that is what humans
need to breathe in so it must make up most of the air since we need a lot of
oxygen since there are a lot of humans and animals.
- Do you think that the atmosphere is homogenous, or evenly mixed?
- Students may say yes the atmosphere is evenly mixed because the wind
helps distribute the different gasses.
- Students may say no because there might be more oxygen in areas with
more plants because of photosynthesis.
Assessment:
- Observe and Give Feedback: Students will draw a pie chart showing the approximate
distribution of the main gasses in the atmosphere and teacher will observe and give
feedback to individuals and the class as a whole.

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Explore: With Great Altitude Comes Great __________? (30 minutes)
Materials: Temperature and Pressure Plotting of Atmosphere Data Packet (pg. 41-43) (idea
modified from Steve Mattox and HMX Earth Science)
Overview:
- Students will plot temperature, pressure and water vapor data for various atmospheric
altitudes to determine patterns.
Objective:
Procedure:
- Teacher will provide students with the Temperature and Pressure Plotting of the
Atmosphere Data Packet (pg. 41-43).
- Teacher will tell the students to use a colored pencil to sketch what they think each
variable (pressure, temperature and water vapor) will look like with increasing altitude in
the atmosphere by first modeling with the teachers own prediction.
- Teacher will walk around the class and observe what the students have drawn.
- Teacher will ask students individually and collectively:
- What did you draw for the temperature graph? Why?
- Students will probably respond with a temperature that decreases linearly
because when you climb a mountain it gets colder near the top.
- What did you guys draw for the pressure? Why?
- Students will probably say that they drew the pressure decreasing linearly
with the temperature because the air is thinner at the top of a mountain.
- Teacher will help students label the title and y-axis of their graphs to align with the data.
- Teacher will leave the data on the board for students to reference.
- Students will then complete the graph using a different color of pencil.
- Students will try to identify and observe patterns within the data and the plot.
- Students will compare predictions with their outcome and discuss with a partner.
- Teacher will ask the students:
- Where your predictions and graphed data different?Why or why not?
- Students will probably say their prediction was different than the actual
data because they forgot that the atmosphere had defined layers.
- Students may say they did not realize that the temperature could increase
in the atmosphere because they only have personally experienced the
troposphere and its change in temperature with altitude.
Assessment:
- Observe and Give Feedback: Teacher will evaluate the ability of the students to construct
a graph using provided data as well as interpreting provided data through class discussion
and observations.

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Explain: The Atmosphere pg. 77-78 (15 minutes)
Materials: Interactive PowerPoint on the layers of Earth’s Atmosphere (pg. 46-47), Layers of the
Atmosphere Video (McGraw Hill), eBooks and Science Journals.
Overview:
- A video and interactive PowerPoint will be used as instructional materials to spark
conversation and dialogue about the atmosphere to build students vocabulary.
Objective:
Procedure:
- Students will read pg. 77-78 in their interactive Smart Book by McGraw Hill.
- Teacher will post the interactive PowerPoint on Google Classroom.
- Students will review the Interactive PowerPoint and take notes in their Science Journal.
- Teacher will show Layers of the Atmosphere video (McGraw Hill). (1 min. 30 sec.)
- Teacher will ask:
- What layer of the Earth do we have the most direct interaction with?
- Students will respond with the troposphere because we live in it.
- What layer of the Earth can we thank for not getting sunburned every day?
- Students should say the stratosphere because it has the ozone layer than
helps absorb ultraviolet radiation that causes sunburn and skin cancer.
- Why do you think the names between the layers end in “-pause?”
- Students should say that maybe it’s where one layer pauses or stops.
Assessment:
- Informal Quiz: Teacher will ask questions to class and have them first discuss the answer
with a partner, write it down and then report to the teacher.
Elaborate: What does Ozone do for us? (20 minutes) *Homework*
Materials: Ozone Research Questions on Google Classroom (pg. 48)
Overview:
- The ozone layer plays a huge role in making Earth habitable for humans. Students will
research this layer a little bit to learn more about its properties and function.
Objective:
Procedure:
- Students will research, answer and turn in the Ozone questions on Google Classroom.
Assessment:
- Homework Check: Teacher will review submitted student responses and provide class
wide feedback the following class period.

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Day 4:
Engage: Where’s the World’s Water? (5 Minutes)
Materials: Markers, Whiteboard and Science Journal
Overview:
- Students will use prior knowledge to determine reservoirs of water and the approximate
magnitude of those reservoirs in terms of the World’s total amount of water.
Objective:
- 5. Students will be able to describe the approximate distribution of water on Earth.
Procedure:
- Teacher will ask students where on Earth you can find water and students will record
their ideas in Moodle on Daily Science.
- Students will respond and the Teacher will write responses on the board.
- Student responses may consist of glaciers, oceans, ground water, lakes, rivers and
the atmosphere.
- Teacher will ask students to rank their water reservoirs from most to least and have them
create a pie chart to represent their guesses on the Earth’s water distributions.
- Students will share responses with their table partner as the teacher goes around and
monitors. The students will try to argue with their partner based on their prior knowledge
why they think their pie chart is correct if their neighbors differ.
- Teacher will have students share responses and write them on the board.
- Student’s responses will probably be highly variable.
- Many students put the oceans as 75%.
- Teacher must clarify the misconception that even though they have
learned the World is about 66-75% water that does not mean that 66-75%
of the World’s water is found in the ocean.
- The rank from greatest to least is Oceans, Glaciers, Ground Water, Lakes,
Atmosphere, and Rivers. The teacher should not reveal this to students yet.
Assessment:
- Observe and Give Feedback: Teacher will float around class and observe students’ pie
charts and make comments and give probing questions as necessary such as:
- Does the way you drew your pie chart reflect how large the oceans are?
- Students may say yes or they may not have realized how much of the
world is covered by oceans.
- Just because we have a lot of freshwater here in Michigan because of the Great
Lakes does that mean the rest of the world does?

