Module 3: Geology
Postcards from Pangaea
Imagine that you're in a time traveling submarine deep in the ancient Panthalassa Sea. As the first human scientist to witness the breakup of Pangaea, your mission objective is to journey through time to capture snapshots documenting the process of plate tectonics that formed the continents we know today.
A great way to share updates on your adventure will be to create a special series of five postcards to send back to the future. Beginning with Pangaea about 200 million years ago, the front of each postcard will feature an illustration of the continents as they appeared 150, 100, and 50 million years ago. The fifth postcard will show the continents in their current locations. The back of each postcard will have important observations related to the illustration on the front.
How to Complete this Authentic Assessment
Download the Postcards from Pangaea Postcard Template as a suggestion for how to format your postcards. You may create your own templates by hand or by using appropriate software.
Front Format of Postcard
Design each of the front sides with a creative and accurate illustration showing the arrangement of the continents as they appeared during the appropriate period as a result of plate tectonics.
You'll create five postcards with the front of each illustrated as follows:
- Pangaea as it appeared around 200 million years ago
- Continents as they appeared around 150 million years ago
- Continents as they appeared around 100 million years ago
- Continents as they appeared around 50 million years ago
- Continents as they appear today
Back Format of Postcard
On the back, you'll write a brief and informative note about plate tectonics featuring two observations or facts relevant to that particular period. Your note must also use one key vocabulary term from among any of the four topics in this module (refer to the Module Overview for the listing of Key Vocabulary Terms).
Remember, a postcard is an informal communication with a friend or relative, so be sure to address your postcard to someone, date it with the date you visited the area, and don't forget your return address.
You can use the information from this module and your notes to help you complete this project. You may also use resources outside of this course. If you use any resources outside of this course, please be sure to properly cite those resources with an accompanying bibliography. Information on how to cite resources can be found in the Developmental Module. Before you begin, be sure to review the rubric shown below so that you know how your assignment will be graded.
Suggestions for completing and submitting your postcards include:
- Create hand-illustrated and written postcards. Then, take a digital photo of the completed work and submit the photo file to the dropbox.
- Create hand-illustrated and written postcards. Then, scan the completed work and submit the scanned file to the dropbox.
- Create digital postcards using available software (e.g., a presentation, publishing, paint, or graphics application). Submit the completed file to the dropbox.
| Category | #1 |
#2 |
#3 |
#4 |
#5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Creative and accurate illustration on front of postcard (5 points) | |||||
Brief and informative note about plate tectonics with two observations / facts and one key vocabulary term on back of postcard (10 points) |
|||||
| Consistent with overall look and feel of a postcard (5 points) | |||||
Total points |
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| Possible 20 points per postcard | |||||
Once you have completed this module, please complete the module test.