Earthquake and Volcano Map

Have students trace the plate edges on the map with a finger before they answer. On the magnitude sheet, do one energy comparison together so they see how the 32 times rule works.

Read a Ring of Fire map to find where quakes and volcanoes cluster, then explain Hawaii's hot spot. The directions on the page read: Read the text and study the map. Then answer the questions on page 2. An answer key is included.

Yes, both. We made it for 6th Grade Earth science, and the page works the same whether it lands on a kitchen table or a center rotation. At home, most families go through it together and talk the answers out loud, and that talking is where most of the learning happens with earthquakes and volcanoes. In class it runs well as independent work while you pull a small group. Print one copy or thirty, whichever the day needs.

It is the horseshoe-shaped belt around the edges of the Pacific Ocean. About 75 percent of the world's active volcanoes and about 90 percent of its earthquakes happen there.

Each step up of one whole number means about 32 times more energy. A magnitude 6.0 earthquake releases about 32 times more energy than a 5.0 and about 1,000 times more than a 4.0.

A shield volcano is wide with gentle slopes, and runny lava flows far before it hardens. A composite volcano is tall and steep, and its thick, sticky magma traps gas, so it can erupt explosively.