PLATE TECTONICS
This project follows a note-taking → mind-mapping → poster-making sequence.
INTRODUCTION TO THE TOPIC
LEARNING SITUATION: You’re not just students—you’re the cartographers of Earth’s hidden skin. Your notes are your compass; your posters, your treasure maps. Go map your world!
1. Awakening the Deep
Let's activate your prior knowledge & set your purpose for today's note-taking.
Draw a KWL chart.
K: In pairs, brainstorm what you already know about the “skin” of our planet—the tectonic plates.
W: In pairs, brainstorm two or three “I wonder” questions and then share your questions and I will write some of them on the board (for example, “Why do plates move?” “What happens at plate boundaries?”).
L: Over the next last co-teaching sessions you will need to take notes on three resources from our blog:
- “Tectonic Plates: The Skin of Our Planet”
- “Tectonic Plates and Earthquakes”
- “Why It Took Scientists So Long To Accept This Very Obvious Idea”
Task-Kickoff: I will model one quick note using a bullet-point style.
2. Beneath the Crust: Listening
Write the headings on the provided sheet.
LISTENING: Individually, take notes on key terms (for example, lithosphere, asthenosphere, plate types).
Pair & Share: In pairs, compare your notes. Each pair must fill gaps in their sheets.
Mind-Map Sprint (5 min): On an A4 sheet, you must place “Tectonic Plates” in the center and branch out three main ideas you have gleaned. This is an INDIVIDUAL TASK because “Your mind-map is your personal plate boundary—let ideas collide!”.
Tectonic Plates: The Skin of Our Planet
3. When the Earth Shakes: Listening
Let's continue with note-taking on cause-effect & categorising information.
Draw a two-column notes chart:
- On the left: What I heard
- on the right: Why it matters.
Listen and fill the left column with causes of earthquakes, types of plate boundaries, and seismic vocabulary.
Reflection: In pairs, think about why each fact “matters” (right column).
“Feel the tremors of knowledge—shake up your columns wisely!”
Tectonic Plates and Earthquakes
4. The Long Road to Acceptance: Mediation & Synthesis
Aim: Deep listening, summarising for peers.
summarise your notes and share with your peers.
Why It Took Scientists So Long To Accept This Very Obvious Idea
STUDENTS SAMPLES
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