This unit provides pre-service teachers in methods courses with resources for teaching geoscience content and utilizing the methods of geoscience. Pre-service teachers will prepare an annotated bibliography of instructional resources in the areas of geology, meteorology/climatology, oceanography, and astronomy. They will select one of these resources and prepare a full lesson plan based on the resource that emphasizes the methods of geoscience and also incorporates interdisciplinary material from either biology, chemistry, physics, or the social sciences.

This resource is a video abstract of a research paper created by Research Square on behalf of its authors. It provides a synopsis that's easy to understand, and can be used to introduce the topics it covers to students, researchers, and the general public. The video's transcript is also provided in full, with a portion provided below for preview:

"Seismic surveys are a key tool for discovering what lies below the Earth's surface Surveys are often conducted near sand dunes, which redirect seismic signals and complicate data interpretation This effect of sand dunes is poorly understood Now, researchers have shown that certain types of sand dune actually absorb and then release seismic energy The energy is released in waves, which are picked up by seismometers By modeling how this happens, the team found a way to predict regions of heavy noise allowing researchers to improve seismic survey designs for cleaner recordings Tuning out the noise could give geophysicists a clearer picture of what goes on below Earth's surface and lead to more accurate interpretation of data Arran, et al. Seismic Ground Roll Absorption and Reemission by Sand Dunes. (2018) Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth..."

The rest of the transcript, along with a link to the research itself, is available on the resource itself.

A detailed two page Word document with activity instructions that can be tailored prior to handout. (Microsoft Word PRIVATE FILE 34kB Jun7 07)

Give students a synthetic data set (Excel PRIVATE FILE 38kB Jun7 07) of 206Pb/238U and 207Pb/235U isotope ratios. The data set will define two age populations (A and B) that can be assigned to either of the following scenarios. The data set is given to the students with the intention that Historical Geology level students will not be required to have advanced knowledge.

PART I: Data plotting
Students are to make concordia plots for use with the provided data sets (Excel PRIVATE FILE 38kB Jun7 07) using the plotting program Excel.

PART II: Data analysis
Data analysis. Experience the discovery of finding two age populations on a concordia plot. Discuss U-Pb concordance. Distinguish different populations using concordia diagram, discuss uncertainty in data.

PART III: Contextual basis
Introduce the two different scenarios (see below) for encountering the age populations A and B. Explore the implications of finding two different age populations within single grains from zircons in an igneous rock (i.e. zircon inheritance).
Explore the ability to discriminate different sedimentary components within a detrital population.
Explore what other aspects of zircon could be used to distinguish different age populations.

Question: What are you really dating when you analyze a zircon?

Two examples of the concept of multiple age populations:

Example 1: Discuss concept that zircons from an igneous rock can record multiple age populations (A and B) that result in grains with different age cores and rims. As a 'hook', illustrate this concept with images of well-known Early Earth examples, demonstrating that this exercise is a real-world problem.

Acasta gneiss zircons (images from S. Bowring)
Investigating the Jack Hills zircons (PowerPoint PRIVATE FILE 17.1MB Apr23 07) (images from A. Cavosie)
Wyoming province zircons (PowerPoint PRIVATE FILE 965kB Jun8 07) (images from D. Henry)

Example 2: Discuss concept of using zircon geochronology for sedimentary provenance. Use, as an example, two age populations (A and B, same data set as in ex. 1) of rounded detrital igneous zircons that end up in the same sedimentary rock. As a 'hook', illustrate this concept with images of well-known Early Earth examples

Field shots of Jack Hills siliciclastic sediments (images from A. Cavosie)
Field shots of Wyoming siliciclastic sediments (See #2 just above.)
Petrographic images (CL, BSE, TL, etc.) of the above.
Demonstrate that both Jack Hills and Wyoming zircons occur in siliciclastic rocks but are very different.

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This exercise makes use of geologic maps, structure contour and cross-section problems, and three-point calculations to help students conceptualize three-dimensional spatial relationships of geologic structures, with applications to structural geology.

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Students are expected to complete readings related to relative time principles prior to class (most don't do it). This activity allows them to apply the rules and extend their knowledge by drawing their own diagram.

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This is a lecture segment that could be introduced to an introductory geoscience class to help explain and demonstrate what can and cannot be found out by scientific drilling.

