ALEX Resources

   View Standards     Standard(s): [SC2015] (4) 14 :

14 ) Explore information to support the claim that landforms are the result of a combination of constructive forces, including crustal deformation, volcanic eruptions, and sediment deposition as well as a result of destructive forces, including erosion and weathering.

[SC2015] (4) 15 :

15 ) Analyze and interpret data (e.g., angle of slope in downhill movement of water, volume of water flow, cycles of freezing and thawing of water, cycles of heating and cooling of water, speed of wind, relative rate of soil deposition, amount of vegetation) to determine effects of weathering and rate of erosion by water, ice, wind, and vegetation using one single form of weathering or erosion at a time.

In this inquiry-based lesson, students will investigate how rainfall changes the land and causes runoff.  The students will simulate a stream table to show how rainfall erodes the land.

This lesson results from a collaboration between the Alabama State Department of Education and ASTA.

   View Standards     Standard(s): [SC2015] ES6 (6) 8 :

8 ) Plan and carry out investigations that demonstrate the chemical and physical processes that form rocks and cycle Earth's materials (e.g., processes of crystallization, heating and cooling, weathering, deformation, and sedimentation).

[SC2015] (4) 15 :

15 ) Analyze and interpret data (e.g., angle of slope in downhill movement of water, volume of water flow, cycles of freezing and thawing of water, cycles of heating and cooling of water, speed of wind, relative rate of soil deposition, amount of vegetation) to determine effects of weathering and rate of erosion by water, ice, wind, and vegetation using one single form of weathering or erosion at a time.

This module includes seven hands-on, inquiry-based activities that will model the effects of weathering and erosion on Earth’s surface. Students will investigate the effects of weathering, erosion, and deposition using various materials such as aquarium gravel, square pretzels, chalk, vinegar, modeling clay, sand, and a hairdryer. This module will provide instruction on the effects of water on land; the effects slope has on flooding; the effects of the wind on land; the effects of different wave actions on land; the effects of glaciers on land; and the effects of mechanical and chemical weathering. In addition, the students will create a model that will demonstrate how groundwater can cause a sinkhole.

   View Standards     Standard(s): [SC2015] (4) 15 :

15 ) Analyze and interpret data (e.g., angle of slope in downhill movement of water, volume of water flow, cycles of freezing and thawing of water, cycles of heating and cooling of water, speed of wind, relative rate of soil deposition, amount of vegetation) to determine effects of weathering and rate of erosion by water, ice, wind, and vegetation using one single form of weathering or erosion at a time.

[DLIT] (4) 11 :

5) Use flowcharts to create a plan or algorithm.

Students will be introduced to the meaning of flowchart symbols. Students will then apply flowchart symbols to create a flowchart to demonstrate the process of weathering and/or erosion after studying weather and erosion.

This activity was created as a result of the DLCS COS Resource Development Summit.