LITHOSPHERIC

PLATES
JAN JET FRANCYZ P. BOLADO RN
 Describe Describe the Earth’s lithosphere;

LESSON
OBJECTIV Identify
Identify the major lithospheric
plates;

ES

Recognize the importance of plate

Recognize
tectonics.
GUIDE
QUESTIONS:
1. Based on the Venn
diagram, how does
continental and oceanic
crust differ from each other?
2. Do they have similarities?
What is/are this/these?
EGG TECTONICS
Instructions:
1. Place the hard-boiled egg on the paper towel and GENTLY tap the egg
on a hard surface while turning the egg over to produce cracks of various
lengths and sizes all around the egg. CAUTION: DO NOT TAP TOO HARD
OR TOO MANY TIMES!!!
2. Trace along several of the large cracks with the colored markers.
3. Sketch a diagram of the front and rear views of the egg in the space
provided below to show where the cracks are located.
EGG TECTONICS
GUIDE QUESTIONS:
1.What do the egg and the pieces
of the shell represent?

2.What do the cracks represent?

3.What are the similarities of the

egg in the previous activity and the
Earth?
WHAT ARE
PLATES?
The Earth’s crust and upper
mantle (Lithosphere) are
broken into sections called
plates.
Plates move around on top of
the mantle like rafts
 WHAT IS THE THEORY OF
PLATE TECTONICS?
The theory that pieces of
Earth’s lithosphere are in
constant motion, driven by
convection currents in the
mantle.
Plates move slowly in
different directions
Cause different geologic
events (like earthquake,
volcano, etc.)
WHAT MAKES THE PLATES
MOVE?

Convection Currents in the mantle move the

plates as the core heats the slowly-flowing
asthenosphere (the elastic/plastic-like part of
the mantle).
 PIECE BY PIECE

Guide Questions:
1. What is in the picture?
2. What can you see in the map?
3. This map is consisting of the
major lithospheric plates? Can you
identify them?
HOW There are 7 primary
plates that make up the
MANY majority of the earth’s surface
TECTON and the Pacific Ocean.

IC •
•
Pacific
North America
PLATES •
•
Eurasia
Africa
ARE ON • Indo-Australian

EARTH? •
•
Antarctica
and South America)
PRIMARY/MAJOR
PLATES
There are 7 primary plates that make up the majority of the earth’s
surface and the Pacific Ocean.
SECONDARY PLATES
There are secondary plates such as the Caribbean, the Cocos, the Juan
de Fuca, the Nazca, the Philippines Sea, and the Scotia.
TERTIARY PLATES
The tertiary plates are microplates – very small in size and global
presence. 
ACTIVITY 4: BUBBLE MAP
Instructions: Enumerate the importance of Plate Tectonics using the bubble map below.
Do this in your notebook.

Importance of Plate
Tectonics
ACTIVITY 4: BUBBLE MAP
Instructions: Enumerate the importance of Plate Tectonics using the bubble map below.
Do this in your notebook.