About This Lesson
In collaboration with three other Alaskan teachers who teach elementary, middle school, or high school Earth science and high school language arts, I created this integrated Earth Science unit. The primary goal is to encourage students to practice the real-life skills of a geologist in the field; thus, I created a series of tasks that support learning the math and language arts content skills needed in the career of a geologist working “in place” as well as developing competence in scientific inquiry. Utilizing local areas to explore and learn empowers students to better understand the human impact to the land on which they live. This place-based unit includes science, math, and writing standards for 7th grade and is taught in conjunction with Prentice Hall Science Explorer Series for Earth Science for Middle School.
In this supplementary unit, students are prepared in the use of tools such as gravelometers, GPS units, rock ID Guides, and ArcGIS computer mapping and are given multiple opportunities to apply their understanding of the use of the tools. Students gain math, writing, and science literacy skills creating sample plots, analyzing and classifying rocks, using probability models, pie charts, and writing while learning about the remote local area geology of their home, Prince of Wales Island, in Southeast Alaska.
This integrated unit includes science, math, and writing standards for 7th grade.
