A teaching resource by Mariana Garcia Serrato
San Jose, CA, USA
For several years I have been teaching Plate Tectonics to students and we have done several paper-pencil activities that have to do with plotting earthquakes, volcanos and landforms on maps. Over those years, I’ve searched far and wide for a Google map that included the outlines of the plates in the hopes of turning those activities into a digital product. I’ve only ever found Google Earth maps with this feature and while cool, the idea of navigating Google Earth with students has always been daunting. This year I had some time and decided to create my own Plate Tectonics Google map.
The link to the map, which you can see above and can use to make a copy is https://bit.ly/2VOCDO. If you decide to use it, I only ask that you share it forward, freely, to any teacher who may also be looking for it.
The project I use it for, which includes not only the link but also a Google slide deck with instructions on how to make a copy of the map, add markers and share it, can be downloaded here
Need more resources to teach Plate Tectonics?
Check out these resources…
Microfossils
Shale – and how we use it.
Sandstone – quartz, arkose and lithic
Apparent Polar Wandering & Plate Tectonics
Seismic Shadow
Seeing Inside the Earth
Tectonic Plates – Lithosphere, Moho, Asthenosphere
Plate Tectonics Battleships
Earth’s Plate Tectonic Features – ld
World Earthquakes by Depth – LD
Divergent Dilemma
What is the history of the theory of Plate Tectonics?
What are the mechanisms that drive Plate Tectonics?
Seeing inside the Earth
Earth’s Interior Layers
Earth’s layers explained
Plate Tectonics Google Map
Benioff Zones – earthquake evidence for subduction
Structure of Earth
Volcano shapes – shield, composite/stratiform, caldera – and chemistry
Transform fault plate boundaries – what are their features?
Convergent plate boundaries – subduction, collision and Island arcs – what are their features?
Divergent plate boundaries – what are their features?
The Evidence for Plate Tectonics
Earth’s Magnetic Reversals, Polar Wandering and Plate Tectonics
Earthquakes – what you need to know!
Introduction to Plate Tectonics
Lava in Lihue – Role play activity
Rocks of Ages
Evidence for Plate Tectonics
Boundaries – how the plates interact
Plates – understanding the tectonic jigsaw pieces.
The Earth’s Crust – a simple way to view it.
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