EARTH BOOK 262 2007 AIMS Education Foundation

use a collaborative approach to construct

three-dimensional and two-dimensional
models of the Earths atmosphere, and
make a graph showing the temperature
ranges of the four layers.
Key Question
How can we construct
a model of the layers
of the atmosphere as a
collaborative group?
Learning Goals
EARTH BOOK 263 2007 AIMS Education Foundation
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EARTH BOOK 264 2007 AIMS Education Foundation
Illustrate below how this representation
would appear around a sphereour Earth.
1. Color the cubes to illustrate your
atmospheric model.
2. Draw lines to separate the layers.
3. Label the layers. Label the
following regions: tropopause,
stratopause, and mesopause.
4. Include the thickness and label
the temperature at the top and
bottom of each layer.
Two-Dimensional Model
EARTH BOOK 265 2007 AIMS Education Foundation
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Make a line graph of the temperature data.
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(

C
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Atmospheric Layers
Troposphere
Stratosphere Mesosphere Thermosphere
On the back of this paper tell the temperature
story as illustrated by the graph.
EARTH BOOK 266 2007 AIMS Education Foundation
1. What are the four layers of
the atmosphere? What are
the three regions between
the layers called?
Connecting Learning
2. Compare the temperatures in each
layer. Which layer has the coldest
temperature? Which layer has
the warmest temperature? What
patterns do you see?
3. What data do you think were
estimated?
4. How do you think scientists know
this information?
EARTH BOOK 267 2007 AIMS Education Foundation
Connecting Learning
5. How successful was your
group in solving the problem?
Were some clues more
important than others?
Explain.
6. What interesting things did the graph
illustrate for you?
7. Large airplanes generally travel in
the stratosphere. Why do you think
they do?
8. What are you wondering now?