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- Students may realize they were thinking naively about the world’s
freshwater supply because they have availability to so much from the
Great Lakes.
- Can much water be stored underground?
- Students cannot see underground so they may forget that there is a whole
storage area of water underground.
- A documented misconception is that students view ground water in a very
static way, and thought of it as an underground lake or water trapped
beneath the Earth’s surface (Ben-zvi-Assarf and Orion, 2005).
Explore: The World’s Water on a gallon scale (20 minutes)
Materials: Various sizes of beakers, a gallon jug of water, a graduated cylinder, and 3 pipettes.
Overview:
- Teacher will illustrate to students the approximate distribution of water on Earth in
relation to a 1 gallon scale.
Objective:
Procedure:
- Teacher will make sure to keep student’s guesses on the World’s water on the board.
- Teacher will note that although gallons are not an SI unit, 1 gallon of water is equal to
3785.41 mL of water and mL is an SI unit for volume.
- Teacher will begin pouring out the representative samples for each water reservoir from
the previously filled 1 gallon of water.
- Teacher will clarify to students the rank on where the World’s water is found and
students will take notes in their Science Journals (Figure 5 pg. 79).
- Salt Water Reservoirs (97%)
 Oceans/Seas: 97% (3671.85 mL)
- Fresh Water Reservoirs (3%)
 Glaciers: 2.37% (89.7 mL)
 Ground Water: 0.6% (22.7 mL)
 Lakes: 0.009% (0.34 mL)
 Atmosphere: 0.001% (0.03785 mL)
 Rivers: 0.0001% (0.003785 mL)
- Teacher will explain that humans rely heavily on the freshwater found in the Ground
Water, Lakes, and Rivers which is a very small total percent of the World’s Water.
- How could the low percent of freshwater in the world affect us personally?
Especially living here in Michigan?
- Students respond with “water crisis.”

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- Students may realize that being here in Michigan we have a lot of
freshwater availability which may lead to wars on water in the future if
freshwater becomes scarcer.
- How could we use the biggest reservoir, the ocean, for a water source?
- Students may respond by saying evaporating out the water or filtering the
water to get rid of the salt.
- Students also may note this process may be more expensive.
- Teacher will discuss the term cryosphere, and how some scientists think that it should be
its own sphere.
- Teacher will then have students go back to their Engage: Where’s the World’s Water pie
chart and correct any mistakes they may have made.
Assessment:
- Reflection: Students will reevaluate their response to the Engage: Where’s the World’s
Water, and correct their water percentage son their pie charts if they got them wrong.
Explain: Hydrosphere pg. 79-80 (10 minutes)
Materials: McGraw Hill Connect Ed eBook pages 79-80 and Figure 5 pg. 79
Overview:
- Students will read allowed the assigned pages as a class with the teacher stopping for
discussion as appropriate or after each section to check for understanding via a show of
hands or communicating oral in class questions.
Objective:
Procedure:
- Students will log onto eBook and read pages 79-80 allowed with the Teacher.
- Teacher will interject as appropriate and ask:
- Where are some places Earth’s water is stored?
- Students will respond by saying Earth’s surface, atmosphere, underground
and the biosphere.
- Does the amount of water on Earth change?
- Students hopefully respond by saying no. There is about 1.3 billion km3
of
water in the hydrosphere (McGraw Hill).
- Teacher will introduce the idea of law of conservation of matter. Water is
not created nor destroyed only transformed.
- What do I mean by transformed? What phases can water be found in?
- Students will respond by saying solid, liquid and gas.
- Can water dissolve hard rocks and minerals?
- Students should say yes. Even though rocks and minerals are solid, hard
materials water can dissolve them into their components.
- Where do we see evidence of water dissolving minerals?

