The opening of the Atlantic Ocean

'Continental split – the opening of the Atlantic Ocean; modelling how the continents moved, from Pangaea to today'.

Video clip

This ELI is a scissors and paper activity modelling the relative positions and movements of the continents as the ocean floor spreads either side of an oceanic ridge.

Many related Earthlearningideas can be found in our Plate tectonics category.

Make your own scary scorpion and imagine how it lived

New ELI -  'Scary scorpions; make your own scorpion and imagine how it lived'.

This ELI gives an introduction to fossil aquatic scorpions; bringing the animal back to life and investigating the Silurian seas. You can also have fun making your own scary scorpion.

Related activities can be found in 'Evolution of Life' or, for a younger age group, in 'ELI Early years'.

How to work out the lifestyle of an extinct animal

Continuing our fossils theme - - 'Curious creatures; using fossil and modern evidence to work out the lifestyles of extinct animals'.

 

Life on Earth diversified around 500 million years ago when shells and skeletons appeared for the first time in the fossil record. All animal life today probably evolved from some of these creatures while others became extinct.

Many related activities can be found in our 'Evolution of Life' category.
 

 

Draw and describe the fossil - can you name it?

The new ELI today is another in our 'picturing' series - 'Picturing Fossils -1: visualise and draw fossils from a verbal description'.

 

This activity enhances pupils’ skills of description and interpretation using photographs of fossils.

 

Many related activities can be found in our 'Fossils' Evolution of Life category.

The story of a sand grain

'A world in a grain of sand’ - what can a grain of sand tell us about its past?

Watch the teaching video

This ELI is a ‘thought experiment’ on erosion, transportation and deposition.

For younger ages, it could be used to write a story or draw a cartoon about the life of
Sandy Grain. Start with a grain of sand on a beach, and describe where it has come from and what will happen to it.

Related activities can be found in 'Sedimentary processes' and 'ELI Early years'.

Graphite, an essential mineral for the Green Revolution

We are continuing our latest series with 'Essential Minerals for the Green Revolution – 4 Graphite: from a pencil to the electric car!'

This ELI is an investigation into the sources of graphite as worldwide demand rises, with the introduction of new technology for motor vehicles, such as lithium-ion batteries. Worldwide demand for graphite and related elements is rising rapidly as new technologies are embraced.

Other related activities in our 'Essential minerals' series can be found in the ELI Minerals category.

 

Evidence for the Earth's core

Today's ELI is 'A core activity; piecing together evidence for the composition of the Earth’s core'.

This Earthlearningidea asks pupils to examine and discuss the evidence for the composition of the Earth’s core.

Related ideas can be found in our Earth Materials category in 'Structure of the Earth'.