MacKenzie Sherry and Lydia DeFazio

EDUC 414

March 21, 2020

6e Lesson
Grade- ​4th Grade

Subject- ​Science

Standard-​ ​Standard - 3.3.4.A1: ​Describe basic landforms. Identify the layers of the earth.

Recognize that the surface of the earth changes due to slow processes and rapid processes.

The Big Picture

The layers of the Earth.

Learning Outcomes

The learner will be able to understand and comprehend the different layers that the Earth is

composed of. The learner will also be able to understand the purpose of each layer of the Earth.

Keywords

● Earth

● Layers

● Mantle

● Core

● Crust

● Surface

● Inner core

● Outer Core

Key Resources

● NASA (​www.nasa.org​)

● National Geographic (​www.natgeokids.com​)

● Science News for Students (​www.sciencenewsforstudents.org​)

 ● PHYS (​www.phys.org​)

● Pinterest (​www.pinterest.com​)

● Pre-constructed model (model of the Earth’s layers made by the teacher for student visual

aid)

Key Questions

● What is the purpose of each layer?

● What is each layer made out of?

● How thick is each layer?

● What are the temperatures of each layer?

● How many layers make up the Earth?

● What type of state is each layer in? (solid, liquid, etc.)

● How did each layer form?

● Can the layers move and adjust?

Elicit

The students already know that the Earth is made up of different layers. These four layers

include the inner core, outer core, mantle, and crust.

Engage

Something that makes this lesson so interesting is that we are going to learn so much about the

layers of the Earth, but we cannot physically see all of the layers. How can we learn so much

about something that we can’t see? How do scientists find out information on the layers if they

can’t get to the layers? These are two questions that we will ask the students that will get them

engaged and interested in this lesson/

Explore

During this lesson, the students will be discovering the purposes and functions of each layer,

along with other details such as thickness, temperature, and many more things! Also, the

students will be discovering what each layer is made up of, along with their characteristics.

Explain

We will separate the class into four groups, each group representing a layer of the Earth. The

groups will slowly form together to give a visual representation and model of the layers of the

Earth. This will also help the students see the orders of the layers.

Elaborate

Students will be using playdough to create a physical three dimensional representation of the

Earth and the layers that it is made up of. The model will be labelled as follows:

Inner Core-​ ​Yellow playdough

Outer Core- ​Orange playdough

Mantle- ​Red playdough

Crust- ​Brown playdough

Land/Ocean Formations- ​Blue and ​green playdo​ugh

The students will form a ball out of the playdough for each layer. They will wrap each layer of

playdough around the previous layer to form a globe. After all layers are formed together, the

students will cut their Earth in half to physically see the layers represented by the different

playdough colors.
Evaluate

We will be able to evaluate the progress that the students have made during this lesson by having

a class discussion, and also model presentations. The students will present their models of the

layers of the Earth using playdough to the entire class. While they are presenting they will give

some information pertaining to the layers. Also, we will have a class discussion touching base

on key information and details that the students have learned from the lesson they have just

completed. We will ask the students questions such as, “What are the layers of the Earth?”

“What is each layer made up of?” “Can you tell me some characteristics of each layer?” Other

questions will be asked during this class discussion. There is also the chance that students will

ask their own questions. This may make the class embark on further research to find answers to

their questions pertaining to the layers of the Earth.

Extend

We will separate a piece of paper into four boxes, each representing a layer of the Earth. The

students will write facts and characteristics pertaining to each layer in their specific box. The

students will be allowed to work with a partner, along with using their classroom iPads to

research information from credible sources such as NASA, PHYS, etc. These websites will be

provided on the chalkboard.