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Science lesson plan · 7th grade (Year 8 in England) · 45 minutes

Types of plate boundary and the landforms they make

Earth and rocks

CCSS NGSS.MS-ESS2-2CCSS NGSS.MS-ESS2-3England: KS3 Chemistry: Earth and atmosphereEngland: KS3 Geography: Plate tectonics

Objective and success criteria

Students will: Types of plate boundary and the landforms they make.

  • I can answer questions on today's skill on my own, without help.
  • I can explain each step and say why it works.
  • I can check my answer and spot a mistake.

Before and after

Needs first: Plate tectonics, earthquakes and volcanoes

Leads to: the next skill in this area.

Materials: Rock samples, Hand lenses, Mini whiteboards, A diagram or short video clip of the idea, Printed student sheet (below).

Warm-up · 5 min

  • Quick retrieval from earlier learning (Plate tectonics, earthquakes and volcanoes). Students answer on mini whiteboards.
  • Show answers together and note who needs support in the main task.
  1. Who first proposed that the continents drift? (Charles Darwin / Isaac Newton / Alfred Wegener / Galileo Galilei) → Alfred WegenerPrompt: He noticed that South America and Africa fit together like a jigsaw.
  2. Two plates move apart at about 2 cm per year. How far apart will they move in 100 000 years, in kilometres? (1 km = 100 000 cm) → 2 kmPrompt: First find the distance in cm.
  3. Plate tectonics: which statement is NOT true? (Mountains such as the Himalayas formed where plates collided. / The Earth's crust is broken into large pieces called tectonic plates. / The continents have always been where they are now. / Scientists cannot yet predict exactly when an earthquake will happen.) → The continents have always been where they are now.Prompt: How fast do your fingernails grow? Plates move at about that speed.

Hook · 5 min

  • Pass round different rocks and ask how each one might have formed.
  • Share the objective: Types of plate boundary and the landforms they make. Read the success criteria together.

I do: model it · 10 min

  • Work through the example out loud, saying why you do each step, not just what you do.
  • Example: Which type of plate boundary is this: the Andes and their volcanoes?
  • Step 1: At convergent boundaries plates collide: one may sink (subduct), or mountains form.
  • Step 2: So the answer is: convergent (moving together)
  • Answer: convergent (moving together)
  • Pause after each step and ask a student to say what comes next.

We do: guided practice · 10 min

  • Do these together. Students try each step on whiteboards before you reveal it.
  • Use the hints as prompts rather than giving the answer.
  1. Which type of plate boundary is this: the Mid-Atlantic Ridge? (divergent (moving apart) / convergent (moving together) / transform (sliding past)) → divergent (moving apart)Prompt: Are the plates moving apart, together or sideways?
  2. Two plates move apart at about 4 cm per year. How far apart will they move in 1000 years, in metres? → 40 mPrompt: Multiply the yearly distance by the number of years.

You do: independent practice · 10 min

  • Students work on the student sheet. Circulate and check the first two answers of every student early.
  • Students who finish: write a question of their own for a partner, with the answer.

The 8 questions are on the student sheet below, with answers in the key.

Exit ticket · 5 min

  • Two questions on their own. Sort answers into got it / nearly / not yet to plan the next lesson.
  1. Why are there volcanoes where an ocean plate meets a continental plate? (The denser ocean plate sinks and melts, and the magma rises / Ocean water boils / The plates slide past each other / The plates move apart and cool) → The denser ocean plate sinks and melts, and the magma risesPrompt: This process is called subduction.
  2. Which type of plate boundary is this: the Mid-Atlantic Ridge? (divergent (moving apart) / convergent (moving together) / transform (sliding past)) → divergent (moving apart)Prompt: Are the plates moving apart, together or sideways?

Watch out for

  • Everyday meanings of words getting in the way of the science meaning: define key words explicitly.
  • Remembering facts without the reason: ask "why?" and "what is the evidence?"

Support and stretch

Support

  • Review first: Plate tectonics, earthquakes and volcanoes.
  • Use concrete materials: rock samples.
  • Give the first step of each question, or a partly worked example to finish.
  • Pair with a confident partner for the guided practice.

Stretch

  • Explain a common mistake in writing and how to fix it.
  • Write a word problem that uses today's skill, then solve a partner's.

Homework and more practice

Free online practice with hints and printable worksheets for this skill: eurekami.com/science/grade-7.

Free lesson plan from eurekami.com/lesson-plan-builder

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Types of plate boundary and the landforms they make

Name

Date

Score/ 8

  1. Question 1

    What drives the movement of tectonic plates?

    • A. winds in the atmosphere
    • B. convection currents and slab pull in the mantle
    • C. the Moon's gravity only
    • D. ocean waves

  2. Question 2

    Which type of plate boundary is this: the North Anatolian Fault in Türkiye?

    • A. divergent (moving apart)
    • B. convergent (moving together)
    • C. transform (sliding past)

  3. Question 3

    Two plates move apart at about 3 cm per year. How far apart will they move in 1000000 years, in metres?

    Answerm

  4. Question 4

    Modern GPS stations can measure plate movement directly. What do they show?

    • A. plates move only during earthquakes
    • B. plates move a few centimetres each year, about as fast as fingernails grow
    • C. plates move several kilometres each year
    • D. plates do not move at all

  5. Question 5

    Two plates move apart at about 4 cm per year. How far apart will they move in 1000000 years, in metres?

    Answerm

  6. Question 6

    Which type of plate boundary is this: the Andes and their volcanoes?

    • A. divergent (moving apart)
    • B. convergent (moving together)
    • C. transform (sliding past)

  7. Question 7

    Two plates move apart at about 2.5 cm per year. How far apart will they move in 1000000 years, in metres?

    Answerm

  8. Question 8

    What evidence did Alfred Wegener use for continental drift?

    • A. earthquake recordings only
    • B. matching coastlines, rock types and fossils on different continents
    • C. satellite GPS measurements
    • D. photographs from space

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Answer key: Types of plate boundary and the landforms they make

  1. 1. B. convection currents and slab pull in the mantle

  2. 2. C. transform (sliding past)

  3. 3. 30000 m

  4. 4. B. plates move a few centimetres each year, about as fast as fingernails grow

  5. 5. 40000 m

  6. 6. B. convergent (moving together)

  7. 7. 25000 m

  8. 8. B. matching coastlines, rock types and fossils on different continents