HR: 1340h
AN: ED33A-0762 [Abstracts]
TI: Earth-Shaking Seismology Activities for Middle School Classrooms
AU: * Braile, S J
EM: sbraile@purdue.edu
AF: Happy Hollow School, 1200 Salisbury Street, West Lafayette, IN 47906
United States
AU: Braile, L W
EM: braile@purdue.edu
AF: Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, Purdue University
550 Stadium Mall Drive, West Lafayette, IN 47907-2051
United States
AB:
A sequence of related earthquake and seismology activities provides an effective curriculum unit for inquiry-based science
for the middle school level. The activities allow hands-on and in-depth study, progress from relatively simple "low-tech"
approaches to more advanced activities emphasizing problem-solving and use of technology, and involve significant practice
with science process skills. The unit begins with an earthquake plotting activity in which student teams find recent
earthquake information from the Internet and plot epicenters on a classroom map. The activity continues throughout the year
and provides opportunities for discovery, connections to other seismology activities, developing map skills, and cooperative
learning. Subsequent activities include investigations of plate tectonics, plate boundaries, Earth's interior structure,
seismic wave propagation, plotting earthquakes and volcanic eruptions on the computer using Alan Jones' Seismic/Eruption
software, earthquake hazards, magnitude and intensity scales, and use of an educational seismograph in the classroom. The
near real time monitoring of earthquakes provided by the mapping exercises and the educational seismograph, and the relevance
of earthquake studies, generate student excitement and long term impact. We have shared this approach and the activities
with K-12 teachers in many professional development settings. Many of the activities are available online at:
www.eas.purdue.edu/~braile.
DE: 0805 Elementary and secondary education
DE: 0820 Curriculum and laboratory design
DE: 0825 Teaching methods
DE: 0845 Instructional tools
SC: Education and Human Resourcese [ED]
MN: 2004 AGU Fall Meeting