Earthquake Investigation Workshop: Shake, Rattle, & Rock
Daniel Murray, University of Rhode Island
This workshop is part of an NSF-funded effort to provide professional development to STEM teachers in Rhode Island. In this activity, students will make "earthquakes" using a simple model, the earthquake ...

Mass Wasting and Slope Stability
Jeff Clark, Lawrence University
An investigation of mass movements along the shores of Lake MI. Students will assess strength characteristics of unconsolidated sediment in the field, survey the morphology of the movement, and determine the ...

Building a Local Stratigraphic Column: A research-based assignment for an introductory course
Jennifer Hargrave, University of Louisiana at Lafayette
Students build a stratigraphic column for a pre-selected area through the compilation of a series of individual research projects. Students are required to conduct introductory field research as well as a ...

Using GIS to estimate the volume of snow and water in a drainage basin
Todd Rayne, Hamilton College
Todd Rayne, Hamilton College Summary This activity uses field measurements and GIS to estimate the volume of water in the form of snow in a field site. Context Type and level of course I use this in a ...

Florida River Project - individual and group research project
Kim Hannula, Fort Lewis College
The Florida River Project is a semester-long project involving (1) an individual project in which students pose a scientific question and use existing data to test their hypothesis, and (2) a group project in which ...

Drainage Basins Field Lab
Jeff Marshall, California State Polytechnic University-Pomona
This field activity and follow-up assignment explores the geomorphology of drainage basins in an active tectonic setting. It introduces basic concepts of drainage basin structure and landscape analysis using ...

Chemical Weathering
Kira Lawrence, Lafayette College
This field trip assignment brings students to a local cemetery to collect data related to the age and extent of weathering of limestone and igneous tombstones. Students then analyze the data they collect using ...

Stream and River Water Quality
Mark W. Bowen, University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh
Students visit a stream or river and conduct a site description and assess water quality using a variety of test kits and other field equipment.

Soil description & analysis
Karen Koy, Missouri Western State University
The students pull soil cores in a transect across a hill. They describe the horizons and create a fence diagram, then determine the maturity of the soil & relate it to the climate & geologic history of the ...

Building Underwater Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs)
Debra Woodall, Daytona College
Educators with an interest in hands-on science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) disciplines will receive introductory instructions on how to design, engineer and build a fully functional underwater ...