Earth System Science Courses

GeoClick: reading the Michel Levy Color chart part of Pedagogy in Action:Library:Spatial Reasoning with GeoClick Questions:Examples

Paper Fans and Paper Planes: A classroom PPF example part of Pedagogy in Action:Library:Classroom Experiments:Examples
This in-class exercise has students create a classroom PPF which is simple to implement in about 15-20 minutes but has lasting impacts and applications.

Drawing Contour Lines part of Pedagogy in Action:Library:Spatial Reasoning with GeoClick Questions:Examples

Understanding Doppler radar radial velocity fields part of Pedagogy in Action:Library:Spatial Reasoning with GeoClick Questions:Examples
This activity is designed to help students learn how to interpret Doppler radial velocity radar images with meteorological applications, as well as giving students a chance to practice their spatial skills.

A Quantitative Visualization of Mantle Melting part of Pedagogy in Action:Library:Spatial Reasoning with GeoClick Questions:Examples
Here is an exercise to acquaint students with pressure-temperature diagrams related to Earth's interior, teach why the mantle melts in the context of pressure and temperature, demonstrate the role water has on melting, and review the three ways to melt the mantle.

The First Field Trip: An introduction to sedimentation and stratigraphy part of Pedagogy in Action:Library:Field Labs:Field Lab Examples
An example set of tasks and questions for the first field trip of a 300-level Sedimentology and Stratigraphy course.

GeoClick: Sedimentary Environments part of Pedagogy in Action:Library:Spatial Reasoning with GeoClick Questions:Examples
Students apply their understanding of sedimentary rocks and sediment characteristics to identify where rocks may be forming using a simplified cross-section of a landscape from mountain to sea.

Predicting Regional Air Pressure Condition part of Pedagogy in Action:Library:Spatial Reasoning with GeoClick Questions:Examples

Selecting Sites for Renewable Energy Projects part of Pedagogy in Action:Library:Teaching with Google Earth:Examples
Students use Google Earth to investigate appropriate locations for a variety of renewable energy projects in the United States. These include projects that use solar energy, bioenergy, hydroelectricity, tidal power, wind energy, wave energy, and geothermal energy.

The Boxing Day Tsunami part of Pedagogy in Action:Library:Teaching with Google Earth:Examples
Undergraduate students map data from the National Geophysical Data Center and the United States Geological Survey on Google Earth and study visualizations in order to explore the causes and effects of the Tsunami ...