ALEX Classroom Resources

   View Standards     Standard(s): [SC2015] (2) 9 :

9 ) Create models to identify physical features of Earth (e.g., mountains, valleys, plains, deserts, lakes, rivers, oceans).

Learn about different landforms and water bodies and the various characteristics that make them distinct from one another in this lesson plan from WGBH. Navigate around a virtual island to unlock information—including videos and ground-level and aerial images—about specific landforms and water bodies. Students use the media to observe and describe landforms and water bodies; they identify how they are represented from an aerial perspective when used on a map to help people locate them in all parts of the world.

This resource was developed through WGBH’s Bringing the Universe to America’s Classrooms project, in collaboration with NASA. Click here for the full collection of resources.

   View Standards     Standard(s): [SC2015] (2) 9 :

9 ) Create models to identify physical features of Earth (e.g., mountains, valleys, plains, deserts, lakes, rivers, oceans).

Learn about different water bodies and the various characteristics that make them distinct from one another in this multimedia gallery from WGBH. Water bodies are natural accumulations of water that makeup about three-quarters of Earth’s surface. Each one looks different when viewed from the ground (ground view) and from above (aerial view). Students can use the media in this gallery to explore, identify, and describe characteristics of various water bodies and to compare near-ground-level and aerial views of water bodies.

   View Standards     Standard(s): [SC2015] (2) 9 :

9 ) Create models to identify physical features of Earth (e.g., mountains, valleys, plains, deserts, lakes, rivers, oceans).

[SC2015] (2) 10 :

10 ) Collect and evaluate data to identify water found on Earth and determine whether it is a solid or a liquid (e.g., glaciers as solid forms of water; oceans, lakes, rivers, streams as liquid forms of water).

Navigate around the island to explore various landforms and water bodies in this interactive game from PLUM LANDING. Journey around the island and pick up trash to unlock information—including videos and ground-level and aerial images—about specific landforms and water bodies. Students use the game and associated supports to observe, identify, and record characteristics of common landforms and water bodies as they navigate and represent the landscape from an aerial perspective on a map.

   View Standards     Standard(s): [SS2010] LWT1 (1) 8 :

8 ) Identify land masses, bodies of water, and other physical features on maps and globes.

•  Explaining the use of cardinal directions and the compass rose

•  Measuring distance using nonstandard units

Example: measuring with pencils, strings, hands, feet

•  Using vocabulary associated with geographical features, including river, lake, ocean, and mountain

[SC2015] (2) 9 :

9 ) Create models to identify physical features of Earth (e.g., mountains, valleys, plains, deserts, lakes, rivers, oceans).

In this interactive game from Smithsonian, players soar above five real world terrains in the United States while learning about different types of land and water features. Observe eleven different land and water features including: mountains, plains, lakes, oceans, and mesas. View terrain maps from a first-person and top-down view. Test your knowledge of land and water features after every flight with an in-game assessment. The Glider Guide simulation is available as a website for computers. Download the application for use on tablets and mobile devices.  No registration is necessary.

   View Standards     Standard(s): [SC2015] (2) 8 :

8 ) Make observations from media to obtain information about Earth's events that happen over a short period of time (e.g., tornados, volcanic explosions, earthquakes) or over a time period longer than one can observe (e.g., erosion of rocks, melting of glaciers).

[SC2015] (2) 9 :

9 ) Create models to identify physical features of Earth (e.g., mountains, valleys, plains, deserts, lakes, rivers, oceans).

[ELA2021] (2) 4 :

4. Orally answer who, what, when, where, why, and how questions about a text or conversation, using complete sentences to provide key ideas and details.

The teacher will present an informational text from the website, ReadWorks. The students and teacher can interact with this non-fiction text by annotating the text digitally. The students will answer the questions associated with the article as an assessment. This learning activity can be used to provide information regarding geologic events that happen over a long period of time, serve as reinforcement after students have already learned this concept, or be used as an assessment at the conclusion of a lesson. This activity could provide background information to students before they create models to identify physical features of Earth, such as mountain ranges.