Roddy Road covered bridge in Frederick County, Maryland

Weathering and Erosion of Bridges - Teacher's Guide

Grades 3-4

This lesson focuses on two main ideas:

Using fossils to paint a picture of Earth’s prehistoric past
Identifying the rock layers where fossils are found, to compare their ages

Procedure

INTRODUCTION (15 minutes)

Read the introduction to students and review the new vocabulary. Students will watch a segment of the “Maryland by Air” video. After the video, discuss the essential questions and thinking questions aligned to the topic and video. Discuss with students weathering and erosion, as well as career connections related to bridge design.

EXTENSION (15-30 minutes)

Complete extension activities with students, as you see fit.

ASSESSMENT (15 minutes)

Have students apply their newfound knowledge by completing a Summative CER on the lesson using evidence from the video and activities as support.

REFLECTION (10 minutes)

Have students complete a reflection.

Standards

NGSS Performance Expectation

4-ESS2-1 Earth's Systems
Make observations and/or measurements to provide evidence of the effects of weathering or the rate of erosion by water, ice, wind, or vegetation.

Science and Engineering Practices
Planning and Carrying Out Investigations
Planning and carrying out investigations to answer questions or test solutions to problems in 3–5 builds on K–2 experiences and progresses to include investigations that control variables and provide evidence to support explanations or design solutions.
- Make observations and/or measurements to produce data to serve as the basis for evidence for an explanation of a phenomenon.
Disciplinary Core Ideas
ESS2.A: Earth Materials and Systems
- Rainfall helps to shape the land and affects the types of living things found in a region. Water, ice, wind, living organisms, and gravity break rocks, soils, and sediments into smaller particles and move them around.
ESS2.E: Biogeology
- RLiving things affect the physical characteristics of their regions.
Crosscutting Concepts
Cause and Effect
- Cause and effect relationships are routinely identified, tested, and used to explain change.

MS-ESS2-1 Earth's Systems
Develop a model to describe the cycling of Earth's materials and the flow of energy that drives this process.

Science and Engineering Practices
Developing and Using Modelss
Modeling in 6–8 builds on K–5 experiences and progresses to developing, using, and revising models to describe, test, and predict more abstract phenomena and design systems.
- Develop and use a model to describe phenomena.
Disciplinary Core Ideas
ESS2.A: Earth’s Materials and Systems
- All Earth processes are the result of energy flowing and matter cycling within and among the planet’s systems. This energy is derived from the sun and Earth’s hot interior. The energy that flows and matter that cycles produce chemical and physical changes in Earth’s materials and living organisms.
Crosscutting Concepts
Stability and Change
- Explanations of stability and change in natural or designed systems can be constructed by examining the changes over time and processes at different scales, including the atomic scale.

Maryland Environmental Literacy Standard

Standard 2
Human Dependence on Earth Systems and Natural Resources:
Environmentally literate students construct and apply understanding of how Earth’s systems and natural resources support human existence.

Summative CER

Option 1:

Construct an explanation that describes why most historic bridges were covered with roofs. Use evidence and reasoning from the video and activities to support your response.

Option 2:

Construct an explanation that addresses how the water cycle contributes to the decay of bridges over time. Use evidence and reasoning from the video and activities to support your response.

Reflection Questions

Why were many historic bridges covered with roofs?
How do the processes of weathering and erosion contribute to the decay of bridges over time?

Summative CER Rubric

No Response Score Point 0	Not There Yet Score Point 0.5	Beginning To Score Point 0.75	Yes Score Point 1.0
The claim is missing	The claim is incorrect or irrelevant.	The claim partially takes a position on the topic or issue addressed within the prompt.	The claim takes an appropriate position on the topic or issue addressed within the prompt.
There is no type of evidence in the response	The evidence is irrelevant or does not support the claim.	The evidence partially supports the claim and demonstrates some understanding of the topic or text, using appropriate sources.	The evidence supports the claim and demonstrates a strong understanding of the topic or text, using appropriate sources.
There is no use of words, phrases, and clauses to create cohesion and to clarify the relationship between the claim and evidence.	Use of words, phrases and clauses fail to show or explain any relationship between the claim and evidence.	Scientific words, phrases, and clauses used lack cohesion but partially clarify the relationship between the claim and evidence.	Appropriate scientific words, phrases, and clauses are used to create cohesion and to clarify the relationship between the claim and evidence.