This activity is a guided investigation into the process of plate tectonics and resulting features. It's a look at the resulting effects which we see as volcanoes, earthquakes, and mountains.

This introductory geology field exercise asks students to make individual observations about parts of an outcrop, then combine their observations in larger teams to interpret the overall geological history of the exposure. Content learning includes stratigraphy, faulting, and local geologic history; process learning includes data gathering and recording, hypothesis formation, and outlining helpful evidence that could be gathered in the future.

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Engineers design and implement many creative techniques for managing stormwater at its sources in order to improve and restore the hydrology and water quality of developed sites to pre-development conditions. Through the two lessons in this unit, students are introduced to green infrastructure (GI) and low-impact development (LID) technologies, including green roofs and vegetative walls, bioretention or rain gardens, bioswales, planter boxes, permeable pavement, urban tree canopies, rainwater harvesting, downspout disconnection, green streets and alleys, and green parking. Student teams take on the role of stormwater engineers through five associated activities. They first model the water cycle, and then measure transpiration rates and compare native plant species. They investigate the differences in infiltration rates and storage capacities between several types of planting media before designing their own media mixes to meet design criteria. Then they design and test their own pervious pavement mix combinations. In the culminating activity, teams bring together all the concepts as well as many of the materials from the previous activities in order to create and install personal rain gardens. The unit prepares the students and teachers to take on the design and installation of bigger rain garden projects to manage stormwater at their school campuses, homes and communities.

This activity highlights the value of gesture in communicating spatial information. It consists of two short exercises. In the first, students are asked to pair up and describe to their partner how to navigate from one place to another in their home town. In the second, a volunteer is asked to sit on his or her hands and describe how to tie a bow with a piece of ribbon. In the first exercise, students spontaneously gesture; in the second, the volunteer will very much want to gesture and may be unable to complete the task under the restriction given (sitting on hands).

Short sets of multiple choice questions that require students to apply course concepts to new situations or circumstances are used as an active learning exercise in lecture settings. Answer keys in the form of IF-AT scratch-off sheets are provided so students have instant feedback once their group has decided on an answer.

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In this lab, students learn to use the matlab seawater toolbox and use this tool to test a number of things that I have asserted to them in class with regard to the contribution of temperature and potential temperature to density variability in the ocean.

In summary, "The Varied Landscapes of the Colorado Plateau" provides an engaging overview of the geological and geographical marvels found in this region of the United States. From ancient rock layers to stunning natural formations, the Colorado Plateau's landscapes continue to captivate and inspire those who explore its diverse terrain.

Views of the National Parks can be used in the classroom in many different ways. Most simply, it can be made available for students to explore on their own. Lesson plan available: Biodiversity Right Outside – Biodiversity is the abundance and variety of life-forms (animals, plants, fungi, and microorganisms) at all levels of organization (ecosystems, species, and genes). In this activity students will learn about biodiversity, the importance of biodiversity to ecosystems, and will conduct their own biodiversity study.

A virtual landscape is a virtual reality environment designed to develop geologic mapping and field skills. They include natural landscapes where the geology can be mapped, and interactive 3D block models of topographic and geological maps. The worlds can be found at www.see.leeds.ac.uk/virtual-landscapes/.

Using the virtual microscope, students will zoom, pan, and rotate specimens in variable light conditions, helping to develop their classification and identification skills without need for high cost microscopes and thin section preparation facilities. The virtual microscope may be used as a complete collection or reused and repurposed individually, since each specimen will have a unique URL. The intention is to engage and excite students in Earth science using rocks of the British Isles held in key collections, and aid teaching of mineral and rock identification skills in HE institutions and schools. We plan to explore continued expansion of the initial collection by offering a digitisation service to HE institutions and industry.

In this adapted video segment, ZOOM guest Laura shows us some of the natural features of Yellowstone National Park, including geysers, hot springs, fumaroles, and mud pots, as well as some of the wildlife.

This interactive resource adapted from the National Park Service illustrates the difference between explosive and effusive volcanic eruptions as well as the hazards that can result, including lahars, tsunamis, and lava flows.

This interactive resource adapted from the National Park Service illustrates the variety of landforms and features created by volcanoes. Featured are calderas, craters, fumaroles and other geothermal features, igneous rocks, lava flows, lava tubes, and maars.

Volcanoes show us how the earth changes. Volcanoes can be made of lava, gases, hot steam, ground-up rocks and melted rock called lava. Scientists study volcanoes and the earths movement and try to understand how they erupt.

The Web-based Inquiry Science Environment (WISE) is a free on-line science learning environment for students in grades 4-12. In WISE, students work on exciting inquiry projects on topics such as genetically modified foods, earthquake prediction, and the deformed frogs mystery. Students learn about and respond to contemporary scientific controversies through designing, debating, and critiquing solutions, all via the internet. Curriculum projects are complete and ready to use in the classroom. The projects are designed to meet standards and complement existing science curricula. The Teacher Area lets instructors explore new projects and grade students' work on the web, as well as to collaborate with other teachers and researchers.

Students learn how Newton's Law of Gravitation can be used to determine the mass of the Earth. By calculating mass and volume, they can then determine the Earth's density, and compare that result with the densities of other solar system bodies. Knowledge of Earth's density can also provide information about the planet's interior.

Spreadsheets Across the Curriculum/Geology of National Parks module. Students estimate the net volume of pollutants flowing into the Houchin's Narrows entrance of Mammoth Cave using actual air-flow and air-quality data from the park.

The activity describes Eratosthenes' experiments which determined that the Earth is spherical, rather than flat. Students reproduce Eratosthenes' methods using a slice of pizza to calculate the circumference of the entire pie.