Name: Period: Plate Tectonics Performance Task Due: plate tec ton ics noun a theory explaining the structure of the earth's crust and many associated phenomena as resulting from the interaction of rigid lithospheric plates that move slowly over the underlying mantle. After reading three assigned articles about plate tectonics, write a report that examines the causes of plate tectonics and the effects that plate tectonics have on Earth. Support your discussion with evidence from the texts. Article #1 Plate Tectonics, Tectonic Plates Information, Facts, News, Photos science.nationalgeographic.com Before Reading: Preview the text by identifying the key terms in bold. Use the context clues in the text to write a definition of each term: 1. Lithosphere - 2. Convergent Boundary - 3. Divergent Boundary - 4. Transform Boundary - Read the Article Finding the Main Idea The main idea is what the article is mostly about The main idea may be stated in the first or last paragraph The main idea may not be directly stated; you may have to make an inference The main idea of the article is:
Summarize: As you read the article a second time, write a 1-2 sentence summary of every paragraph. These summaries should include details that support the main idea of the article and evidence that you can use in your report. Paragraph #1: Paragraph #2: Paragraph #3: Paragraph #4: Paragraph #5: Paragraph #6: Paragraph #7: Paragraph #8:
Paragraph #9: Reflect: (Hint: you can consider these your causes of plate tectonics!) What are the three types of tectonic boundaries? 1. 2. 3. Article #2 Earth s Big Breakup student.societyforscience.org Before Reading: Review the definitions of the power words at the end of the article. Use the definitions to figure out which power word fits best in each sentence. Word Bank Tectonic Plate Physicist Seismology Crust 1. The Earth s is like the skin of an apple. It is very thin in comparison to the other three layers that make up the Earth. 2. are giant slabs of Earth s crust that fit together like the pieces of a puzzle. 3. Albert Einstein is one of the most famous in history. He studied matter and energy. 4. Studying in Central Oregon is very interesting since we are so close to the Pacific Ring of Fire, famous for triggering some of Earth s largest earthquakes. Read the Article Finding the Main Idea The main idea is what the article is mostly about The main idea may be stated in the first or last paragraph The main idea may not be directly stated; you may have to make an inference The main idea of the article is:
Summarize: As you read the article, write a 1-2 sentence summary of every paragraph. These summaries should include details that support the main idea of the article and evidence that you can use in your report. Paragraph #1: Paragraph #2: Paragraph #3: Paragraph #4: Paragraph #5: Paragraph #6: Paragraph #7: Paragraph #8:
Paragraph #9: Reflect: (Hint: you can consider this one of your effects of plate tectonics!) What role did plate tectonics play in the April 11, 2012 earthquake in Sumatra? Article #3 The Quake That Shook Up Geology student.societyforscience.org Before Reading: Review the 19 power words and their definitions at the end of the article. Use the power words to fill in the blanks in the following sentences. (note: not all power words will be used!!) 1. The Earth s lithosphere moves along a fracture, or, which can cause massive earthquakes. 2. The scientist who recorded the magnitude of the earthquake is a. He used a to measure the tremors resulted from the earthquake. He also found the of the earthquake, which told him where the earthquake started. 3. An enormous wave, or, resulted from the earthquake in Alaska. 4. As the plates collided along a, one plate sank below the other and magma was forced up from beneath the crust, or the, of the Earth and out of a volcano. 5. Following the earthquake in Alaska, more damage was done due to. 6. The where the tectonic plates are spreading away from each other created the Great Rift Valley in Africa. Read the Article This article is longer than the others. Please use a highlighter to highlight important information (evidence) that you can use in your report to support your explanation of the causes and effects of plate tectonics.
