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Grade 4. Changing Earth introduces students to the earth science concept of how the distinct features of Earth came to be. Lessons are structured in 30-minute class sessions so science fits easily into your day. The Changing Earth 1-Use Unit Kit with Literacy Set includes a teacher's guide, a set of 30 student readers, a license to access online digital resources, and enough supplies and apparatus to teach the unit once to a class of up to 30 students.

Grade 4. In 6 lessons spanning 22 class sessions, the Building Blocks of Science® 3D unit Changing Earth introduces students to the earth science concept of how the distinct features of Earth came to be. Building Blocks of Science® 3D lessons are structured in 30-minute class sessions, making it easy to fit science into your day. The Changing Earth 1-Use Unit Kit with Literacy Set includes a teacher's guide (item #515142), 24 on-grade student readers (item #515103), 6 below-grade student readers (item #515103BGR), a license for the teacher and students to access online digital resources, and enough supplies and apparatus to teach the unit once to a class of up to 30 students.

Along with hands-on learning, this Building Blocks of Science® 3D unit also provides digital resources to enhance the classroom experience. These components offer an additional method of delivering content, particularly for classrooms with consistent access to computers or tablets. Digital components include digital teacher's guide, simulations, digital literacy reader, interactive whiteboard activities, interactive student investigation sheets, and assessment. All digital resources for Building Blocks of Science® 3D are accessible at CarolinaScienceOnline.com.

Unit Summary
During this unit, students learn about the layers of Earth by building a model. They construct a puzzle of Earth's plates and compare maps to draw connections between earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and the locations of tectonic plates. Volcanic eruptions become the focus as students think about the process of lava cooling to form rock. Students observe samples in a Rock Study Kit and compare different types of rocks. In addition, students simulate the rock cycle to see firsthand how rock types can change from one to the other depending on the conditions. Stream tables are used to model erosion, weathering, and deposition. By adjusting the elevation of the stream table and by adding "vegetation," students learn that the structures of landforms depend on the amount of erosion that occurs. Students explore the value of mapping Earth by comparing different types of maps to draw conclusions about the location of landforms and waterways. This concept is supported by drawing attention to the existence of rock layers. The formation of fossils acts as a strong model to introduce the idea that rocks form layers over time, allowing scientists to provide a relative date for the existence of certain organisms. At the end of the unit, students consider how Earth's changes impact human activity. Soil erosion is identified as a problem for farmers, and students are challenged to develop several models to solve the problem of soil erosion. Students test their solutions, analyze the results, and present their findings to the class.

Next Generation Science Standards*
The Building Blocks of Science® 3D unit Changing Earth (©2019) integrates process skills as defined by the Next Generation Science Standards.

Performance Expectations

• 4-ESS1-1: Identify evidence from patterns in rock formations and fossils in rock layers to support an explanation for changes in a landscape over time.
• 4-ESS2-1: Make observations and/or measurements to provide evidence of the effects of weathering or the rate of erosion by water, ice, wind, or vegetation.
• 4-ESS2-2: Analyze and interpret data from maps to describe patterns of Earth's features.
• 4-ESS3-2: Generate and compare multiple solutions to reduce the impacts of natural Earth processes on humans.
• 3-5-ETS1-2: Generate and compare multiple possible solutions to a problem based on how well each is likely to meet the criteria and constraints of the problem.

Disciplinary Core Ideas

• ESS1.C: The History of Planet Earth
• ESS2.A: Earth Materials and Systems
• ESS2.B: Plate Tectonics and Large-Scale System Interactions
• ESS2.E: Biogeology
• ESS3.B: Natural Hazards
• ETS1.B: Designing Solutions to Engineering Problems

Science and Engineering Practices

• Developing and Using Models
• Planning and Carrying Out Investigations
• Constructing Explanations and Designing Solutions
• Analyzing and Interpreting Data

Crosscutting Concepts

• Patterns
• Cause and Effect X

Common Core State Standards
Language Arts

• L.4.6: Vocabulary Acquisition and Use
• RF.4.3: Phonics and Word Recognition
• RI.4.3: Key Ideas and Details
• RI.4.5: Craft and Structure
• RI.4.7: Integration of Knowledge and Ideas
• RI.4.9: Integration of Knowledge and Ideas
• RL.4.2: Key Ideas and Details
• RL.4.4: Craft and Structure
• SL.4.1: Comprehension and Collaboration
• SL.4.4: Presentation of Knowledge and Ideas
• W.4.1: Text Type and Purpose
• W.4.2: Text Type and Purpose

Mathematics

• 4.MD.A.1: Solve problems involving measurements and conversion of measurements.
• 4.MD.A.3: Solve problems involving measurement and conversion of measurements.
• 4.MD.B.4: Represent and interpret data.
• 4.NF.B.3.A: Building fractions from unit fractions.
• 4.NF.C.5: Understand decimal notation for fractions, and compare decimal fractions.

