Earth Science Education – summer in-service for teachers 2007 – Register through Granite or Jordan School Districts. For university credit, register through Granite District.

 

TITLE:            Salt Lake County’s Changing Surface

 

OBJECTIVE:  Teachers learn how to observe and analyze landrorms and understand how and why Salt Lake County’s landscapes have changed through time. This is a process-oriented course that emphasizes the web of relationships among Earth systems.

 

DESCRIPTION:

Content includes how to “read” Salt Lake County landscapes; the  tectonic processes that change Earth’s surface; and how Salt Lake County’s features evolve through erosion and sedimentation. Skills include how to encourage questions about landscapes; how to share a sense of place; and how to view landscapes as evidence of Earth systems.

 

This class is taught outside in 5 sessions, each of which includes a local field experience. 

 

REQUIREMENTS / DESCRIPTION OF EVALUATION COMPONENT:

Attend all five classes (offered in the morning and afternoon, okay to mix.). Class assumes approximately an hour of homework for every class contact hour. Daily reading assignments. One content literacy project.

 

INSTRUCTOR: Genevieve Atwood,   Ph.D., former State Geologist of Utah; and, presently, Chief Education Officer, Earth Science Education

 

TARGET AUDIENCE: K-12 especially 3rd grade (appearance of Earth), 4th grade (Utah natural history) and 5th grade (changes of Earth’s surface; landslides, glaciers and earthquakes). THEMATIC LEARNING: theme of change.

 

DATES, TIMES AND LOCATIONS:

DATE:

TIME

PLACE

ADDRESS

Monday,

June 16

8:30 – 11:30 am OR

4:30 – 7:30 PM

Flatiron Park (upper level)

1675 East 8600 South

Tuesday,

June 17

8:30 – 11:30 am OR

4:30 – 7:30 PM

Silver Hills Elementary

5770 West 5100 South

Wednesday,

June 18

8:30 – 11:30  OR

4:30 – 7:30 PM

Jordan River

 

Map will be provided

Thursday,

June 19

8:30 am – noon OR

4:30 – 8:00 PM

FIELD TRIP: bus leaves from Hillsdale Elementary School

3275 West 3100 South

Friday,

June 20

8:30 – 11:30 am OR

4:30 – 7:30 PM

Silver Lake information center, Big Cottonwood Canyon

Brighton opposite the general store

 

NUMBER OF CLOCK HOURS OF CLASSROOM INSTRUCTION: 15.5 hours = 1 credit hour.

UNIVERSITY CREDIT AVAILABLE THROUGH SUU. Register through Granite District.

 

CLASS LIMIT: 30

SPECIAL SUPPORT from Kennecott Utah Copper: Participants receive approximately $50 of text materials and classroom supplies.

 

Salt Lake County’s Changing Surface

OUTLINE OF ALL CLASSES / SYLLABUS

Session 1: How to describe the landforms of Salt Lake Coutny… recognizing change

·         Ask “why” questions… why various landscape features look the way they do

·         Identify geologic and geographic features in Salt Lake County

·         Practice thinking spatially. Discuss what is meant by a sense of place

·         Identify defining characteristics of Utah’s three physiographic provinces

·         Predict the distribution of Utah’s natural resources based physiographic provinces.

·         Develop map literacy – how to teach contouring and reading topographic maps

 

Session 2: Process Geomorphology… processes from within Earth

·         Understand how plate tectonics changes Earth’s surface

·         Volcanoes and faults. Continental drift. Earth’s magnetism. Isostasy.

·         Tectonics of the Basin and Range. Tectonics along the Wasatch fault.

·         Earthquake hazards of Salt Lake. Discuss ways to introduce concepts of earthquake risk to children

·         Discuss theory of  tectonics as an example of the evolution of scientific thought.

 

Session 3: Process Geomorphology… processes acting on Earth’s surface

·         Erosion, transport and deposition in Salt Lake County. Jordan River as an example

·         Practice “reading” the geologic features of Salt Lake County

·         Why our mountains look the way they do. Why our valley looks the way it does

·         Great Salt Lake and Lake Bonneville, evidence of climate change

 

Session 4: FIELD TRIP:

·         Ways to “read” the changing surface of Salt Lake County,

·         How landforms result from processes at work inside the earth (tectonics) and processes acting on the earth’s outer surface (erosion and deposition),

·         Observea and compare the Wasatch fault and the West Valley fault.

·         Recognize features of Lake Bonneville. Imagine Ice Age environments.

 

Session 5:Glacial landscapes … glaciers and Lake Bonneville

·         Discussion of content literacy projects. Link literacy and landscape.

·         Discuss climate change, specifically Ice Age glaciers of Salt Lake County.

·         Discuss student reaction to these concepts and content literacy approach.

·         Share classroom project / teaching moments

 

INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGIES INCLUDE:

            Collaborative learning (e.g. dance of continents; stretching of Basin and Range); Writing to learn (homework literacy project); Progressive development of skills (from basic geography to walking across faults, to explaining earthquake hazards); Role modeling inquiry (e.g. session of “why” questions); Assessment (e.g. participant evaluation of their own understanding); Learner centered, knowledge centered, and assessment centered exercises.

            Based on research including but not limited to: National Research Council, 2000. How People Learn, Chapter 6, The design of learning environments; National Research Council, 2000. Inquiry and the National Science Education Standards; Center for Earth and Space Science Education, 2002. Revolution in Earth and Space Science Education, blueprint for change; and Harris, M.T. 2002. Developing geoscience student-learning centered courses, vol 50, Journal of Geoscience Education, p 515-523.