GeoEducational ResourcesEarth Science Education Resources for West Virginia K-12 Teachers and others |
 Geologic Transect Across West Virginia Take a virtual road trip across northern West Virginia for a glimpse at the diverse rocks that make up the Mountain State! |
This page provides FREE material culled from the experiential RockCamp Program, which began as a National Science foundation-funded program in 1992, continued with state funding and external grants provided to the West Virginia Geological and Economic Survey, morphed into a web-only platform in 2009, and, in 2016, was shuttered due to State budgetary issues. RockCamp was based on the idea that recurrent teacher participation in a series of increasingly complex professional development sessions was the key to building a strong state-wide community of earth science educators willing to acquire, share, and modify pedagogical content knowledge. Recognizing the vast amount of educational material RockCamp's participants and staff created, this page represents a commitment to ensure that at least a majority of that material remains available and accessible. RockCamp, in all its formats and variations, was a contact engine for educators. Its cessation removes this option. Please note that there is no attempt to imply ''this is the way it should be done.'' Instead, it provides ideas and one way to implement them. It is the user's responsibility to adapt and modify the material to address the needs and content level of their classroom environment. You are encouraged to download material and rip out illustrations for projection purposes and to use them for conceptual exploration, development, or assessment.
Acknowledgment: Other than the obvious teacher-compiled material, most of the original content discussions and illustrations are provided by Dr. John Renton, Professor Emeritus, WVU Geology Department. Betty Schleger, WVGES, retired, produced all of the PowerPoint material, page layouts, and final graphic illustrations.
USER NOTE: PowerPoint presentations and slides were generated with PowerPoint 2010 to utilize its widescreen and interactive capabilities. To access a PowerPoint file, save the file to your computer and then open the saved file in PowerPoint. You may need to click 'slideshow' to fully take advantage of the interactive features of the presentation. In slideshow/presentation mode, clicking a highlighted word will open a temporary content window. Click anywhere on the window to close it.
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Geology Content Knowledge These publications build upon each other. A review of previous discussions may enhance understanding of newer material. |
Conceptual Understanding Series for West Virginia Teachers: Plate Tectonics
(ED-15, J. J. Renton, T. E. Repine, Jr., 2009, 29 p, 31 f, 8.5'' x 14'')
Booklet to assist the K-12 science teacher in understanding and teaching introductory theories and concepts of plate tectonics. Classroom activities and demonstrations. Engaging and well illustrated conversational text style. Free printable digital PDF version and downloadable JPG illustrations (that can be used for projection purposes). See also more in this series: ED-16, ED-17. (  PDF, 2.5 MB)
View and download the images from this publication: ED-15 Illustrations (.pptx, 6.2 MB). |
Conceptual Understanding Series for West Virginia Teachers: Sedimentary Rocks
(ED-16, J. J. Renton, T. E. Repine, Jr., 2011, 48 p, 91 f, 8.5” x 14”)
This booklet assists the K-12 science teacher in understanding and teaching introductory theories and concepts covering the formation and deformation of sedimentary rocks. It contains classroom activities and demonstrations with engaging and well-illustrated conversational text style. Free printable digital PDF version and downloadable JPG illustrations (that can be used for projection purposes). See also more in this series: ED-15, ED-17. ( PDF, 7.7 MB)
View and download the images from this publication: ED-16 Illustrations, Part 1 (Figures 1 to 44) (.pptx, 12.3 MB); ED-16 Illustrations, Part 2 (Figures 45 to 91) (.pptx, 11.6 MB). |
Conceptual Understanding Series for West Virginia Teachers: Igneous Rocks
(ED-17, J. J. Renton, T. E. Repine, Jr., 2013, 19 p, 31 f, 8.5” x 14”)
This booklet assists the K-12 science teacher in understanding and teaching introductory theories and concepts covering the formation and identification of common igneous rocks. Classroom activities and demonstrations. Engaging and well-illustrated conversational text style. Free printable digital PDF version and downloadable JPG illustrations (that can be used for projection purposes). See also more in this series: ED-15, ED-16. ( PDF, 3.4 MB)
View and download the images from this publication: ED-17 Illustrations (.pptx, 7.7 MB). |
Conceptual Understanding Series for West Virginia Teachers: Weathering and Mass Wasting
(Renton, J.J, and T.E. Repine, Jr., 2016, 34 p, 50 f.)
Booklet to assist the K-12 science teacher in understanding and teaching introductory theories and concepts covering weathering and mass wasting. Free printable digital PDF version of booklet and separate, downloadable JPG illustrations (that can be used for projection purposes). ( PDF, 4.2 MB)
Download Figures 1 through 10 in a compressed (zip) file: Figs 1 to 10 from the booklet (.zip, 6.2 MB). Download Figures 11 through 20 in a compressed (zip) file: Figs 11 to 20 from the booklet (.zip, 5.5 MB). Download Figures 21 through 30 in a compressed (zip) file: Figs 21 to 30 from the booklet (.zip, 5 MB). Download Figures 31 through 40 in a compressed (zip) file: Figs 31 to 40 from the booklet (.zip, 5 MB). Download Figures 41 through 50 in a compressed (zip) file: Figs 41 to 50 from the booklet (.zip, 6.1 MB). For high bandwidth: download ALL the images from this publication in one, VERY large, compressed (zip) file: ALL figures from the booklet (.zip, 28 MB -- VERY LARGE file!). |
| Content PowerPoint Presentations
These files provide content in the indicated content areas and were constructed to take advantage of the interactive nature of PowerPoint in its presentation mode. To access the material, first save the file to your computer. Once saved, open it on your own computer using PowerPoint. On some computers, you may be required to turn on the presentation mode in PowerPoint to use the files correctly. In presentation (slideshow) mode, click highlighted word to open window. Click open window to close. Files function best in PowerPoint 2010. The files may NOT work correctly if opened directly from the WVGES web page, especially if using Internet Explorer.
