Glaciers Digital Inquiry | Weathering, Erosion, and Deposition by Ice

Question: How do glaciers change Earth's surface?

Objective: I can combine information from multiple sources to explain how glaciers change Earth’s surface.

Suggested Unit: Slow changes to Earth's surface

Topics: Weathering, erosion, and deposition

Activity Information

This resource includes a PDF with a link to Google Slides files that you can copy and distribute to your students. It is compatible with Google Classroom. It is not intended to be used in printed format.

In this activity, students will work independently to collect information from multiple sources, write important notes from the sources that answer the question, and construct a response that includes evidence from their notes.

Video Tutorials

Teacher Tutorial: This video will show you how to assign Science Digital Inquiry assignments in Google Classroom.

Student Tutorial: Please share this video with students to learn how to use this resource on both a computer and mobile device.

Sources Included

1. Video link about how glaciers move

2. Original informational text about how glaciers break down rock into sediments then move the sediments to a new place

3. Interactive Diagram where students read a short text and click on a diagram to learn more about how glaciers change the land

4. Encyclopedia entry about moraines

5. Photo and caption about U-shaped valleys

Student Pages Included (3 differentiated options)

• Collecting Information table

• Integrating Information page for written response

Differentiation

There are three different files included. The content is all the same but the student pages are scaffolded at 3 different levels to help individual students successfully accomplish the task. If a student is offered a scaffold that they do not need, then I recommend allowing them to complete the activity without it.

A: guided questions for note-taking and no scaffolding for written response

B: guided questions for note-taking and optional sentence stems for written response

C: guided questions for note-taking and fill in the blank with drag and drop terms for written response

Related Standards

TEKS 4.7B observe and identify slow changes to Earth's surface caused by weathering, erosion, and deposition from water, wind, and ice

TEKS 5.7B recognize how landforms such as deltas, canyons, and sand dunes are the result of changes to Earth's surface by wind, water, or ice

NGSS 4-ESS2-1 Make observations and/or measurements to provide evidence of the effects of weathering or the rate of erosion by water, ice, wind, or vegetation

NGSS 5-ESS2-1 Develop a model using an example to describe ways the geosphere, biosphere, hydrosphere, and/or atmosphere interact.

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Product Information

1. This resource includes a PDF with a link to Google Slides files that you can copy and distribute to your students. It is compatible with Google Classroom. It is not intended to be used in printed format.

2. While this file is not editable, you can add information, remove pages, and change links.

3. Please purchase the correct number of user licenses. 1 teacher = 1 user license

4. This file is included in the Earth Science Digital Inquiry Bundle, the 4th Grade Science Bundle {Texas Edition}, and the 5th Grade Science Bundle {Texas Edition}.