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- Students should say the ocean is salting because of dissolved minerals.
- What would happen if humans drank too much salt water?
- Students may be unsure and say death. Teacher will explain yes death may
occur but that’s because at the cellular level salt water causes cells to loose
water and shrivel up.
- Teacher will show video of blood cells in a hypertonic solution (1 min.):
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IRQLRO3dIp8
- Is water stored longer in the atmosphere, oceans, rivers, lakes or glaciers?
- Students should say that glaciers can be really old and store the same
water for a long period of time.
- What percent of the World’s freshwater is in the cryosphere?
- Students should say 79% (McGraw Hill).
Assessment:
- Probing in-class questions: Teacher will ask the listed questions above to foster
discussion on the reading and get a sense for student comprehension.
Elaborate: The Power of Water (15 minutes)
Materials: YouTube Videos and Chrome Books/Google Classroom Doc (pg. 50)
Overview:
- Students will watch videos about the destructive and life bringing power of water.
Students will synthesize the information from the videos and describe how the
availability of water affects them personally, as well as other Earth Systems.
Objective:
- 6. Students will be able to synthesize information about what humans can do to help
biosphere.
Procedure
- Teacher will show a couple video clips about water related natural disasters.
- YouTube URLS:
- California Drought (6 min.) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L27IBKRfnPI
- What kinds of things are affected by the drought?
- Students may respond by saying people’s health, crops and
animals.
- How would your life be different if this was Michigan and not California?

29
- Students may respond by saying they would taker shorter showers,
not go boat as often or not have a sprinkler system.
- Minnesota Flood (1 min) -https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jwOTzK8iVdU
- What kinds of dangers and destruction can flooding do?
- Students may respond with the flood can sweep away cars and
homes and kill crops.
- Why is the water so dirty?
- Students hopefully respond by saying the water is causing
weathering and erosion of the soil.
- What are the safety and environmental concerns of flooding?
- Students should say it is unsafe to drive, sink holes, mud slides,
crop loss and death.
- Is there such thing as too much water?
- Students should say that too much of a good thing is bad.
- Teacher will ask students to write a response to the following questions in a Google Form
that is posted on Google Classroom(Model responses provided in Supplementary
Material).
- How do you use water in your everyday life?
- How would your life be different if there was a water shortage in Grand Rapids?
- What could we do as a community or you personally; to help alleviate these
effects of water related natural disasters?
- What other spheres of Earth that we have learned about do these floods and
droughts affect? Provide at least 3 examples from the videos.
Assessment:
- Observe and Give Feedback: Teacher will collect and comment on the students written
responses to observe for critical thinking and descriptions in relation to the Earth’s water.

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Day 5:
Engage: Minerals vs. Rocks (5 minutes)
Materials: An example of a Rock and an example of a Mineral and Science Journals.
Overview:
- Students will be shown visuals of an example of a rock and an example of a mineral.
They will be asked to make observations of them and determine which one is a rock and
which one is a mineral and why.
Objective:
- 3. Students will be able to analyze the difference between a rock and a mineral, and the
Procedure:
- The teacher will show the example of the rock and example of the mineral on the ELMO
and also pass around some samples to the class to touch.
- Students will take notes and make observations about each sample.
- The teacher will pass the samples around the class for students to make more
observations.
- Students will construct a hypothesis attempting to explain which one is the mineral and
which sample is the rock by interpreting the data they collected.
- Teacher will ask:
- By a show of hands, how many of you thought sample 1 was the mineral? Why?
- By a show of hands, how many of you thought sample 1 was the rock? Why?
- By a show of hands, how many of you thought sample 2 was the mineral? Why?
- By a show of hands, how many of you thought sample 2 was the rock? Why?
Assessment:
- Show of Hands: Teacher will listen to student explanations on the rocks versus minerals
activity and have them give a show of hands to determine who thought which one was a
rock and which one was a mineral.
Explore: Are all Rocks the Same? Laboratory Exercise (20 minutes)
Materials: Examples of Sedimentary, Igneous, and Metamorphic Rocks, Science Journals and
Laboratory Handout (pg. 52-53).
Setup: Teacher will set up lab stations with rock samples and magnify glasses before class.
Overview:
- Students will be given various rock samples that are numbered. They must make
observations about each rock, and then try to sort them into piles based on similarities.
They must explain using evidence from their observations.
- Rock Samples include: Coquina, conglomerates, shale, slate, basalt, quartzite, pumice
and granite.

31
Objective:
Procedure:
- Teacher will divide students into groups of 4 and then head to the lab.
- Teacher will provide each student with a sample cup of different types of rocks.
- Students will observe each sample with a magnify glass and record their observations.
- Students will synthesize and interpret the data and determine similarities and differences
between the rock samples.
- Students will attempt to sort their rocks into groups and explain their reasoning to the
teacher based on evidence they collected from their observations.
- The teacher will not indicate whether they were correct or incorrect.
- Students will write a reflection in their Science Journals describing the process they took
during the lab and in what ways it could be considered a scientific investigation.
Assessment:
- Informal Quiz: Teacher will ask students to verbally list characteristics they found that
define each rock sample.
- Process Reflection: Students will write a reflection on what they did and how it could be
described as a scientific investigation.
Explore: Layers of the Earth Activity (15 minutes)
Materials: Cyber Science 3D: Earth from McGraw Hill, Journals and Handout (pg. 52-53).
Overview:
- Students will manipulate a 3D model of the Earth to view its layers and each layers
composition. Students will recreate a diagram of their own in their Science Journals.
Objective:
- 4. Students will be able to diagram the external and internal structure of Earth.
Procedure:
- Students will take notes on the Earth’s Layers from the 3D McGraw Hill module.
- Students will construct and color their own model/diagram of the Earth’s layers including
labels, function and chemical make-up in their Science Journals.
- Students should include color coding as necessary.
- Teacher will ask:
- What layer of the Earth is the thickest?
- Students should say the mantle.
- Why is the inner core solid and the outer core liquid?
- Students should say that high pressure causes the inner core to be solid.
Assessment:
- Homework Check: Teacher will collect their diagrams and check for accuracy and detail.

