MS-ESS2 Plate tectonics and Earth's history
Aligned to MS-ESS2 — Next Generation Science Standards.
What this lesson teaches
Earth's outer shell is broken into giant plates that slowly move, and the evidence comes from matching coastlines, identical fossils on different continents, and matching rock layers. Where plates meet, you get earthquakes, volcanoes, and mountains, which is why those events cluster in the same places.
Worked example
The east coast of South America fits like a puzzle piece into the west coast of Africa, and the same fossil reptile is found on both. A map of the world's earthquakes and volcanoes shows them lined up in narrow bands, exactly along the edges of the plates.
Practice questions
- List two pieces of evidence that the continents were once joined.
- Why do earthquakes and volcanoes happen in the same regions?
- Explain how matching fossils on two continents support plate tectonics.
Watch the lesson
Every lesson comes with a video taught in English and Spanish — the same video the QR code in the printed workbook opens.
▶ Watch this lessonEn español
MS-ESS2 Tectónica de placas e historia de la Tierra
La capa exterior de la Tierra está dividida en enormes placas que se mueven lentamente, y la evidencia proviene de costas que encajan entre sí, fósiles idénticos en distintos continentes y capas de roca similares. Donde las placas se encuentran, se producen terremotos, volcanes y montañas, por eso estos fenómenos se concentran en los mismos lugares.
Ejemplo: La costa este de América del Sur encaja como pieza de rompecabezas con la costa oeste de África, y el mismo fósil de reptil se encuentra en ambas. Un mapa de los terremotos y volcanes del mundo los muestra alineados en franjas estrechas, exactamente a lo largo de los bordes de las placas.
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