Unit Overview
What locations on Earth are most at risk of loss of life and property caused by an earthquake, volcanic eruption, or tsunami in the near future? Why do populations live in these risky areas?
In 2011, an earthquake and tsunami in Japan caused a nuclear disaster that we are still recovering from. In 2022 a volcanic eruption occurred at Tonga that was heard thousands of miles away and produced a massive tsunami. Natural disasters caused by tectonic plate movement, like these, are not new to Earth’s history, and have long played a part in human societies. After learning about these events and others, how they occur, and the vulnerability of different populations, students explain how these events have impacted humans in both positive and negative ways.
Performance Expectations:
HS-ESS1-5, HS-ESS2-1, HS-ESS2-3, HS-ESS3-1
Unit Storyline
Unit Opening
How do earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and tsunamis occur? What populations are most at risk from a disaster caused by these natural hazards? What does this mean for the possibility of an earthquake, volcanic eruption, and tsunami occurring where we live?
Earth’s Interior
Where do earthquakes, volcanoes, and tsunamis occur? What is going on at and underneath the location where these hazards occur?
Surface Features & Plate Boundaries
What direction do the plates move? How does their interaction cause what we observe and experience on Earth’s surface?
Energy and Matter
Where is the energy that is needed to move these massive plates and in turn natural hazards and surface features? How is it reaching Earth’s surface?
Unit Closing
Where is the energy that is needed to move these massive plates and in turn natural hazards and surface features? How is it reaching Earth’s surface?
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Assessment
Formative and Summative Assessment
In addition to the unit Performance Task, this unit includes a mid-unit formative task and an end-of-unit transfer task, both designed to serve as individual assessments that are part of a broader assessment system. The Performance Task Organizer and End of Unit Transfer Task complement each other, and by using a combination of each, teachers will assess each PE covered by each unit.
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Essential Documents
A collection of printable materials required for activities, rubrics, and work samples for the unit.