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Explain: Geosphere (10 minutes)
Materials: McGraw Hill eBook pgs. 81-83 and YouTube Video
Overview:
- Students will read about the Geosphere to clarify and learn vocabulary words to attach to
their experiences of working with unidentified rocks and minerals.
Objective:
Procedure:
- Students and the teacher will read through the assigned eBook pages.
- Teacher will stop for discussion and clarification as necessary.
- Teacher may ask for students to paraphrase sections they just read.
- Teacher will go over rock and mineral samples from “Mineral vs. Rock Exercise” to
clarify based on the newly learned vocabulary and definitions which sample is which.
- Teacher will go over sample rocks from the “Types of Rocks Laboratory Exercise” and
discuss as a class to determine which ones are sedimentary, igneous and metamorphic
based on what they learned about each rock type. At this point, students should have their
lab handout in front of them and fix any mistakes they made in categorizing them.
- Teacher will ask:
- What kinds of qualitative (observational) data did you collect about the rock samples?
- Students may say that some of the rocks had visible grains of crystals and stuff
and others did not. Other rocks seemed kind of dirty or fragile because a bunch of
material was glued together. Lastly, some of the rocks appeared to have layers.
- Teacher will show YouTube Video:(3 min. 23 sec.)
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fNLmBVBfn38
- Teacher will ask guiding and probing questions at the end and during to make sure
students are discerning the necessary content and vocabulary.
Assessment:
- Show of Hands: Teacher will ask students to decipher the difference between the rocks
samples and attach a new vocabulary word (metamorphic, igneous or sedimentary) to the
physical rock sample.

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Day 6:
Elaborate: Science in My Daily Life Video Analysis(40 minutes)
Materials: Science Journals, Chrome Books and Rubric Check List (pg. 55)
Overview:
- This activity will require students to pick an example from he or she’s life or an example
he or she has seen or experienced on TV or a movie of two spheres of the Earth
interacting. Students must draw a diagram or picture representing the situation and write
a description of the interaction taking place including labels. Students may describe a
dramatized interaction of Earth’s systems that they have seen in a movie. The students
will share the results with classmates.
Objective:
- 6. Students will be able to synthesize information about what humans can do to help
biosphere.
Procedure:
- Students will receive a piece of paper and coloring utensils.
- Teacher will explain that each student must pick a different example from their life or an
example they have seen or experienced on TV or a movie of two spheres of the Earth
interacting. They must draw a diagram or picture representing the situation and write a
description of the interaction taking place including labels. The final project will be
presented to classmates.
- Students will write an explanation or analysis of their picture to accompany the drawing.
If students choose to do the movie clip, they must also write an explanation analyzing the
clip and how it represents the interaction of Earth’s systems.
- When the students are finished, each will come to the front of the class and have a quick
presentation.
- The teacher will fill out a checklist for each presentation as a formative assessment for
the students to review.
Assessment:
- Presentation: Formative assessment checklist. The teacher will fill out the checklist for
each group and return the slip to them so they can see if they included all that they
needed to. Teacher comments should tell students what they missed.

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Evaluate: Exit Slip Quiz (10 minutes)
Materials: Earth’s Systems Quiz (McGraw Hill) (pg. 56-58)
Overview:
- Students will take a short 13 question quiz that addresses all of the topics that we covered
to assess for understanding of the material covered thus far.
Objective:
Procedure:
- Teacher will pass out the quiz to the students.
- Students will take about 10 minutes to fill out the quiz.
- Students will turn in the quiz to the teacher for grading and feedback.
Assessment:
- Exit Slip Check: Students will turn the quiz into the teacher for review.

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Outline of Evaluations and Assessments:
Day 1 Activities and Assessments:
Engage: What do you see? (pg. 37)
- Observe and Document: The teacher will consider the written and oral construction of the
typical categories their observations of Glacier National Park and Hawaii fit into.
Explore: What’s it all mean? (pg. 38)
- Homework Check: The Prefix, Suffix and Root Word Worksheet will be collected and
the teacher will review the results and common mistakes among students to address in the
following days Explain Activity: Earth’s Main Spheres.
Day 2Activities and Assessments:
Explain: Earth’s Main Spheres
- Observe: Teacher will observe students placement of the spheres of the Earth next to the
appropriate or inappropriate jars to determine student comprehension of the topics.
- Thumbs Up/Thumbs Down: Teacher will use this as a quick assessment of students’
knowledge about the four spheres of Earth.
Explain: Reading to Construct Meaning
- Observe: Teacher will observe and comment on class discussions and paraphrasing of the
required reading sections.
Explore: Nature Walk
- Observe and Document: Teacher will discuss student’s findings as a class to observe and
document the data they collected.
Evaluate: Exit Slip (pg. 39)
- Teacher Check: Teacher will grade and return the exits slips regarding Earth’s Systems.
Engage: What’s Air Got to do with it?
- Observe and Give Feedback: Students will draw a bar graph showing the approximate
distribution of the main gasses in the atmosphere and teacher will observe and give
feedback to individuals and the class as a whole.
Explore: With Great Altitude Comes Great _________? (pg. 41-43)
- Observe and Give Feedback: Teacher will evaluate the ability of the students to construct
a graph using provided data as well as interpreting provided data through class discussion
and observations.
Explain: The Atmosphere
- Informal Quiz: Teacher will ask questions to class and have them first discuss the answer
with a partner, write it down and then report to the teacher.
Elaborate: What does Ozone do for us? (pg. 48)
- Homework Check: Teacher will review submitted student responses and provide class
wide feedback the following class period.