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Earth Science Classroom Activities |
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Adaptive Earth Science Activities
(ED-13, 1998, 78 p.) Compilation of earth science activities and projects for kindergarten through 12th-grade classroom use, designed and tested by West Virginia teachers participating in the Survey's RockCamp earth science education project. Includes objectives, materials needed, procedures, assessments, and teaching suggestions. Well illustrated. ( PDF, 1.69 MB)
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| Best of... Classroom activities designed to satisfy requirements for various levels of RockCamp participation. The original activity lesson plans have been reconstructed to take advantage of the interactive nature of PowerPoint in presentation mode. To access the material, first save the file to your computer. Once saved, open it on your own computer using PowerPoint. On some computers, you may be required to turn on the presentation (slideshow) mode in PowerPoint to use the files correctly. In presentation mode, click buttons to reveal text. Click button again to close. Includes objectives, time requirements, materials needed, procedures, assessments, and teaching suggestions. Files function best in PowerPoint 2010. The files may NOT work correctly if opened directly from the WVGES web page, especially if using Internet Explorer.
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| NSTA Published Activity Ideas
Earth Science activities authored by RockCamp participants and published in NSTA peer-reviewed journals The Science Teacher and Science Scope. Articles reflect each author's affiliation at time of publication.
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Activities in Historical Geology
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Hexaflexagons
Hexaflexagon—A three-dimensional study tool that you can make! Also known as a "kaleidocycle," the hexaflexagon idea is based on a "trihexaflexagon" devised by a British student, Arthur H. Stone, while studying at Princeton University in the late 1930s. Strips of paper are folded and taped in such a way to produce a "flexible" 3-D model.
View the video for the Sedimentary Rock hexaflexagon below to see how to construct one.
Download and print any of the templates and try one yourself! Instructional Video
Hexaflexagon TemplatesDownload and print the following templates in JPG or PDF.For JPG files, click on the link for JPG, right click on the large image and choose "Save Picture as" to download the image to your computer.
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West Virginia Trackway
Trackway—Introducing students to an ongoing scientific exercise can be accomplished by using the material provided here.
It is best to begin this process by reading the General Information file. Actual real life 1:1 scale illustrations of each track are provided in the Cut-Outs file. It will allow you to print two tracks per page, which can then be cut out and used by students.
The Printing Hints file may prove helpful. The actual pattern required to duplicate the original trackway can be derived from the
Plot Guide. Note that each track has two reference points (a dot and an arrow) each with x, y coordinates. Tape applied to the
floor in the shape of X versus Y axes can allow for plotting the location of each track using its two reference points. The completed
trackway should look something like the one shown in the Plot Guide and Answer Key. Once plotting is finished, trackway
analysis can begin. Begin by asking how many feet the animal walked on. From here you can proceed to trying to get students to see how
four-footed motion can be discerned from the trackway. The three files found under Step Key will be useful at this point. For
example, the first set of related tracks numbered 12, 13, 1, and 4. Another file is an animation depicting foot placement. This
four-footed animal always had three feet in contact with the ground. Tips of digits count. Only one foot was moved at a time. Furthermore,
the posture was one of two feet together on one side and two feet apart on the other side. This posture would be repeated when the next
step was taken. You can illustrate this by using the Animated Trackway found within the Step Key file and by using the
Body Form images. The body form images provide visual help but will only work properly with a fully plotted, life-size, trackway.
Finally, trackway measurements, discussed in the General Information Guide, can be modeled after those shown by the plotted
Answer Key.
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Field Trip Guides |
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Geology Field Trip Guide
Geology road guide from Morgantown to Spruce Knob and places in between. Multiple illustrations used to discuss geological differences of the various West Virginia geological provinces encountered
during the trip. Note: Some stratigraphic terminology and correlations may not adhere to those currently in use by the WVGES. Review the most current WVGES stratigraphic terminology.
( PDF, 2.37 MB)
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I-68/I-70: A Window to the Appalachians
Interstate 68/70 geology road guide. A 160-mile road guide from Morgantown, West Virginia to Frederick, Maryland highlighting the major structural components of the Appalachian
Mountains along interstates 68 and 70. Note: Some stratigraphic terminology and correlations may not adhere to those currently in use by the WVGES.
Review the most current WVGES stratigraphic terminology.
( PDF, 3.7 MB)
View and download the images from this publication: Geology Field Trip Guide Illustrations |
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Animations and Videos |
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Annotated Geology Illustrations |
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Illustrations |
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Photographs of West Virginia Outcrops |
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Miscellaneous |
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WV Geological & Economic Survey
WMV, 79.1 MB; Note, this is a large file—broadband access suggested).
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