CONNECTIONS TO THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHY STANDARDS:
The geographically informed person knows and unders:
Std. 1 - How to use maps and other geogrpahic representations,
tools, and technologies to acquire, process, and report information from
a spatial perspective.
Std. 7 - The physical processes that shape the patterns of Earth’s
surface.
Std. 15 - How physical systems affect human systems.
CONNECTIONS TO THE NEW YORK STATE STANDARDS FOR MATH,
SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY:
Std. 4.2 - Many of the phenomena that we observe on Earth involve
interactions among components of air, water, and land.
Std. 4.6 - Plants and animals depend on each other and their physical
environment.
Std. 7.1 - Solving interdisciplinary problems involves a varitey
of skills and strategies.
OBJECTIVES (to know, to do, and to be like):
1. Students will describe the plate motions of the Earth’s crust that
produce the volcanoes of the Northwest (and the Pacific Rim as a whole).
2. They will compare images of Mt. St. Helens before and after its 1980
eruption to determine zones of destruction, and the return of life.
3. They will sketch a profile of Mt. St. Helens to show its shape after
the eruption.
4. They will model a volcanic mudslide by pouring a slurry on a plastic
volcano.
5. They will look at a map of ancient mudslides of Mt. Rainier, and they
will determine the zone of danger caused by this volcanic mountain.
MATERIALS: Activity
Worksheet (in pdf format), plate tectonic map
from USGS, article "Understanding
Plate Tectonics" from USGS, computer with internet access, model volcano,
water and mud, map of Mt. Rainier and environs
(Suggested website: Topozone).
PROCEDURES:
1. Review with students how the collision of plates (North American and
Juan de Fucan) are producing magma, which it turns causes volcanic eruptions.
Answer questions on worksheet.
2. Have students visit the Earthshots
website. (http://edcwww.cr.usgs.gov/earthshots/slow/tableofcontents).
Find the link for Mt. St. Helens. There are many great images of the volcano
from three different dates. They should analyze the images to determine changes
to the mountain, the valleys below, the forests, etc.
Responses should be recorded on the worksheet.
3. Using a map made by USGS, the students produce contour profiles of
Mt. St. Helens before and after the eruption.
4. Make a model of a volcano using wadded newspaper and a tarp. Produce
mudslides by following directions on worksheet.
5. Have students look at a topographic map of Mt. St. Helens. During the
1980 eruption, much of the destruction power came from mudslides. Have them
predict where they think the mudslides went.
6. Apply this information to Mt. Rainier, which is very close to metropolitan
Seattle-Tacoma. They need to decide, after looking at a map of ancient
mudslides, where the areas of greatest danger for future eruptions occur.
SUGGESTED STUDENT ASSESSMENT:
1. Assess their responses to the worksheet, especially their predictions
about mudslides.
2. See if they can apply their knowledge of plate tectonics in the Pacific
Northwest to other places of the world, such as the Andes Mountains or Japan.
3. Have the students debate the pros and cons of living in the shadow
of volcanoes.
ADAPTATIONS AND EXTENSIONS:
1. Have students do additional research on other volcanoes of the Northwest
(Mt.Shasta, Mt. Hood, or Mt. Mazama, which produced Crater Lake).
2. Have students come up with a plan of evacuation for populated areas
around Mt. Rainier in the event of a major eruption.
3. Younger students could do some of these activities, but with less emphasis
on plate tectonics and more on the mechanics of an erupting volcano.