36
Engage: Where’s the World’s Water?
- Observe and Give Feedback: Teacher will float around class and observe students’ pie
charts and make comments and give probing questions.
Explain: The World’s Water on a gallon scale
- Reflection: Students will reevaluate their response to the Engage: Where’s the World’s
Water, and correct their water percentages on their pie charts if they got them wrong.
Explain: Hydrosphere
- Probing in-class questions: Teacher will ask the listed questions above to foster
discussion on the reading and get a sense for student comprehension.
Elaborate: The Power of Water (pg. 50)
- Observe and Give Feedback: Teacher will collect and comment on the students written
responses to observe for critical thinking and descriptions in relation to the Earth’s water.
Engage: Minerals vs. Rocks
- Show of Hands: Teacher will listen to student explanations on the rocks versus minerals
activity and have them give a show of hands to determine who thought which one was a
rock and which one was a mineral.
Explore: Types of Rocks Laboratory Exercise (pg. 52-53)
- Informal Quiz: Teacher will ask students to verbally list characteristics they found that
define each rock sample.
- Process Reflection: Students will write a reflection on what they did and how it could be
described as a scientific investigation.
Explore: Layers of the Earth Activity
- Homework Check: Teacher will collect their diagrams and check for accuracy and detail.
Explain: Geosphere
- Show of Hands: Teacher will ask students to decipher the difference between the rocks
samples and attach a new vocabulary word (metamorphic, igneous or sedimentary) to the
physical rock sample.
Elaborate: Science in My Daily Life Video Analysis (pg. 55)
- Presentation: Formative assessment checklist. The teacher will fill out the checklist for
each group and return the slip to them so they can see if they included all that they
needed to. Teacher comments should tell students what they missed.
Evaluate: Exit Slip Quiz (pg. 56-58)
- Exit Slip Check: Students will turn the quiz into the teacher for review.

37
Supporting Materials:
Engage: Glacier National Park and Hawaii
Teacher will ask: What do you see? What types of interactions are going on?
Glacier National Park:
https://www.google.com/search?q=Landscape&biw=1280&bih=629&source=lnms&tbm=isch&
sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwju7_GS5r_PAhWZ8oMKHZflDdIQ_AUIBigB#tbm=isch&q=glacier+nati
onal+park&imgrc=F0Y9wFIuRQQ8rM%3A

38
Name: ___________________
Date: ____________________
Hour: ____________________
Etymology:
Prefix/Suffix Meaning
-Sphere
Atmo-
Geo-
Hydro-
Bio-
Cryo-
Let’s put the words together!
Directions: Please construct your own definitions of the following words.
1. Atmosphere –
2. Geosphere –
3. Biosphere –
4. Hydrosphere –
5. Cryosphere –

39
Name: ___________________
Date: ____________________
Hour: ____________________
Exit Slip: Earth’s Systems
1. What are the main 4 spheres of earth?
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
2. Which of the four spheres involve non-living things? What about living things?
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
3. Which sphere do you think most directly affects you and why?
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
4. Why did we talk about the cryosphere but it’s not included in this reading?
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________

40
Answer Key
Exit Slip: Earth’s Systems
1. What are the main 4 spheres of earth?
 Students should respond with atmosphere, geosphere, hydrosphere and biosphere.
2. Which of the four spheres involve non-living things? What about living things?
 The geosphere, hydrosphere and atmosphere involve non-living things. The
biosphere involves the living portions of the Earth.
3. Which sphere do you think most directly affects you and why?
 Students’ responses may vary.
 Students may say that the biosphere affects them most directly because they are
part of the biosphere because they are living organisms, and they need food to eat
to survive.
 Students may say that the atmosphere affects them most directly because they
need oxygen to live.
 Students may say the hydrosphere affects them most directly because they need
water to drink for survival.
4. Why did we talk about the cryosphere but it’s not included in this reading?
 Students should respond by saying that we discussed the cryosphere because a
large amount of water on Earth is frozen so it is a significant sphere; however,
technically it falls under the hydrosphere category since ice is frozen water.

