Students will explore the outdoor classroom to find examples of Earth's four spheres (geosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere, and biosphere). They will then answer questions about the interactions among these spheres.
| Click on the orange links to access free educational materials: | |
| Lesson Plans | ALSDE Standards Taught |
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| Activity Page #1: Interactions Between Earth's Spheres (or as Word Doc) with Answer Page | |
| Outdoor Activity Materials: activity pages, clipboards, pencils | |
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Step 1: Engage through Discussion
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| Engage the students and capture their interests with an Interactive Q&A (or as PDF) that allows you to click through the questions one at a time. You can gauge your students' understanding of the topic as they answer the questions. Print and use the Q&A Info Sheet (or as Word Doc) to anticipate the next question in the Interactive Q&A and to guide the conversation with the students. (Note: For the PowerPoint (PPT), click "Slide Show" & "From Beginning" to display the questions and answers separately.) |
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Use these tools to continue the discussion:
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Step 2: Explore with Literature
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| As you read these books, you can further explore the topic and discuss your students' experiences and knowledge around the topic:
The Four Spheres of Earth by Paul Larson ISBN: 978-1480747258 |
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| Step 3: Explain with an Educational Video | ||
| Use these educational videos to help explain the topic in more detail: | ||
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| Crash Course Kids: Four Spheres (Part 1: Geosphere and Biosphere) (4:00) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VMxjzWHbyFM |
Crash Course Kids: Four Spheres (Part 2: Hydrosphere and Atmosphere) (3:30) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXh_7wbnS3A |
Equatoro: The Four Spheres: Interactions that Shape the World (5:13) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gWHE4ug1xpc |
| Step 4: Elaborate with a Field Investigation in the Outdoor Classroom | |
| Students apply what they have learned as they investigate the topic in your outdoor classroom and record their real-world observations on their Interactions Between Earth's Spheres Activity Page (as a Word Doc): | |
Activity Tip:
Procedure Indoor Discussion:
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Outdoor Discovery:
Indoor Discussion:
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| Step 5: Evaluate with an Assessment Activity | ||
| Review and assess the students’ observations and answers on their observation pages:
Evaluate the students' understanding of the topic with the following assessment tool: |
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Questions? Contact us at oc@alabamawildlife.org.
