Wind Landforms
Lisa Tranel, Illinois State University
This activity was selected for the On the Cutting Edge Reviewed Teaching Collection
This activity has received positive reviews in a peer review process involving five review categories. The five categories included in the process are
- Scientific Accuracy
- Alignment of Learning Goals, Activities, and Assessments
- Pedagogic Effectiveness
- Robustness (usability and dependability of all components)
- Completeness of the ActivitySheet web page
For more information about the peer review process itself, please see https://serc.carleton.edu/teachearth/activity_review.html.
Initial Publication Date: May 29, 2014 | Reviewed: June 24, 2014
- First Publication: May 29, 2014
- Reviewed: June 24, 2014 -- Reviewed by the On the Cutting Edge Activity Review Process
Summary
In this assignment, students evaluate depositional and erosional landforms created by wind processes. This exercise looks at sand dune and yardang features using satellite images and topographic maps in an online GIS.
Topics
Fluvial Grade Level
College Upper (15-16), Graduate/Professional
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Audience
Geomorphology is an upper level course in our geology department that will serve as an elective for undergraduate geology and geography students and graduate students in our Hydrogeology master's program. Occasionally students in biology or archaeology will also take this class. The prerequisite for this class is an introduction to geology or physical geography class.
Skills and concepts that students must have mastered
The students should have knowledge of wind processes and landforms. Students should to be able to calculate the slope of a surface.
How the activity is situated in the course
This is a stand-alone lab exercise for the students to complete after learning about wind landforms and processes.
Goals
Content/concepts goals for this activity
This activity is designed to demonstrate the development of landforms through wind deposition and erosion and link these features to global wind patterns.
Higher order thinking skills goals for this activity
Students will link the formation of landscape features with climate patterns.
Students will visualize the landscape features that are formed at local and regional scales.
Skills goals for this activity
Students will use tools in an online GIS.
Description and Teaching Materials
In this activity, students visit different sites designated on a digital map to look at dunes and yardangs. This activity uses ESRI's online ArcGIS Explorer. Students have the link to open the map that is already set up for them to view. The locations are set up with pins and pop-up windows that have images and links to the relevant reference. Students use satellite images and topographic maps that are available on the GIS to view and study the location and shape of the landscape features.
Wind Landforms Assignment (Microsoft Word 81kB Jun19 14)
Teaching Notes and Tips
This activity could be easily modified to different locations by adding pins, images, or websites in the pop-up links.
Students are required to create an account if they want to save any sketches or changes to the map. Students can create a free account (
https://www.arcgis.com/home/signin.html) if they click on the Create a Public Account option. This will allow the students to save their maps to return to them at a later time. The Public Account option has limitations in the tools that they are available, but basic tools are all that I require for this assignment. If students do not want to create an account, I have them take screen shots of their completed sketches to submit with the assignment.
Assessment
References and Resources
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