42
Name: ___________________
Date: ____________________
Hour: ____________________
Data Interpretation of Earth’s Atmosphere:
(Source: McGraw Hill Integrated Science Textbook)
Altitude (Km) Pressure (Atm)
0 1
8 0.5
12 0.25
32 0.1
120 0.01
Altitude (Km) Water Vapor Concentration (g/m3
)
0 40
1.5 20
12 2
Altitude (Km) Temperature (˚C)
0 20
1.5 0
5 -20
12 -60
22 -60
30 -40
50 0
70 -40
85 -90
100 -80
110 0
120 100

43
Name: ___________________
Date: ____________________
Hour: ____________________
Graphing the Layers of the Atmosphere Lab Questions
1. What is the main reason the atmosphere is divided into four layers?
The variations in temperature changes.
2. Does the temperature increase or decrease with altitude in the:
a. troposphere?
b. stratosphere?
c. mesosphere?
d. thermosphere?
3. What is the height and temperature of the:
a. tropopause?
b. stratopause?
c. mesopause?
4. Why does the temperature increase with height through the stratosphere layer, and decrease
with height through the mesosphere layer?
5. Why does the temperature decrease with height in the troposphere?
6. What layer of the atmosphere do you think “weather occurs in?”
7. If you fly from Grand Rapids, Michigan to Orlando, Florida. What layer of the atmosphere
do you think you will spend most of your time in? Why?

45
Answer Key
Graphing the Layers of the Atmosphere Lab Questions
1. What is the main reason the atmosphere is divided into four layers?
The variations in temperature changes.
3. Does the temperature increase or decrease with altitude in the:
a. troposphere? decrease
b. stratosphere? increase
c. mesosphere? decrease
d. thermosphere? increase
3. What is the height and temperature of the:
a. tropopause? about 12-18 km about –60
b. stratopause? about 46-54 km about –2 to 0
c. mesopause? about 85-90 km about –90
4. Why does the temperature increase with height through the stratosphere layer, and decrease
with height through the mesosphere layer?
The temperature increases in the stratosphere due to ozone layer capturing ultraviolet radiation.
The temperature decreases in the mesosphere since there is no ozone and the amount of air is
decreasing.
5. Why does the temperature decrease with height in the troposphere?
As solar energy hits the earth’s surface, it is converted into heat. That heat radiates upward from
the earth’s surface. The farther away from the warm earth’s surface we go, the less heat we feel
until we hit the ozone layer in the stratosphere. The temperature of the troposphere therefore
decreases steadily until the stratosphere.
8. What layer of the atmosphere do you think “weather occurs in?”
The troposphere is where weather occurs because we experience weather and we live in the
troposphere.
9. If you fly from Grand Rapids, Michigan to Orlando, Florida. What layer of the atmosphere
do you think you will spend most of your time in?
The stratosphere because there is minimal if any weather occurring here so it is a great spot for
planes to fly. Also, this is about as high as commercial jets can safely go.

48
Name: ___________________
Date: ____________________
Hour: ____________________
What does the Ozone do for us?
Directions: Answer the following questions in paragraph form. The result should be a well
written paragraph that you could read to your parents or guardian to educate them about the
ozone layer.
- What is Ozone’s composition and chemical formula?
- What is the Ozone’s function?
- Where is Ozone usually found?
- Where else can Ozone be found?
- Can Ozone be harmful?
- What are some negative health effects that would result if the Ozone layer vanished?
- Are there any locations where the Ozone layer is getting thin or gone?

49
Answer Key
What does the Ozone do for us?
Directions: Answer the following questions in paragraph form. The result should be a well
written paragraph that you could read to your parents or guardian to educate them about the
ozone layer.
- What is Ozone’s composition and chemical formula?
- What is the Ozone’s function?
- Where is Ozone usually found?
- Where else can Ozone be found?
- Can Ozone be harmful?
- What causes ozone depletion or loss?
- What are some negative health effects that would result if the Ozone layer vanished?
- Are there any locations where the Ozone layer is getting thin or gone?
Model Answer:
The ozone layer is made up of ozone which has a chemical formula of O3. Ozone is usually
found, and a majority of it is found, in the stratosphere. The stratosphere is the second layer in
the Earth’s atmosphere. Here the ozone layer functions as a shield for Earth by protecting it from
the harmful ultraviolet radiation by absorbing it. The Sun emits a lot of electromagnetic radiation
and ultraviolet radiation is one of them. I personally like some ultraviolet radiation because it is
what helps make me tan in the summer! However, it is not good for your skin and Earth would
receive so much UV radiation without the stratosphere that it would be inhabitable for us
humans. There is also a little bit of ozone in the troposphere which is the first layer of the
atmosphere in which we live. Some health effects that would increase if the ozone layer got
thinner could be increases in skin cancer, mutations, cataracts and various other health and
immune system malfunctions. Therefore, we need to eliminate the use of chemicals like
chlorofluorocarbons that can damage and ruin the ozone layer. Places around the North and
South Pole have experienced dangerous losses in the ozone layer. Ozone seems to be good
overall; however, when it is found in the troposphere at unnaturally high levels this can be bad
because it can be damaging to organisms because it is toxic.

50
Name: ___________________
Date: ____________________
Hour: ____________________
The Power of Water
Directions: Please read the following questions and respond in complete sentences. Make sure to
think about and include examples from the videos that we watched in class.
 How do you use water in your everyday life?
 How would your life be different if there was a water shortage in Grand Rapids?
 What could we do as a community or you personally; to help alleviate these effects of water
related natural disasters?
 What other spheres of Earth that we have learned about do these floods and droughts affect?
Provide at least 3 examples from the videos.

