Preparing for the Worst: Natural Disasters

Lesson 8
icon/ela/white

ELA

Unit 2

4th Grade

Lesson 8 of 22

Objective


Explain why a person living in Boston is significantly less likely to experience an earthquake than a person in California.

Readings and Materials


  • Book: Earthquakes by Seymour Simon  pp. 1 – 17

Fishtank Plus

Unlock features to optimize your prep time, plan engaging lessons, and monitor student progress.

Target Task


Writing Prompt

Based on evidence from the text, explain why a person living in Boston is significantly less likely to experience an earthquake than a person in California.

Sample Response

Create a free account or sign in to view Sample Response

Key Questions


  • What causes an earthquake? Explain what happens at the focus of the earthquake. 

  • Why does Seymour Simon start page 13 with the question, "Why do most earthquakes in the United States occur in California?" How does he answer the question?

  • What evidence does the author give to support the idea that it is dangerous to live along the San Andreas Fault?

Vocabulary


fault

n.

(p. 8)

a break in the Earth's crust

plates

n.

(p. 13)

a large section of the Earth's surface that can move and cause earthquakes

Enhanced Lesson Plan

Fishtank Plus Content

Bring your most engaging lessons to life with comprehensive instructional guidance, detailed pacing, supports to meet every student's needs, and resources to strengthen your lesson planning and delivery.

Common Core Standards


  • RI.4.3 — Explain events, procedures, ideas, or concepts in a historical, scientific, or technical text, including what happened and why, based on specific information in the text.
  • RI.4.5 — Describe the overall structure (e.g., chronology, comparison, cause/effect, problem/solution) of events, ideas, concepts, or information in a text or part of a text.

Supporting Standards

L.4.4
L.4.4.b
RF.4.3
RF.4.4
RI.4.1
RI.4.4
RI.4.10
SL.4.1
W.4.9
W.4.10
icon/arrow/right/large copy

Lesson 7

icon/arrow/right/large

Lesson 9

Lesson Map

A7CB09C2-D12F-4F55-80DB-37298FF0A765

Request a Demo

See all of the features of Fishtank in action and begin the conversation about adoption.

Learn more about Fishtank Learning School Adoption.

Contact Information

School Information

What courses are you interested in?

ELA

Math

Are you interested in onboarding professional learning for your teachers and instructional leaders?

Yes

No

Any other information you would like to provide about your school?

Effective Instruction Made Easy

Effective Instruction Made Easy

Access rigorous, relevant, and adaptable ELA lesson plans for free