In this activity, students take on the roles of seismologists and vulcanologists, using maps to look for patterns in the worldwide distribution of earthquakes and volcanoes.
By the end of this activity, students should:
- see patterns in the worldwide distribution of earthquakes and volcanoes and develop an understanding of the idea of a dynamic Earth
- understand that New Zealand’s location on a plate boundary explains why the country has so many earthquakes and volcanoes
- understand that specialists collaborate to provide evidence to support their ideas.
Download the Word file (see link below) for:
- introduction/background
- what you need
- what to do
- part 1 – seismologist instructions
- part 1 – vulcanologist instructions
- part 2 – specialists working together instructions
- world map for vulcanologists
- world map for seismologists
- world map showing main tectonic plates
I use the Earthquakes resources and the World of quakes student activity. It was a superb collaborative task and ultimately reinforced how tectonic plate boundaries affect our Earth – in particular New Zealand. The students were motivated to share their ideas. A great observational activity, too.
Patsy Hindson, teacher
Related Content
Explore Plate tectonics further.
Activity idea
The Shaky New Zealand activity looks at the different structures of the tectonic plate boundary in the North and South Islands. Students use maps and plot a graph of earthquakes under New Zealand to show the shape of the North Island subduction zone. They compare this to the distribution of earthquakes in the South Island.
Acknowledgement
This activity was developed for the Earthquake Commission (EQC), now known as the Natural Hazards Commission, and has been kindly provided for use on the Science Learning Hub.
Natural Hazards Commission Toka Tū Ake
Find out more about the Natural Hazards Commission Toka Tū Ake at www.naturalhazards.govt.nz.
