Students will need a pan, wet dirt, and two pieces of fabric. The objective of this project is to highlight that earthquakes take place on faults and that when faults move, certain features are created on the earth's surface. These may be pressure ridges, sag ponds and offset streams. Students can get creative with this project by adding representations of trees and people to their fault models. The students place the fabric inside the pan, next to each other with the ends hanging out. Wet dirt is placed on top of the fabric and patted down. Using a pencil, each student draws a road in the sand. The pieces of fabric are pulled apart, mimicking the movement of a fault. Students discuss different types of features that are created.
Creating an earthquake preparedness assessment report empowers children by teaching them how to recognize potential hazards in an earthquake. Each student should have a project report book in which she describes basic earthquake preparedness safety precautions. The students should then walk around the classroom and school, and make notes about potentially dangerous items that can cause harm during an earthquake. Potential hazards which can include light fixtures, suspended ceilings and anything that might come loose during an earthquake. Students can draw up a basic plan of the safest places to take shelter in the classroom during an earthquake and include these suggestions in their "official" report.
Understanding plate tectonics is an important part of understanding how the earth was formed and how earth movements have shaped the world we inhabit today. Students can appreciate this by taking a world map and cutting it along the boundaries of the plates. They then try to stick the pieces together and thereby create a picture of what the world looked like millions of years ago. They can further observe the way the pieces had to move in order to reach their current placements.
The world witnessed the deadly 2011 tsunami that struck Japan after an earthquake in March 2011. Students can demonstrate how a tsunami works with a model. Students will need help constructing a simple wave tank that is 4 inches deep, 28 inches long and 16 inches in width. A flap can be made from Plexiglass that is a bit smaller than the tank's width. The flap must be attached by a hinge to the base of the tank and the hinge must be situated furthest from the end wall. The tank should be filled with water to a depth of just over an inch. Pulling on a wire attached to the flap will cause the flap to rotate and simulate a disturbance similar to what happens on the sea floor during a tsunami.