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 Welcome to Mr. Miller's Physical Earth Wiki. Use the Navigation Bar to the left to take a look at lesson plans and activities, and links to useful science-related websites. Feel free to leave questions or comments on the discussion page, or contact me privately via school email @ millerja@mail.uniontown.k12.pa.us

Listed below are the Pennsylvania Science standards that will be addressed this nine-weeks.

__**Plate Tectonics**__
 * S11.D.1.1** Explain and analyze the forces in the lithosphere that continually shape Earth.
 * S11.D.1.1.2** Explain the processes that take place at plate boundaries and how these processes continue to shape Earth (e.g., volcanic activity, earthquakes, mountain building, mid-ocean ridges, deep-sea trenches, new land being formed).

__**Stars and Galaxies**__
 * S11.D.3.1** Explain the composition, structure, and origin of the universe.
 * S11.D.3.1.2** Describe the structure, formation, and life cycle of stars.
 * S11.D.3.1.3** Explain the current scientific theories of the origin of the solar system and universe (e.g., big bang theory, solar nebular theory, stellar evolution).

__**Rock and Minerals**__
 * S11.D.1.1** Explain and analyze the forces in the lithosphere that continually shape Earth.
 * S11.D.1.1.1** Classify and describe major types of rocks (i.e., igneous – granite, basalt, obsidian, pumice; sedimentary – limestone, sandstone, shale, coal; and metamorphic – slate, quartzite, marble, gneiss) and minerals (e.g., quartz, calcite, dolomite, clay, feldspar, mica, halite, pyrite) by their origin and formation.

__**Surface Water**__
 * S11.D.1.3** Explain the significance and contribution of water as a resource to living things and the shaping of the land.
 * S11.D.1.3.1** Explain the multiple functions of different water systems in relation to landforms (e.g., buffer zones, nurseries, food production areas, habitat, water quality control, biological indicators).
 * S11.D.1.3.2** Explain relationships among physical characteristics, vegetation, topography, and flow as it relates to water systems.
 * S11.D.1.3.3** Explain factors (e.g., nutrient loading, turbidity, rate of flow, rate of deposition, biological diversity) that affect water quality and flow through a water system.

__**EARTH’S SURFACE**__
 * S11.D.1.1** Explain and analyze the forces in the lithosphere that continually shape Earth.
 * S11.D.1.1.3** Analyze features caused by the interaction of processes that change Earth’s surface (e.g., wind and moving water help break down rock into soil; plate movement, earthquakes, and volcanic activity help cause mountains and valleys to form; flowing water and deposition of material help form deltas).

__**EARTH’S ATMOSPHERE**__
 * S11.D.2.1** Analyze how the transfer of energy and substances between Earth's atmosphere and its surface influences regional or global weather or climate.
 * S11.D.2.1.2** Compare the transmission, reflection, absorption, and radiation of solar energy to and by Earth’s surface under different environmental conditions (e.g., major volcanic eruptions, greenhouse effect, reduction of ozone layer, increased global cloud cover).
 * S11.D.2.1.3** Explain weather patterns and seasonal changes using the concepts of heat and density.
 * S11.D.2.1.4** Analyze weather maps and weather data (e.g., air masses, fronts, temperature, air pressure, wind speed, wind direction, precipitation) to predict regional or global weather events.

__**MAN’S IMPACT ON THE ENVIRONMENT**__
 * S11.C.2.2** Demonstrate that different ways of obtaining, transforming, and distributing energy have different environmental consequences.
 * S11.C.2.2.1** Explain the environmental impacts of energy use by various economic sectors (e.g., mining, logging, transportation) on environmental systems.
 * S11.C.2.2.2** Explain the practical use of alternative sources of energy (i.e., wind, solar, and biomass) to address environmental problems (e.g., air quality, erosion, resource depletion).
 * S11.C.2.2.3** Give examples of renewable energy resources (e.g., wind, solar, biomass) and nonrenewable resources (e.g., coal, oil, natural gas) and explain the environmental and economic advantages and disadvantages of their use.
 * S11.D.1.2** Analyze how human-made systems impact the management and distribution of natural resources.
 * S11.D.1.2.1** Evaluate factors affecting availability, location, extraction, and use of natural resources.
 * S11.D.1.2.2** Explain the impact of obtaining and using natural resources for the production of energy and materials (e.g., resource renewal, amount of pollution, deforestation).
 * S11.D.2.1** Analyze how the transfer of energy and substances between Earth's atmosphere and its surface influences regional or global weather or climate.
 * S11.D.2.1.1** Describe how changes in concentration of minor components (e.g., O2, CO2, dust, pollution) in Earth's atmosphere may be linked to climate change.