51
Answer Key
The Power of Water
Directions: Please read the following questions and respond in complete sentences. Make sure to
think about and include examples from the videos that we watched in class.
 How do you use water in your everyday life?
 How would your life be different if there was a water shortage in Grand Rapids?
 What could we do as a community or you personally; to help alleviate these effects of water
related natural disasters?
 What other spheres of Earth that we have learned about do these floods and droughts affect?
Provide at least 3 examples from the videos.
Model Answer:
I use water every day, and I need it to live. For example, I drink water, use it for laundry,
washing dishes, cooking and showering. If we had a water shortage in Grand Rapids, my parents
would not be able to water their lawn as much and I would probably not be able to take as long
of showers. To help with these effects of water related natural disasters we could promote flood
insurance and have community wide education on what to do in the case of a flood. Setting up
precautions and a plan for disasters may help decrease the amount of panic and death. Floods and
droughts, as seen in the videos, affect all of the other spheres of Earth. For example, floods affect
the biosphere by compromising human safety. As seen in the Minnesota video, floods affect the
geosphere because it can cause a lot of weathering and erosion. Droughts also can cause plants
and animals in the biosphere to suffer or die as seen in the California drought.

52
Name: ___________________
Date: ____________________
Hour: ____________________
Are all Rocks the Same?
Observations of Rock Samples: (Include both words and pictures as necessary)
Sample #1-
Sample #2-
Sample #3-
Sample #4-
Sample #5-
Sample #6-
Sample #7-
Sample #8-
Group the Rocks into 3 Categories based on Similarities and then Label the Categories:

53
Layers of the Earth Diagram:
Directions: Use the online model from your eBook to redraw and label the Earth and its layers.
Make sure to describe both the composition and relative size of the layer.

54
Answer Key
Are all Rocks the Same?
Observations of Rock Samples: (Include both words and pictures as necessary)
Sample #1- Coquina
Sample #2- Shale
Sample #3- Slate
Sample #4- Conglomerate
Sample #5- Quartzite
Sample #6- Basalt/Gabbro
Sample #7- Pumice
Sample #8- Granite
Group the Rocks into 3 Categories based on Similarities and then Label the Categories:
Igneous Sedimentary Metamorphic
Pumice
Granite
Basalt/Gabbro
Coquina
Shale
Conglomerate
Slate
Quartzite

55
Name:
______________________________________________________________________________
Science in My Daily Life Video Analysis Checklist
Requirements Check if Present
Are two spheres of the Earth represented in the video or drawing?
The spheres of the Earth used are correctly identified.
An analysis of the spheres in the video or picture is included.
The analysis describes why they chose the video or drew the picture they did.
The analysis describes the particular interaction of Earth’s spheres that is
occurring.
Name:
______________________________________________________________________________
Science in My Daily Life Video Analysis Checklist
Requirements Check if Present
Are two spheres of the Earth represented in the video or drawing?
The spheres of the Earth used are correctly identified.
An analysis of the spheres in the video or picture is included.
The analysis describes why they chose the video or drew the picture they did.
The analysis describes the particular interaction of Earth’s spheres that is
occurring.

56
Name: ___________________
Exit Slip: Earth’s Systems Quiz (McGraw Hill)
Multiple Choice:
1. Which of the following layers of Earth's atmosphere has the narrowest temperature range?
a) troposphere
b) stratosphere
c) mesosphere
d) thermosphere
2. Which of the following is NOT a trace gas in Earth's atmosphere?
a) argon
b) carbon dioxide
c) ozone
d) nitrogen
3. Most of the hydrosphere is in what form?
a) ocean water
b) ice
c) freshwater
d) groundwater
4. The layer of the geosphere immediately below the crust is called what?
a) the hydrosphere
b) the mantle
c) the outer core
d) the inner core
5. Scientists classify rocks mainly according to which feature?
a) their color
b) their hardness
c) how they form
d) where they are found
6. What is the reasoning for classifying the atmosphere into layers?
a) Different heights/altitudes
b) Different composition
c) Different functions
d) Different temperatures

57
7. The inner core is solid because?
a) It is made of different material than the liquid outer core
b) It is at a lower temperature than the outer core causing it to be solid
c) It experiences more pressure than the outer core causing it to be solid
d) The lack of geothermal heat causes it to be solid
8. If there is a worldwide water shortage, where is the best place to look for freshwater?
a) Underground
b) Glaciers
c) Rivers
d) Oceans
9. Metamorphic rocks generally have what?
a) Separation of minerals forming layers or foliation
b) A lack of visible grains and sediments
c) Lots of holes and pores from gasses being released
d) Visible fossils and organic matter
10. My pet rock is part of the _____________; whereas, I am part of the _______________.
a) Atmosphere; Geosphere
b) Geosphere; Hydrosphere
c) Biosphere; Geosphere
d) Geosphere; Biosphere
Short Answer:
1. What are the differences between a rock and a mineral?
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________

