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Instructional Video11:58
Khan Academy

Plate Tectonics: Geological Features of Divergent Plate Boundaries

For Students 8th
Sal explains the mechanism of crust lift developing at hot spots. The density changes at that point, continuing to cause depressions. The depressions and thinner layers fill with water, resulting in a flooded rift valley.
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Instructional Video4:57
TED-Ed

What Happens When Continents Collide?

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Ever heard of the Great American Biotic Interchange? The joining of North and South America caused one of the greatest biological migrations in Earth's history. Watch the continents collide and learn about the global consequences.
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Instructional Video4:52
2
2
TED-Ed

Why Do Buildings Fall in Earthquakes?

For Students 4th - 12th Standards
There are few natural phenomena as startling as an earthquake, and depending on the building you're in, these experiences can be downright terrifying. Follow along as this video explores the factors that determine how a building reacts...
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Instructional Video8:33
Physics Girl

The Unusual Formation of the Hawaiian Islands

For Students 9th - Higher Ed Standards
How are the Hawaiian Islands different from other island chains? Discover the surprising geologic history of Hawaii with a video from a cool physics playlist. The narrator takes a hike with some geologists and discusses mantle plume...
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Instructional Video1:35
Curated OER

How a Tsunami Forms

For Teachers 6th - 9th
This kid knows his stuff. A middle schooler explains the five-step process that occurs as a tsunami forms. He relates his tsunami research to the events that occurred in Japan in 2011. The question he poses can be discussed by you class....
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Instructional Video4:52
TED-Ed

Why is Mount Everest so Tall?

For Students 2nd - 8th Standards
Many years ago, when the Indian plate collided into the Eurasian plate, the highest mountain on Earth was formed. But what gives Mount Everest its shape? Watch an informative video to learn what factors make the prominent peak so tall.
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Instructional Video6:04
PBS

Making North America | The Cascadia Subduction Zone

For Students 6th - 8th Standards
Scientists discovered a rain forest covered in sand and saltwater residue. This led to a collection of core samples and a rather intense prediction for the future of the American Pacific Northwest. Part of a larger series on the story of...
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Instructional Video0:44
Howard Hughes Medical Institute

Holmes' Model of Convection

For Students 6th - 12th Standards
Convection currents do more than just bake a cake. A quick lesson demonstrates the convection currents of the earth and how they contribute to continental drift. An animation illustrates the movement of the currents and demonstrates how...
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Instructional Video4:29
Be Smart

How Does A Canyon Become Grand?

For Students 6th - 12th
Ah, the Grand Canyon ... ain't it grand? The narrator of a video from PBS Digital Studios explains, in detail, how the Grand Canyon was formed over millions of years.
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Instructional Video1:00
Howard Hughes Medical Institute

Continental Movement Over the Past 200 Million Years

For Students 6th - 12th Standards
Go for a ride on the continental drift. A video animation shows the movement of land over a period of 200 million years. The lesson instructor explains the shift during the animation and gives pupils a unique viewing perspective to...
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Instructional Video
Khan Academy

Khan Academy: Plate Tectonics: Difference Between Crust and Lithosphere

For Students 9th - 10th
The instructor explores the plates in the makeup of Earth's surface. Evidence and theories about plate tectonics are featured. [8:00]
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Instructional Video
Annenberg Foundation

Annenberg Learner: Earth Revealed

For Students 9th - 10th
To support or supplement a course in earth science or geography, Annenberg Media offers twenty-six Videos on Demand (VoDs). The topics coverd range from why Earth can sustain life, to plate tectonics, to rock types and landscape...
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Instructional Video
Smithsonian Institution

National Museum of Natural History: Qrius: Volcano Geochemistry Windows to Earth's Interior

For Students 9th - 10th
Geologist Dr. Elizabeth Cottrell, describes why she considers volcanoes "lungs of the earth" in this webcast. [29:15]
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Instructional Video
Annenberg Foundation

Annenberg Learner: Earth and Space Science: Journey to the Earth's Interior

For Students 9th - 10th
Material to begin an exploration of the Earth's interior. An hour-long video is accompanied by learning goals, an outline and overview, details on igneous rock, seismic waves, and the Earth's layers, and ideas for teaching this unit in...
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Instructional Video
Bozeman Science

Bozeman Science: Geology

For Students 9th - 10th
Paul Andersen explains how rock is formed and changed on the planet. The video begins with a brief description of rocks, minerals, and the rock cycle. Plate tectonics is used to describe structure near plate boundaries. Hot spots and...
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Instructional Video
Bozeman Science

Bozeman Science: Natural Ecosystem Change

For Students 9th - 10th
Paul Andersen explains how the Earth's climate will natural change due to interactions between the Sun and Earth, volcanism, and plate tectonics. Species may go extinct leading to adaptive radiation or may move to a suitable climate....
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Instructional Video
Khan Academy

Khan Academy: Science Bulletins: Mapping the Heat Beneath

For Students 9th - 10th
As seismic waves from earthquakes pass through the planet, their patterns can reveal hidden dynamics-hotspots, deep-diving rock, melting mantle-in Earth's interior. An array of seismometers that's being installed across the United States...
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Instructional Video
PBS

Pbs Learning Media: A Land Born in Fire

For Students 9th - 10th
In this Nature video, follow geologists as they retrieve samples from a fresh batch of Kilauea's molten lava. [5:25]
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Instructional Video
PBS

Pbs Learning Media: Creating an Island Paradise

For Students 9th - 10th
In this video segment from Nature, learn the geological process by which the next Hawaiian island will be formed. [1:12]
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Instructional Video
Sophia Learning

Sophia: Geology: Pacific Ring of Fire: Lesson 1

For Students 9th - 10th
This lesson introduces and explores the Pacific Ring of Fire. It is 1 of 3 in the series titled "Geology: Pacific Ring of Fire."
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Instructional Video
Science for Kids

Science Kids: Earth Videos: What Is an Earthquake?

For Students 9th - 10th
Narrated animation explaining the forces inside the Earth that can lead to earthquakes. (Length: 1 min. 39 sec.)
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Instructional Video
PBS

Pbs Learning Media: How to Build an Island From Scratch

For Students 9th - 10th
Learn how the Hawaiian Islands were formed by a geothermal hotspot and resulting volcanic activity in this video segment from Nature. [0:43]
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Instructional Video
Sophia Learning

Sophia: Geology: Pacific Ring of Fire: Lesson 2

For Students 7th - 8th
This lesson introduces and explores the Pacific Ring of Fire. It is 2 of 3 in the series titled "Geology: Pacific Ring of Fire."