Our Amazing Earth
A Classrooms Unleashed Program
for Fourth Grade Students
This unit focuses on patterns of change at the earth’s surface. Students become geologists and explore how physical weathering and factors affecting the rate of erosion change the earth’s crust over time, including the influence of human impact. In addition to a half-day field study at a local natural area, we provide two 90-minute lessons, led by Sierra Nevada Journeys instructors.
All of our lessons are backwards designed from Next Generation Science Standards and Common Core for fourth grade. In addition to the Sierra Nevada Journeys-led lessons, classroom teachers will be provided with 3-4 easy-to-use learning experiences to reinforce concepts and vocabulary.
PROGRAM OVERVIEW
LESSON 1: WEATHERING CAUSES AND EFFECTS
During this 90-minute classroom lesson students use hands-on simulations to discover the concept of weathering and investigate the causes and effects this natural process has on rocks.
LESSON 2: FACTORS AFFECTING THE RATE OF EROSION
During this 90-minute classroom lesson students explore how different factors affect the rate of erosion. Students then use their understanding of how sediment moves to collaboratively build a model of a landscape with the goal of changing the rate of erosion using materials from the schoolyard.
LESSON 3: GEOLOGISTS IN THE FIELD
This 3-hour field study at a beautiful natural area has students using their observation skills to explore the outdoors and document evidence of weathering and erosion as a real natural process in the field.
TEACHER INFORMATION
NEXT GENERATION SCIENCE STANDARDS
4-ESS2-1: DCI- ESS2.A, DCI-ESS2.E, SEP: Analyze and Interpret Data, CC: Cause & Effect ; 4-ESS2-2: DCI- ESS2.B, SEP: Analyze and Interpret Data, CC: Patterns
COMMON CORE
ELA: W.4.7, SL.4.1, RI.4.9, MP. 3
Thank you Nevada Mining Association for your support of Nevada's fourth graders
and Our Amazing Earth program.