58
2. What is, and how big, is the biggest reservoir of water on Earth and how could we
potentially use this water as a freshwater resource?
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
3. What causes the temperature variations experienced throughout the atmospheric layers?
Make sure to mention the layers of the Earth, and the typical temperature pattern for each
layer discussed.
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________

59
Answer Key
Exit Slip: Earth’s Systems Quiz (McGraw Hill)
1. Which of the following layers of Earth's atmosphere has the narrowest temperature range?
a) troposphere
b) stratosphere
c) mesosphere
d) thermosphere
2. Which of the following is NOT a trace gas in Earth's atmosphere?
a) argon
b) carbon dioxide
c) ozone
d) nitrogen
3. Most of the hydrosphere is in what form?
a) ocean water
b) ice
c) freshwater
d) groundwater
4. The layer of the geosphere immediately below the crust is called what?
a) the hydrosphere
b) the mantle
c) the outer core
d) the inner core
5. Scientists classify rocks mainly according to which feature?
a) their color
b) their hardness
c) how they form
d) where they are found
6. What is the reasoning for classifying the atmosphere into layers?
a) Different heights/altitudes
b) Different composition
c) Different functions
d) Different temperatures

60
7. The inner core is solid because?
a) It is made of different material than the liquid outer core
b) It is at a lower temperature than the outer core causing it to be solid
c) It experiences more pressure than the outer core causing it to be solid
d) The lack of geothermal heat causes it to be solid
8. If there is a worldwide water shortage, where is the best place to look for freshwater?
a) Underground
b) Glaciers
c) Rivers
d) Oceans
9. Metamorphic rocks generally have what?
a) Separation of minerals forming layers or foliation
b) A lack of visible grains and sediments
c) Lots of holes and pores from gasses being released
d) Visible fossils and organic matter
10. My pet rock is part of the _____________; whereas, I am part of the _______________.
a) Atmosphere; Geosphere
b) Geosphere; Hydrosphere
c) Biosphere; Geosphere
d) Geosphere; Biosphere

61
Rubric
Short Answer:
Question
Number
Excellent (3) Good (2)
Getting there
(1)
Not quite
there (0)
1
Student discusses that minerals
are natural, inorganic, solid,
have a crystalline structure and
a specific chemical
composition.
Rocks are natural, solids and
may contain organic matter.
Student discusses
some of the
similarities and
differences
between rocks
and minerals but
not all of them.
Student
mentions one
characteristic
of a rock and
one accurate
one of a
mineral.
Not Answered
or off topic.
2
Student discusses that oceans
make up about 97% of the
Earth’s water. Oceans are salty
due to dissolved ions from
minerals. Desalination could
make this water useable but
this process may be more
expensive and time
consuming.
Student discusses
the oceans and
their saltiness but
fails to mention
the percent of the
world’s water
they are and that
salt can be
removed from
water.
Student
mentions the
oceans but
fails to discuss
any of the
characteristics
about them.
Not Answered
or off topic.
3
The temperature in the
troposphere decreases with
height due to high absorption
and reradiating of heat at
Earth’s surface. The
temperature increases with
height in the stratosphere due
to the ozone layer. The
temperature in the mesosphere
decreases with height because
the air is super thin. The
temperature increases with
altitude in the thermosphere
because it is heated by the sun.
The student
mentions the
correct
atmospheric
layers and for at
least two of the
four layers
describes the
correct
temperature
pattern and its
cause.
The student
mentions the
correct
atmospheric
layers but no
characteristics.
Not Answered
or off topic.

62
Data Supported Reflection:
Next Generation Science Standard:
1. 5-ESS2-1.Develop a model using an example to describe ways the geosphere, biosphere,
hydrosphere, and/or atmosphere interact. [Clarification Statement: Examples could
include the influence of the ocean on ecosystems, landform shape, and climate; the
influence of the atmosphere on landforms and ecosystems through weather and climate;
and the influence of mountain ranges on winds and clouds in the atmosphere. The
geosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere, and biosphere are each a system.]
2. 5-ESS2-2.Describe and graph the amounts and percentages of water and fresh water in
various reservoirs to provide evidence about the distribution of water on Earth.
Nature of Science Concepts:
1. Science demands and relies on empirical evidence. This evidence can be gained from
both experimental and observational means.
2. There are historical, culture, and social influences on science.
Harwood Model:
 Ask Questions
 Make Observations
 Reflect on Findings
Activity Overview:
 Engage/Prior Knowledge: Using the List-Group-Label literacy strategy, landscape
images will be shown and students will describe and make observations about the
pictures from Glacier National Park and Hawaii.
 Explore: The students will work on the skill of etymology by discovering for themselves
the meaning of prefixes and suffixes involved in the vocabulary words used for the
spheres of the Earth including geosphere, atmosphere, hydrosphere, biosphere and
cryosphere.
 Explain: Students and Teacher will read to pg. 75-76 out of the eBook. These pages
discuss the four spheres of Earth and their main defining characteristics.
 Elaborate: Students will work hands on with samples representing the different spheres
of the Earth to put a visual to the definition they constructed using etymology.
Data Collection:
 Data was collected and combined for my two sections of 6th
grade life science.
 Data collection included observation data from warm-up activities.
 Data collection included empirical data from the chapter test.

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