Mountains, Valleys, and Coasts
Earth scientists look at landscape and ask questions [SEP-1] about the processes that shaped it and the specific sequence of events in the past when those processes occurred. Scientists plan and carry out investigations [SEP-3] to answer those questions, but investigations in Earth and space science cannot always take the same experimental form with the testing of hypotheses as they might in analytical chemistry or experimental physics. Many Earth processes take millions of years and cover thousands of miles of area occurring too slowly and at too big a scale to reproduce in a lab. Geologists often refer to the Earth as their natural laboratory, but they are only permitted to look at the final result of its ancient experiments (Earth’s present-day landscape). These investigations often begin when Earth scientists make careful observations of what the Earth looks like today and then try to reproduce similar features in small-scale laboratory experiments or computer simulations.
California Department of Education. 2018. 2016 California Science Framework Chapter 8. Sacramento, CA: California Department of Education, 1233.
Big Idea Success Criteria
The categories and their related standards below unpack the success criteria of this big idea.
Guiding Questions
- How did California’s landscape get to look the way it does today?
- What forces shape the Earth’s surface?
- How do those processes affect humans?
Performance Expectations Students who demonstrate understanding can do the following:
HS-ESS2-1. Develop a model to illustrate how Earth’s internal and surface processes operate at different spatial and temporal scales to form continental and ocean-floor features. [Clarification Statement: Emphasis is on how the appearance of land features (such as mountains, valleys, and plateaus) and sea-floor features (such as trenches, ridges, and seamounts) are a result of both constructive forces (such as volcanism, tectonic uplift, and orogeny) and destructive mechanisms (such as weathering, mass wasting, and coastal erosion) ] [Assessment Boundary: Assessment does not include memorization of the details of the formation of specific geographic features of Earth’s surface.] (Revisited from IS1 and again in IS4)
HS-ESS2-5. Plan and conduct an investigation of the properties of water and its effects on Earth materials and surface processes. [Clarification Statement: Emphasis is on mechanical and chemical investigations with water and a variety of solid materials to provide the evidence for connections between the hydrologic cycle and system interactions commonly known as the rock cycle Examples of mechanical investigations include stream transportation and deposition using a stream table, erosion using variations in soil moisture content, or frost wedging by the expansion of water as it freezes Examples of chemical investigations include chemical weathering and recrystallization (by testing the solubility of different materials) or melt generation (by examining how water lowers the melting temperature of most solids) ]
HS-ESS3-1. Construct an explanation based on evidence for how the availability of natural resources, occurrence of natural hazards, and changes in climate have influenced human activity. [Clarification Statement: Examples of key natural resources include access to fresh water (such as rivers, lakes, and groundwater), regions of fertile soils such as river deltas, and high concentrations of minerals and fossil fuels Examples of natural hazards can be from interior processes (such as volcanic eruptions and earthquakes), surface processes (such as tsunamis, mass wasting and soil erosion), and severe weather (such as hurricanes, floods, and droughts) Examples of the results of changes in climate that can affect populations or drive mass migrations include changes to sea level, regional patterns of temperature and precipitation, and the types of crops and livestock that can be raised ]
HS-ESS3-4. Evaluate or refine a technological solution that reduces impacts of human activities on natural systems * [Clarification Statement: Examples of data on the impacts of human activities could include the quantities and types of pollutants released, changes to biomass and species diversity, or areal changes in land surface use (such as for urban development, agriculture and livestock, or surface mining) Examples for limiting future impacts could range from local efforts (such as reducing, reusing, and recycling resources) to large-scale geoengineering design solutions (such as altering global temperatures by making large changes to the atmosphere or ocean) ]
HS-ESS3-5. Analyze geoscience data and the results from global climate models to make an evidence-based forecast of the current rate of global or regional climate change and associated future impacts to Earth systems. [Clarification Statement: Examples of evidence, for both data and climate model outputs, are for climate changes (such as precipitation and temperature) and their associated impacts (such as on sea level, glacial ice volumes, or atmosphere and ocean composition) ] [Assessment Boundary: Assessment is limited to one example of a climate change and its associated impacts.]
HS-ETS1-3. Evaluate a solution to a complex real-world problem based on prioritized criteria and trade-offs that account for a range of constraints, including cost, safety, reliability, and aesthetics as well as possible social, cultural, and environmental impacts *The performance expectations marked with an asterisk integrate traditional science content with engineering through a practice or disciplinary core idea
California Department of Education. 2018. 2016 California Science Framework Chapter 8. Sacramento, CA: California Department of Education, 1234.
Alternative Means of Expression
This big idea does not have created or curated examples of alternative means of expression due to the project scope and timeline. If you have example options you would like to share with the initiative team, please use the BYOT option.
Sample Coursework
Bring Your Own Task (BYOT)
A Call to IEP Teams
We want students’ IEP team members to share their ideas regarding viable alternative means of expression pertaining to this big idea for students with disabilities, including those eligible for the CAA, these teams serve. IEP teams can define viable alternative means of expression for an individual student with an IEP, as long as these mediums meet the local requirements of the coursework.
A Call to Content-based Educators
In addition to IEP teams, we know secondary teachers and district curriculum leads have a wealth of experience and ideas related to innovative ways to assess students’ understanding of this content. We are interested in sample alternative means of expression this community sees as viable assessments of this big idea.
Please use the entry boxes below to share these ideas.
Important Note —These assessment tools will not be shared outside the review of the initiative team and will remain the intellectual property of the users who have made this submission. Furthermore, feedback or comments from the initiative team will not be given to uploaded content, nor does uploading materials imply that the alternative means of expression strategy is a viable option for this big idea.
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