Tectonic plates and silent earthquakes

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Suitable for 14-19-year olds (secondary and high schools, and college), this article and accompanying activity sheet can be used in the classroom, science/geography/STEM clubs and at home.

This resource links to KS4 and KS5 Geography.

It can also be used as a careers resource and links to Gatsby Benchmarks:
Gatsby Benchmark 2: Learning from career and labour market information
Gatsby Benchmark 4: Linking curriculum learning to careers

This teaching resource explains how tectonic plates work and why earthquakes happen. It also describes a phenomenon known by scientists as slow slip events or silent earthquakes, which have only been recently discovered. An interview with seismologist Dr Rebecca Bell will inspire your students to study geography further and get into geology!

The activity sheet includes discussion points - seven questions the students can answer in groups or individually. There are also instructions on how to simulate a silent earthquake in the classroom using washing up liquid and bricks.

This resource was first published on Futurum Careers, a free online resource and magazine aimed at encouraging 14-19-year-olds worldwide to pursue careers in science, tech, engineering, maths, medicine (STEM) and social sciences, humanities and the arts for people and the economy (SHAPE).

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