Unit Plan 12 (Grade 6 Science): Earthquakes, Volcanoes & Mountains

Focus: Analyze how earthquakes, volcanoes, and mountain-building at plate boundaries change Earth’s surface and how the distribution of natural hazards can be used to forecast where future catastrophic events are most likely.

Grade Level: 6

Subject Area: Science (Earth & Space Science — Earth’s Systems)

Total Unit Duration: 5 sessions (one week), 50–60 minutes per session

I. Introduction

In this unit, students zoom in on geologic events—earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and mountain-building—as the visible results of plate tectonics. Using maps, data sets, and models, they identify patterns of earthquakes and volcanoes along plate boundaries and connect those patterns to boundary types and geoscience processes. Students compare rapid events (earthquakes, eruptions) with slow changes (uplift, mountain growth) and learn to analyze hazard distributions to forecast which regions are at greater risk, without trying to predict exact times of events.

Essential Questions

• How do earthquakes, volcanoes, and mountain ranges relate to plate boundaries and plate motion?
• In what ways do geoscience processes at plate boundaries change Earth’s surface at different spatial and temporal scales?
• How can maps of past earthquakes and volcanoes help us forecast where future natural hazards are more likely?
• Why are some places more hazard-prone (earthquakes, eruptions) than others?
• How can models and data be used to construct explanations and make evidence-based forecasts about Earth’s dynamic surface?

II. Objectives and Standards

Learning Objectives — Students will be able to:

1. Describe how plate boundaries (divergent, convergent, transform) are associated with earthquakes, volcanoes, and/or mountain-building.
2. Explain how geoscience processes (faulting, subduction, seafloor spreading, uplift, volcanic activity) change Earth’s surface at different time scales and space scales.
3. Analyze and interpret maps and data showing the global distribution of earthquakes, volcanoes, and mountain ranges to identify patterns related to plate boundaries.
4. Use hazard maps and historical event data to forecast where earthquakes or volcanic eruptions are more likely, while recognizing limits of prediction.
5. Construct an evidence-based explanation that connects plate boundaries, geoscience processes, landforms, and natural hazard risk, aligned with MS-ESS2-2 and MS-ESS2-3.

Standards Alignment — 6th Grade (NGSS-based custom)

• MS-ESS2-2 — Construct an explanation based on evidence for how geoscience processes have changed Earth’s surface at varied spatial and temporal scales.
  • In this unit: students explain how faulting, subduction, volcanism, and uplift at boundaries build mountain ranges, create new crust, and reshape coastlines over time.
• MS-ESS2-3 — Analyze and interpret data on the distribution of natural hazards to forecast future catastrophic events.
  • In this unit: students examine earthquake and volcano maps to identify risk zones and make forecasts (not exact predictions) about where hazardous events are more likely.

Success Criteria — Student Language

• I can describe how different plate boundaries cause earthquakes, volcanoes, or mountain-building.
• I can explain how processes like faulting, subduction, and uplift change Earth’s surface over short and long time scales.
• I can use data maps to show where earthquakes and volcanoes are clustered and connect those patterns to plate boundaries.
• I can read a hazard map and explain which areas are at higher risk and why.
• I can write or present an explanation that uses evidence from models and maps to show how plate tectonics creates landforms and hazards at different scales.