Name ________________________________

Date ___________ Period ____

Plate Tectonics Web-Quest

PartI: Earths Structure. Use the following link to find these answers:
http://www.learner.org/interactives/dynamicearth/structure.htm l
1. Label the layers of Earth in the diagram below.
Crust

Mantle

Inner
Core
Outer
Mantle

2. The lithosphere is made up of the Crust and a tiny bit of the Upper Mantle
3. The plates of the lithosphere move (or float) on this hot, malleable Semi liquid

zone in the upper mantle, directly underneath the lithosphere. This is known as the
Asthenosphere
4. The layer of Earth that is the only liquid layer is the Outer Core

Part II. Plate Tectonics. Use the following link to find these answers:
http://www.learner.org/interactives/dynamicearth/drift.htm l

1. True or False? Image A depicts what Earth looks like today. (circle the correctanswer)

Name ________________________________

Date ___________ Period ____

2.What did Earth look like 250 million years ago? The continents of Earth were clustered
together in formation that a scientist named Pangaea. The scientist that named
Pangaea was a German scientist by the name of Alfred Wegener . He theorized that
Pangaea" split apart and the different landmasses, or continents, drifted to their current
locations on the globe. Wegeners theories of plate movement became the basis for the
development of the theory of Plate Tectonics.
3. Order the images of Earths plates in order from oldest or earliest (1) to most recent (5).

5
1

Part III. Plates and Boundaries. Use the following link to find these answers:
http://www.learner.org/interactives/dynamicearth/plate.htm l
1. Name the missing tectonic plates in the blanks on the image below.
North American
Plate

Eurasian Plate

Pacific
African
Australia
n

South
African
America
n

Antartic

2. The place where the two plates meet is called a Boundaries. Boundaries have different names
depending on how the two plates are moving in relationship to each other.

A. If two plates are pushing towards each other it is called a Convergent boundary
B. If two plates are moving apart from each other it is called a Divergent boundary

Name ________________________________

Date ___________ Period ____

C. If two plates are sliding past each other it is a called a Transform Boundary.

3. Label the type of boundary depicted in each image below.

transform

Divergent

Convergent

4. Plates and Boundaries Challenge. Follow directions for the challenge. Record your results
below:
Part I. Number of correctly placed plates = 15
Part II. Number of boundary types correctly labeled = 6

Part IV. Slip, Slide, and Collide. Use the following link to find these answers:
http://www.learner.org/interactives/dynamicearth/slip.htm l
1. At convergent boundaries, tectonic plates collide with each other. The events that occur
at these boundaries are linked to the types of plates (oceanic or Continental) that are
interacting.
Subduction Zones and Volcanoes
At some convergent boundaries, an oceanic plate collides with a continental plate.
Oceanic crust tends to be denser and thinner than continental crust, so the denser oceanic
crust gets bent and pulled under, or subducted, beneath the lighter and thicker continental
crust. This forms what is called a subduction zone. As the oceanic crust sinks, a deep
oceanic trench, or valley, is formed at the edge of the continent. The crust continues to be
forced deeper into the earth, where high heat and pressure cause trapped water and other
gasses to be released from it. This, in turn, makes the base of the crust melt, forming
Magma. The magma formed at a subduction zone rises up toward the earth's surface and
builds up in magma chambers, where it feeds and creates Volcanoes on the overriding
plate. When this magma finds its way to

Name ________________________________

Date ___________ Period ____

the surface through a vent in the crust, the volcano erupts, expelling Lava and
Ash. An example of this is the band of active volcanoes that encircle the Pacific Ocean,
often referred to as the Ring of Fire.
Roll your mouse over the image to find the definitions of the words below:
Subduction Zone area where one plate is pulled under another
Magma molten rock, gases, and solid crystals and minerals.
Trench a steep-sided depression in the ocean floor
Volcano a vent in the earths surface through which magma and gases erupt.
Volcanic Arc a arc-shaped chain of volcanoes formed above a subduction zone.
Fill in the type of crust converging in the image below.

Continent
al

contnetns

Oceanic

A subduction zone is also generated when two oceanic plates collide the older plate is
forced under the younger one, and it leads to the formation of chains of volcanic islands
known as island Arcs.