Finding the Main Idea The main idea is what the article is mostly about The main idea may be stated in the first or last paragraph The main idea may not be directly stated; you may have to make an inference The main idea of the article is: Summarize: As you read the article, write a 1-2 sentence summary of every page. These summaries should include details that support the main idea of the article and evidence that you can use in your report. Page #1: Page #2: Page #3: Page #4: Page #5: Page #6:
Page #7: Page #8: Page #9: Page #10: Reflect: According to the article, what effects do plate movements have on Earth s surface? (start on p. 4)
Synthesize Consider the evidence you collected in the paragraph and page summaries, key terms, and reflections. Synthesize the information by completing the graphic organizer. Remember, your goal is to be able to explain the causes and effects of plate tectonics in your report. Cause #2 Cause #1 Effects Cause #3
Organize Complete the following outline to organize your evidence BEFORE writing your report. Your report is to be a five- paragraph essay that includes an introduction, three body paragraphs outlining information about plate tectonics, the three types of plate movements (causes), the effects of plate tectonics on Earth s surface, and a conclusion. The outline does not need to be done in complete sentences. This is a rough idea of what you will write for each sentence in your report. INTRODUCTION Main Idea Topic Sentence: What are plate tectonics? Three types of plate movement (causes) Effects of plate tectonics on Earth s surface Conclusion sentence: BODY #1 Define plate tectonics Detail/Example 1 Detail/Example 2 Detail/Example 3 Conclusion sentence: BODY #2 Three types of plate movements Detail/Example 1 Detail/Example 2 Detail/Example 3 Conclusion sentence: BODY #3 Effects of plate tectonics Detail/Example 1 Detail/Example 2 Detail/Example 3 Conclusion sentence: CONCLUSION Restate Main Idea: Restate Three Body Paragraph Main Ideas: 1 2 3 Conclusion sentence (wrap up report): Packet Completion: /50 points
Transitions Be sure to use transitions consistently in your writing to begin sentences and link ideas. Addition: to indicate that one or more ideas continue along the same line of thought Cause or reason: to indicate why something happened or will happen Comparison: to point out the similarities between subjects Conclusion: to end Contrast: to point out the differences between subjects Example: to provide examples Introduction: to begin providing evidence Place: to explain where something happened or will happen Prediction to link a cause and effect Purpose: to explain an intention Reasoning to explain logical link between evidence and claim Result or Effect: to indicate what will happen or happened Summary: to introduce a synopsis of thoughts or ideas Time: to express a specific time frame or a shift from one time period to another again, also, and, and then, another, finally, first/second/etc., furthermore, in addition, last of all, moreover, next because, due to, for fear that, for the purpose of, for the reason that, in the hope that, owing to, since again, also, in comparison, in the same way, likewise, once more, similarly as I have said, as mentioned earlier, as we have seen, given these facts, in any event, in conclusion, on the whole, so, to conclude although, but, despite, even though, however, in contrast, instead, nevertheless, on the contrary, on the one hand, on the other hand, still, though, whereas, yet for example, for instance, in fact, in particular, specifically, such as, the following example, to demonstrate, to illustrate, particularly first, first of all, for example, for instance, in fact, in particular, specifically, to begin, to demonstrate, to elaborate, to enumerate, to illustrate, particularly above, adjacent to, below, beyond, closer to, elsewhere, far, further on, here, near, nearby, opposite to, there, to the left, to the right if/then, in most cases, it is safe to say, more often than not, one can assume that, one can safely say for the purpose of, in order to, in the hope that, so that, with this intention as a rule, if/then, in general, in most cases, it is safe to say, more often than not, normally, one can assume that, one can safely say, typically, usually accordingly, as a result, consequently, finally, hence, so, then, therefore, thus, to this end briefly, in brief, in other words, overall, summing up, to put it briefly, to sum up, to summarize after awhile, afterward, as long as, as soon as, at last, at that time, before, concurrently, during, earlier, formerly, immediately, in the meantime, in the past, later, meanwhile, now, shortly, soon, then, until, when
Write Your Report After reading three assigned articles about plate tectonics, write a report that examines the causes of plate tectonics and the effects that plate tectonics have on Earth. Support your discussion with evidence from the texts. Writing Procedure: Write a rough draft of your report on lined paper Edit your report: 1. Read report out loud to ensure sentence structure is correct 2. Let a peer or teacher read and edit your report to check conventions and sentence structure After editing, type a final draft of your report to turn in. (Note: if you do not have a computer at home, you may request a lunch pass to type on a school computer) Warning: reports that have too many convention errors will be returned to be rewritten. Grading Rubric Category 20 points 10 points 5 points Purpose and Organization Evidence and Elaboration Interesting, clearly stated topic sentence that lets the reader know the main idea of the paragraph. Consistent use of transitional words to clarify relationships between ideas. Effective use of introduction and conclusion. Logical progression and connection of ideas. Comprehensive key terms and evidence used to support topic sentence. Comprehensive evidence integrated into writing Conventions Correct use of sentence formation, punctuation, capitalization, grammar usage, and spelling. Topic sentence included in paragraph but not clearly focused on the main idea. A few transitional words used to clarify relationships between ideas. Adequate introduction and conclusion. Adequate progression and connection of ideas. Adequate key terms and evidence used to support topic sentence. Adequate evidence integrated into writing Limited use of correct sentence formation, punctuation, capitalization, grammar usage, and spelling. Topic sentence not included in paragraph or confusing or ambiguous. Few or no transitional strategies. Introduction or conclusion missing. Ideas randomly ordered or unclear progression. Key terms and evidence are minimal or missing. Little or no evidence integrated into writing. Infrequent use of correct sentence formation, punctuation, capitalization, grammar usage, and spelling. Total Score: /60 points