MS-ESS2.B-1

Tectonic Adventure

Experience Awakening - Our open-world educational game

Loading Game...

Game Info for Teachers

COMBINED RATING

4.0 Stars

TEACHERS (13)

4.7

STUDENTS (2334)

3.3

LENGTH

18 Minutes

GRADES

CAPABILITIES

Spanish Language Support

Text-to-Speech Support

Saves Progress

Description

Join a cast of magical creatures as they explore the effects of tectonic activity across diverse environments. From rugged cliffs to a volcanic island, discover how these natural forces shape our world!

Vocabulary Words

continents

rune

tectonic plates

fossil

Pangea

lithosphere

crust

mantle

theories

evidence

Plate Tectonics

continental drift

fault line

rift valley

mountain range

convergent boundary

divergent boundary

transform plate boundaries

trench

ridge

folding

basalt

seafloor spreading

subduction

earthquakes

natural disasters

landslides

volcano

volcanic island

magma

lava

ash cloud

Instructions

Play through this interactive game to learn about Plate Tectonics. Suitable for Grade 6, Grade 7, Grade 8.

Main Concepts

At a transform plate boundary, tectonic plates slide relative to each other.

At a divergent plate boundary, tectonic plates move away from each other.

At a convergent plate boundary, tectonic plates move towards each other.

The theory of plate tectonics is supported by consistent patterns of earthquake locations.

Rocks and fossils provide evidence about the geologic environment, processes, and climate in which they were deposited, allowing geologists to reconstruct geologic history.

A mid-ocean ridge is a divergent plate boundary where new ocean crust forms through volcanic eruptions.

The major tectonic plates are the Eurasian, African, Indo-Australian, Pacific, North American, and South American plates.

The theory of plate tectonics is supported by seafloor spreading.

Most of the active volcanoes on Earth are located along tectonic plate boundaries.

Continental drift was the theory proposed by Alfred Wegener that explained the movement of the continents.

Subduction occurs at a deep sea trench where two tectonic plates converge, forcing oceanic rock to sink into Earth's mantle.

The motion of tectonic plates is due to convection within Earth's mantle.

The theory of plate tectonics explains how the continents have moved apart from one initial continental mass called Pangea.

Earthquakes typically occur at transform and convergent tectonic plate boundaries.

Mountains can be formed from volcanic activity and tectonic plate collisions at plate boundaries.

The theory of plate tectonics is supported by similar rocks and fossils located at coasts of different continents.

The lithosphere includes the upper region of solid rock in Earth's mantle as well as Earth's crust.

The motion of continents occurs on a very slow time scale (approximately a few centimeters per year) .

Seafloor spreading involves the formation of new ocean rock at a mid-ocean ridge that pushes older ocean rock away towards deep sea trenches, where it is destroyed.

The theory of plate tectonics is supported by the locations of similar mountain ranges on different continents.

Folding, faulting, and breaking are geologic processes due to tectonic plate movement that cause physical changes in rocks.

Discussion Questions

Before the Game

What are the seven continents on Earth today? What do scientists believe was true of the continents many years ago?

After the Game

What are the tectonic plates? What was Pangea? What is the difference between a theory and evidence? How do fossils provide evidence to support the theory of a supercontinent, like Pangea? What type of boundary between two colliding plates formed mountains? What causes earthquakes? What are three natural disasters that occur as the result of tectonic plates shifting?