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In this activity, students look at how sediments compact as they are buried in a subduction zone and explore how rapid burial can lead to increased water pressure.

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This course covers fundamentals of subsurface flow and transport, emphasizing the role of groundwater in the hydrologic cycle, the relation of groundwater flow to geologic structure, and the management of contaminated groundwater. The class includes laboratory and computer demonstrations.

This course discusses phase transitions in Earth’s interior. Phase transitions in Earth materials at high pressures and temperatures cause the seismic discontinuities and affect the convections in the Earth’s interior. On the other hand, they enable us to constrain temperature and chemical compositions in the Earth’s interior. However, among many known phase transitions in mineral physics, only a few have been investigated in seismology and geodynamics. This course reviews important papers about phase transitions in mantle and core materials.

Students are given cubic cell edge dimensions and asked to calculate mineral densities and vice versa. The final question of this homework assignment provides students with a mineral density and unit cell edge length in order to determine the number of formula units per cell.

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In this problem set, students must determine the mineral formulas based on weight percent of constituents. They must provide the correct stoichiometry and molar ratios to three decimal places.

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Click to watch Alain Plattner discuss his activity or watch the full webinar.We use MATLAB functions available from https://github.com/NSGeophysics/Seism-O to simulate the superimposition of different seismic waves recorded in a simple near-surface geophysics setting. The choice of the geophone layout influences how easy it is to discern the different wave types, which is crucial for the success of a near-surface seismics survey. Students learn which parameters they should try to estimate before the survey, why these parameters are crucial, and how they influence the setup of the survey.

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Long Description:
Located at https://courses.lumenlearning.com/labmethods/

Word Count: 9849

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This activity is a teacher demonstration of an ice cream model representing glacier movement across Minnesota. Teacher/student questions and discussion should be encouraged during the demonstration.

When standing in front of an outcrop, geoscientists use relative dating principles to determine the sequence of events that occurred. These concepts are used by geoscientists to develop a narrative for an area.
This activity gives students practice using their observational skills to develop a timeline for a piece of art in a college museum. It is particularly geared towards students who are taking GE-101 to fulfill a college distributive requirement and who may be intimidated by a college level science course.
Students are split into small groups and given a worksheet that asks them to consider a single artwork carefully and develop a timeline for the lifespan of the piece from initial concept through the current display of the piece. Students were limited in their choice of artwork that could be used for the activity. (The pieces were chosen ahead of time, criteria included having obvious multiple steps in the creative process, relatively simple/identifiable art techniques or processes, some uncertainty as to the order of processes and/or gaps in time.)
As a wrap up, the entire group gathered in front of each piece and the groups reported out on their timeline and rationale for the sequence they chose.

Students are given two questions for each concept, in which they must (1) calculate the composition of minerals in weight percent given relative proportions of given end members and (2) calculate mole percentages for feldspars based on their mineral analyses (provided).

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Mined phosphorus is considered essential for agriculture, especially with the need to feed the ever growing population. However, there are consequences of phosphate mining and use, including pollution at mine sites and fertilizer processing plants, heavy metal accumulation in soil where fertilizers are used, national security issues intertwined with Morocco's dominance of the world supply, and eutrophication that comes with alteration of the phosphorus cycle. Students will consider these issues, their own roles in the problem, and possible solutions in this jigsaw activity.

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The principles of rock mechancis explains the fundamental concepts of continuum mechanics and rheology as applied in studies of rock deformation. A thorough understanding of rock behavior is essential for strategic planning in the petroleum and mining industry, in construction operation, and in locating subsurface repositories. The formation of geological structures or rock deformation patterns, studied by geodynamicists and tectonicians, is, also governed by the mechanical principles outlined in this textbook. The aim of the present book is obvious: to inspire a new generation of positively forward-thinking geoscientists and engineers, skillful in and favorable to the practical application of mechanics to rock structures.

This course introduces the parallel evolution of life and the environment. Life processes are influenced by chemical and physical processes in the atmosphere, hydrosphere, cryosphere and the solid earth. In turn, life can influence chemical and physical processes on our planet. This course explores the concept of life as a geological agent and examines the interaction between biology and the earth system during the roughly 4 billion years since life first appeared.

Students gesture the orientations of cross-bedded sandstones, and in particular the relationship between a single cross bed and the bed sets. They do this for photos of undeformed and deformed cross-bedding.

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