Collision Zones and Mountains

What happens when two continental plates collide? Because the rock making up
continental plates is generally lighter and less dense than oceanic rock, it is too light to get
pulled under the earth and turned into magma. Instead, a collision between two continental
plates crunches and folds the rock at the boundary, lifting it up and leading to the formation
of Mountains and mountain ranges.

Name ________________________________

Date ___________ Period ____

Fill in the type of crust converging in the image below.

Continental
Continental

Roll your mouse over the image to find the definitions of the words below:
Continental Crust the earths crust that makes up the continents.
Mountain a high, large mass of earth and rock that rises above the earths surface with
steep or sloping sides.
2. At divergent boundaries, tectonic plates are moving Away from each other. One result of
huge masses of crust moving apart is seafloor spreading. This occurs when two plates
made of oceanic crust pull apart. A crack in the ocean floor appears and then magma
oozes up from the mantle to fill in the space between the plates, forming a raised ridge
called a mid-ocean ridge. The magma also spreads outward, forming new ocean floor and
new oceanic crust.

When two continental plates diverge, a valley-like rift develops. This rift is a dropped zone
where the plates are pulling apart. As the crust widens and thins, valleys form in and
around the area, as do volcanoes, which may become increasingly active. Early in the rift
formation, streams and rivers flow into the low valleys and long, narrow lakes can be
created. Eventually, the widening crust along the divergent boundary may become thin
enough that a piece of the continent breaks off, forming a new tectonic plate.

Name ________________________________

Date ___________ Period ____

3. At transform boundaries, tectonic plates are not moving directly toward or directly away
from each other. Instead, two tectonic plates Grind past each other in a horizontal
direction. This kind of boundary results in a fault. A fault is a crack or fracture
in the earth's crust that is associated with this movement.

Transform boundaries and the resulting faults produce many earthquakes because edges
of tectonic plates are jagged rather than smooth. As the plates grind past each other, the
jagged edges strike each other, catch, and stick, "locking" the plates in place for a time.
Because the plates are locked together without moving, a lot of
Stress builds up at the fault line. This stress is released in quick bursts when the plates
suddenly slip into new positions. The sudden movement is what we feel as the shaking
and trembling of an earthquake.

The motion of the plates at a transform boundary has given this type of fault another name,
a strike-slip fault The best-studied strike-slip fault is the San Andreas Fault in California

4. Complete the Plate Interactions Challenge and Test Skills questions.

My score for Plate Interactions Challenge = 8
My score for Test Skills questions = _______

26 out of 30 or ____87 %____

Name ________________________________

Date ___________ Period ____

Part V. Questions you should be able to answer now that you completed this webquest.
Note - you may go back to the website and review to assist in answering the
following questions.

1. Deep-ocean trench and volcano

are created by convergent boundaries of
ocean and continental crust.

Convergent Boundary
(ocean continental)
2. Deep-ocean trench,
volcanoes, and island arc are created by
convergent boundaries of ocean and ocean
crust.
Convergent Boundary
(ocean ocean)

3.mountains are created by convergent

boundaries of continental and continental crust.

Convergent Boundary
(continental continental)

4. Another type of boundary neither creates nor

consumes crust. This type of boundary is called a

transform boundary because two plates move

against each other, building up tension, then
release the tension is a sudden jerk of land called
an earthquake

Name ________________________________

Date ___________ Period ____

4. Circle the correct type of boundary for each descriptionbelow:

A. Theboundarywheretwoplatesmeetandtrenchesareformed.
Divergent

Convergent

Transform

B. Theplatesmoveawayfromeachotherallowingmagmatocreatenewoceancrust.
Divergent
Convergent
Transform
C. Theplatesmoveinoppositedirectionsbuildinguptensionuntiltheyslipcausing
earthquakes.
Divergent

Convergent

Transform

5. Label each type of boundary as either: Divergent, Convergent, or Transform Boundary:

hh

A.

Convergent

B.

transform

hh

C.

Divergent

The end. Please take a minute and look over your web-quest to make sure you answered
all questions and completed all tasks. Make sure your name is on the front and turn it in.