Using data from all the continents, students worked in groups to envision what all the land masses looked like in relation to plate movement and other forms of data they requested from the continents. Some sets of data were clearer than others!
With these data, students were asked to compile all the data and position where these land masses were 146 million years ago.
The really interesting piece of evidence students saw was that in the mountain data, Mt. Everest didn't even exist 146mya! But the Appalachians did. If 146mya began the mark that some continents split up, then how on Earth did the Appalachians form anyway? We know how mountains grow, so what was going on prior to 146mya? This will be our next area of focus!
In the meantime, all this hard work allowed us to compare our work with the work of real scientists. Real scientists have created a model of Earth 146mya, and 8th graders were so ecstatic that their models were incredibly similar to the work of real scientists!
In the meantime, all this hard work allowed us to compare our work with the work of real scientists. Real scientists have created a model of Earth 146mya, and 8th graders were so ecstatic that their models were incredibly similar to the work of real scientists!