USING PLACE-BASED CASCADIA TSUNAMI STUDIES TO INTEGRATE SCIENCE DISCIPLINES

State science standards provide useful guidelines for teachers, but the sheer number of standards can be overwhelming. Time constraints can mean that, despite our best intentions, we might cover a standard only superficially. By integrating physical science topics with earth science, we encourage deeper understanding of both physical and earth science concepts. Paired with place-based learning, integration gives students more opportunities to make connections. These connections with new learning form because we review prior knowledge from classroom studies (such as force and convection) and because we tap into personal experience by focusing on places students have visited or heard of (Seaside tsunamis or the Scotts Mills earthquake.)

We can provide local examples of landforms and earth processes through photos and field trips. For instance, in the Portland area, cut banks on the Willamette River show layers of Missoula floods sediments, Cascade ash and lahars, and underlying lava flows. We use physics principles to decode the reasons for surface deformation and the rock cycle. In physics, we learn that friction causes heat; in Earth science, we find that the friction between tectonic plates creates enough heat to melt rock. Finally, we use data from current tsunami studies at the Oregon State University Hinsdale Wave Research Laboratory to think critically about the effects of Earth processes on human populations, including the possible inundation of the Oregon coast.