Sedimentation Provenance Problem Set
Man-Yin Tsang, University of Toronto
Introduce students the concept of Sedimentation Provenance and how it can be studied from rock samples. Teach students to visualize mineral distributions in a basin and draw ternary QFR (quartz-feldspar-rock ...

Measuring Plate Motion with GPS: Iceland | Lessons on Plate Tectonics
Shelley E Olds, EarthScope Consortium
This lesson teaches middle and high school students to understand the architecture of GPS—from satellites to research quality stations on the ground. This is done with physical models and a presentation. Then students learn to interpret data for the station's position through time ("time series plots"). Students represent time series data as velocity vectors and add the vectors to create a total horizontal velocity vector. They apply their skills to discover that the Mid-Atlantic Ridge is rifting Iceland. They cement and expand their understanding of GPS data with an abstraction using cars and maps. Finally, they explore GPS vectors in the context of global plate tectonics.

Virtual Geological Mapping Field Trip - Glens of Tekoa, New Zealand
Travis Horton, University of Canterbury; Katherine Pedley
Geological mapping involves the observation, recording, presentation and interpretation of field data, all fundamental skills required by practicing geologists. This virtual geological mapping exercise enables ...

Geology of Yosemite Valley
Nicolas Barth, University of California-Riverside
This is a four-part module designed to be flexible in duration and student grade-level. (1) Geology of Yosemite Valley Virtual Field Trip. A 43-stop web-based Google Earth tour with embedded views, hyperlinked ...

Nutrient Monitoring in the Chesapeake Bay
Akinyele Oni, Morgan State University; Niangoran Koissi, Morgan State University
The Chesapeake Bay waters receive input from rivers and streams from areas of Washington D.C, Maryland, Delaware, Virginia, West Virginia, and some parts of New York and Pennsylvania. Historically, humongous ...

Virtual Geologic Mapping Exercise at Lough Fee
Steve Whitmeyer, James Madison University
The Virtual Geologic Mapping Exercise is designed to simulate an introductory field mapping exercise. Students load a KML file in Google Earth that includes real outcrop data in the form of dots and orientation ...

Lake Modeling Module
This page was initially developed by Carey, C.C., S. Aditya, K. Subratie, and R. Figueiredo. 1 May 2016. Project EDDIE: Modeling Climate Change Effects on Lakes Using Distributed Computing. Project EDDIE Module 4, Version 1. Module development was supported by NSF DEB 1245707 and ACI 1234983. Note: An updated version of this module is available as part of the Macrosystems EDDIE project. Please visit the Climate Change Effects on Lake Temperatures module to view and download module files. We recommend using the updated Macrosystems EDDIE version of the module, as the Lake Modeling module materials have not been maintained with R code and software updates.
Lakes around the globe are experiencing the effects of climate change. In this module, students will learn how to use a lake model to explore the effects of altered weather on lakes, and then develop their own ...

Climate Change: Past & Present, Local & Global
Cheryl Manning, OrbWeaver Consulting, LLC; Rondi Davies, CUNY Queensborough Community College
Average inquiry level: Guided inquiry In this laboratory exercise for introductory geology or environmental science courses, students use data to examine climate change in their local environment. They compare ...

Metamorphic Rock Identification
Katryn Wiese, City College of San Francisco
Metamorphic Rock Identification online (developed for remote learning during COVID-19 pandemic); students will explore the various characteristics of metamorphic rocks and then apply them to identify unknowns.

Detecting Cascadia's changing shape with GPS | Lessons on Plate Tectonics
Shelley E Olds, EarthScope Consortium
Research-grade Global Positioning Systems (GPS) allow students to deduce that Earth's crust is changing shape in measurable ways. From data gathered by EarthScope's Plate Boundary Observatory, students discover that the Pacific Northwest of the United States and coastal British Columbia — the Cascadia region - are geologically active: tectonic plates move and collide; they shift and buckle; continental crust deforms; regions warp; rocks crumple, bend, and will break.

Topographic differencing: Earthquake along the Wasatch fault
Chelsea Scott, Arizona State University at the Tempe Campus
After a big earthquake happens people ask, 'Where did the earthquake occur? How big was it? What type of fault was activated?' We designed an undergraduate laboratory exercise in which students learn how ...

Bomb Cyclones - They're Explosive!
Jacqui Degan, Cape Fear Community College
Storms can have devastating impacts on coastal communities. Typically, tropical storms like hurricanes get the most attention, but there are other types of storms that occur at more northern latitudes that can be ...

Prairie Eco Services
Kelly Knight, Houston Community College System
As densely populated urban areas continue to expand, human activity is removing much-needed greenspaces from our communities; in turn, we are also removing critical buffers that are needed to combat air and water ...

Indiana River Meanders Mapping Exercise
Emily Zawacki, Arizona State University at the Tempe Campus
In Indiana, major rivers and their tributaries cross much of the state. These rivers can produce significant hazards related to flooding and erosion, which threaten nearby residents and infrastructure. Rivers are ...

Measuring Ground Motion with GPS: How GPS Works
Shelley E Olds, EarthScope Consortium
With printouts of typical GPS velocity vectors found near different tectonic boundaries and models of a GPS station, demonstrate how GPS work to measure ground motion.GPS velocity vectors point in the direction that a GPS station moves as the ground it is anchored to moves. The length of a velocity vector corresponds to the rate of motion. GPS velocity vectors thus provide useful information for how Earth's crust deforms in different tectonic settings.

Reconnaissance stratigraphy and mapping of the Frying Pan Gulch, MT
Sinan Akciz, California State University-Fullerton
Students are required to create a reconnaissance geologic map and report for a small area (approximately 0.5 sq. mile) Frying Pan Gulch just NW of Dillon, Montana. This project is designed to make students familiar ...

Geological Mapping of a Virtual Landscape
Mark Helper, The University of Texas at Austin
This virtual mapping exercise is part video game, part map prediction and interpretation. You will navigate a virtual landscape to "collect" outcrops and their field notes, recording your observations on ...

Feldspar Minerals and Triangle Diagrams
Eileen Herrstrom, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
This activity takes place in a laboratory setting and requires ~1.5-2 hours to complete. Students learn how to read a triangle or ternary diagram. They determine physical properties of feldspars and interpret two ...

Seafloor Spreading: Bathymetry, Anomalies, and Sediments
Eileen Herrstrom, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
This activity takes place in a laboratory setting and requires ~1.5-2 hours to complete. Students study the bathymetry of the South Atlantic, use magnetic reversals to interpret marine magnetic anomalies, and ...

Mid-Atlantic Appalachian Orogen Traverse – Field Trip 4
Steve Whitmeyer, James Madison University
The Mid-Atlantic Appalachian Orogen Traverse is a series of 4 virtual field trips that cross the Blue Ridge and Valley and Ridge geologic provinces in northwestern Virginia and northeastern West Virginia. This ...