Ever wonder how the Earth got to look the way it does now? Well, this year in science I learned not just how it got to look the way it does, but the processes that are still happening that shape the way it looks. Those processes are called Plate Tectonics, which is something I learned about and grew in this year in science class.

 

One way you can see that I grew in Plate Tectonics was through notes in our Science book. We use IQWST (Investigating and Questioning our World through Science and Technology) here at DRSS, and the IQWST book we studied from for Plate Tectonics, was, well, about Plate Tectonics. It was a wealth of knowledge that taught me about Plate Tectonics. Something that the book helped me learn about was the layers of the planet Earth. There are several layers, the inner core, outer core, mantle, and crust. We live on the crust. The crust is made of these large slabs of rock called Tectonic Plates. These plates are moved along by the mantle. The mantle is a plastic-like solid that the Plates ‘slide’ on. They slide because of convection in the mantle. Convection is the movement of hotter, less dense material and colder, denser materials. The less dense materials rise, and the denser materials sink. This causes currents to form, which cause the Plates to move. This is the basic premise of Plate Tectonics.

 

Another way that you could see me grow was through was through the project we did. For this project we had to make a 3D model that 5th graders could interact with. I learned a lot in that project, engineering, communication, collaboration, and about Plate Tectonics. To start this project we made a 3D model in Maya 3D. After this we made a prototype, to rough out some ideas and to make sure everything worked. We then made our final model. My partners and I made a model of what happens at Japan. At Japan, there are volcanoes, subduction (when one tectonic plate slides underneath another), earthquakes, etc. We had to explain all of this in our model. Earthquakes occur then a plate gets ‘stuck’ on another plate. This builds up pressure, and when all this pressure is suddenly released, an earthquake occurs. Volcanoes form when magma builds up pressure, and then makes it way to the surface. When the magma reaches the surface, and explodes, it is then considered lava, and forms a volcano. By explaining all of this, I gained a better understanding of plate tectonics because I was able to build and create a model of this happening. Through this I was able to see what was going on with our tectonic plates, giant plates of earth that slowly move over the mantle (the mantle is one of earth’s layers, it’s a thick, solid layer of magma), and how they move and form features of the earth.

 

From taking notes, to making a 3D model, to building the model, I learned a lot about Plate Tectonics. The notes taught me what I needed to know about plate tectonics, what is happening on planet earth, processes that allow these things to happen, and the results of them happening. Building the model allowed me to more fully understand these things as I was building the model and had to look at how it all works. Having this understanding could help me in the future. It could help me get a job as a geologist someday, and having learned all this knowledge beforehand could be beneficial in that field.