Lesson Summaries
Lesson 1
Lesson 1 begins with a pre-unit assessment in which students create a two-column chart to record what they already know and what they want to know about these topics. As a class, students build a 3D model of Earth's layers. To support the idea that Earth's crust changes, students manipulate a puzzle as an introduction to tectonic plates. Using the Ring of Fire as an example, students make connections between the movement of the mantle and the effect on Earth's plates. Earthquakes and volcanic activity are used as evidence for the convection of magma in the mantle. In Lesson 2, students will consider what happens when magma cools by examining the rock cycle. They will model the rock cycle using crayons and conduct research about where different rocks are found.
Lesson 2
In the previous lesson, students examined Earth's layers and tectonic plates. Students made connections between the locations of the plates and events like earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. In this lesson, students apply what they have learned about Earth's moving plates to the formation of rocks during the rock cycle. Students observe samples from a Rock Study Kit and learn about the three types of rocks: igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary. Students simulate the rock cycle using crayons and construct a flow chart to describe the process. At the end of the lesson, students choose one rock from the Rock Study Kit to research and develop a flyer about to share with the class. In their research, students make observations about where their selected rock type is typically formed. In the next lesson, students will think about how erosion and weathering shape Earth's crust and use a stream table to model these processes.
Lesson 3
In the previous lessons, students examined Earth's crust. Using a puzzle, students learned that Earth is composed of plates that float and shift on top of the mantle. As a result of these shifts, hot liquid rock from the mantle can be released onto Earth's surface as lava. When lava cools, it forms solid rock. This rock can be broken down into smaller pieces called sediment as a result of erosion and weathering. This lesson focuses on the processes of weathering and erosion using a stream table. Students determine the difference between weathering and erosion and investigate the effects of each. They draw connections to the rock cycle and consider how these processes play a primary role in shaping Earth's crust. In the next lesson, students will apply their knowledge of erosion to construct maps and draw conclusions about the landforms, including mountains, canyons, and rivers.
Lesson 4
In the previous lessons, students examined the impacts of erosion and weathering. Students used a stream table model to examine how sediment can be carried by water and change the shape of the land. In this lesson, students work as geologists to use maps to identify different landforms on Earth. Building upon the concept that water has carved the landscape of the United States, students use their stream tables to create maps of the river systems that have formed. These investigations prepare students for Lesson 5, in which they will be introduced to deposition and the formation of fossils in sedimentary rock.
Lesson 5
In the previous lessons, students used stream tables to develop their understanding of how weathering and erosion change the shape of land. In this lesson, students consider deposition as the final piece in the process of shaping landforms and forming rock. Using PerfectCast®, students model the formation of sedimentary rock. Next, students shift their attention to the fossils found in sedimentary rock. By simulating a flood on the stream table, students model the formation of fossils. Students learn that the depth of each rock layer is connected to the age of the fossils that are found in it. In the next lesson, students will apply what they have learned throughout this unit to explain how landforms affect the changes on Earth. Students will develop solutions to the problem of soil erosion and build a model.
Lesson 6
Throughout the unit, students have built on their knowledge of Earth and its history by modeling the rock cycle, erosion, deposition, and fossil formation. They have drawn conclusions about landforms and the causes of events like earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. In this lesson, students examine the effects of soil erosion and consider the short- and long-term implications of soil erosion on the environment. Groups develop solutions to the problem of soil erosion ad test their solutions using their stream tables. After analyzing their results, groups develop a visual aid for a presentation to their classmates. After all groups have delivered a presentation, students evaluate one another’s solutions.

*Next Generation Science Standards® is a registered trademark of WestEd. Neither WestEd nor the lead states and partners that developed the Next Generation Science Standards were involved in the production of this product, and do not endorse it.