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The Preparing Teachers to Teach Earth Science project website has not been significantly updated since 2007. We are preserving the web pages here because they still contain useful and ideas and content. But be aware that it may have out of date information.
For more recent resources related to Earth science teacher preparation, check out the collection at Teach the Earth.
Page prepared for SERC by Steve Mattox of Grand Valley State University.

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Hydrospere For K-8 Teachers

Author Profile
Steve Mattox

Grand Valley State University

Course Type:
Earth Science

Course Size:
15-30

Course Summary

Introduction to how the hydrosphere works emphasizing a descriptive approach. Includes river, groundwater, glacial, ocean, and shoreline systems and human interaction with those systems.

For Dr. Mattox's reflections on the course and its design, see Hydrosphere for K-8 Teachers: Role in the Program.

Course Context:

This is a lecture, lab, field course for preservice elementary teachers. No prerequisites but the course is required for some 300-level courses in the major. All students are Integrated Science major(certified to teach K-8). The course meets three times per week for two hour blocks. Some of these are in the field. Plus a required weekend field trip. This semester it was to Mammoth Cave, KY.

Course Goals:

  • Students should be able to increase his/her content knowledge about Earth Science and pass the State of Michigan certification exam.
  • Students should be able to increase his/her confidence in presenting science in the classroom or field.
  • Students should be able to increase his/her knowledge of methods used to teach inquiry-based science and assess learning.
  • Students should be able to compile existing teaching resources and to develop new inquiry-based classroom activities.
  • Students should be fluent in Michigan science standards and familiar with the MI Educational Assessment Program.
  • Students will work in groups to write an original inquiry-based field lesson for upper elementary students that utilizes quantitative data collection and analysis and present the lesson to local teachers.
  • Students will work individually to write a 2,000 word manuscript to submit to NSTA's Science and Children journal, specifically the Teaching Through Tradebooks feature.

Course Content:

The course covers oceans; topo maps; surface and ground water, watersheds, floods, caves and karst; glaciers; deserts, and coastlines. Human interaction with these systems is emphasized. We have 3-4 field trips to a local nature center where we are developing field-based lessons for elementary students (measuring stream velocity, discharge, and more) to be shared with teachers. We have two field trips to a major river (floods) and the Lake Michigan (coastal features and dunes). We had an excellent trip to Kentucky for cave and karst features.

Teaching Materials:

Syllabus (Microsoft Word 120kB May8 07)
Identification of Mountain Glacier Features (Microsoft Word 1.4MB May8 07)

Assessment:

Two exams, weekly quizzes, daily assignments (~55%)
Two written assignments (~30%)
Field trips (~15%)

References and Notes: