Landscape Changes Activities for 4th Grade Science

Students will investigate how landscapes change over time in this engaging Earth science lesson. Using the 5E Model, they explore rock layer patterns and fossils to understand Earth’s history through hands-on labs, interactive notebooks, and engaging discussions. The lesson includes editable presentations, worksheets, and choice projects, offering multimodal learning with experiments, reading passages, and creative activities. Assessments aligned with STAAR 2.0 ensure mastery, and key resources are available in Spanish for accessibility. Designed for both in-class and virtual learning, this lesson supports NGSS 4-ESS1-1 and Texas TEKS standards. The resources below will give students a comprehensive understanding of landscape changes over time. All of the following materials are also included in the Kesler Science Membership.

The Kesler Science Landscape Changes Over Time 5E Lesson is a comprehensive earth science unit designed to engage elementary students in understanding how land changes over time. This fully editable, multiday lesson includes presentations, worksheets, choice projects, and assessments, all requiring low to no prep. It promotes differentiated, student-led learning, allowing teachers to focus on student success.

Students explore essential questions like how rock layer patterns explain landscape changes and what fossils reveal about the past. The unit follows the 5E Model, incorporating engagement activities, a hands-on exploration station lab with multimodal learning, and editable PowerPoints and interactive notebooks in English and Spanish. The lab includes differentiated input and output stations, such as hands-on experiments, reading passages, video discussions, and creative activities like organizing, illustrating, and writing.

Students extend their learning through choice projects and demonstrate mastery with assessment questions updated for STAAR 2.0. The lesson is flexible for both in-class and virtual learning, aligning with NGSS 4-ESS1-1 and Texas TEKS. Spanish translations are available for key resources, ensuring accessibility for diverse learners.

Engage your 4th-grade class with this student-led station lab on Landscape Changes Over Time. Designed to foster independent learning, students analyze patterns in rock formations and fossils to explain landscape changes over time through nine interactive stations.

Students explore concepts through hands-on demonstrations, research, readings, and videos. They demonstrate understanding by organizing information, illustrating models, writing responses, and completing assessments. A challenge station offers extension activities for advanced learners.

This differentiated, low-prep resource includes all signage, literature, resources, and task cards for independent or small-group learning. The digital version allows students to manipulate images and text in PowerPoint or Google Slides, making it adaptable for virtual learning.

The Landscape Changes Over Time Student Choice Projects allow 4th-grade students to demonstrate their understanding through a project that fits their preferred output style. A project page outlines six student-led options and a “design your own” project, with an editable rubric for teacher, peer, or self-assessment.

These flexible, multimodal projects provide creative ways for students to showcase their learning. Two versions of the project page support differentiation, with modified options for students needing remediation and challenge opportunities for advanced learners. Teachers can adjust the rubric to fit their grading needs.

The projects use standard classroom supplies like paper, markers, and scissors, and many can be completed digitally. Some crafting supplies may be useful for building models.

The Landscape Changes Over Time science writing activity engages 4th-grade students in an Earth science review using a travel brochure format. This fun and interactive print-or-digital exercise enhances science reasoning and writing skills while supporting both in-person and virtual learning.

Aligned with NGSS 4-ESS1-1, this low-prep, student-centered activity helps students identify evidence from rock formations and fossils to explain landscape changes over time. It includes teacher directions with answer guides and rubrics, projection and print handouts, and a digital version in PowerPoint and Google Slides. Full-sized and half-sheet handouts feature the writing prompt, self-checks, pre-writing strategies, and templates.

This versatile resource works as a cross-curricular activity, pre-test assessment, student choice project, or enrichment for early finishers. It is also ideal for extra credit, make-up work, differentiation, or TELPAS samples. Perfect for display on bulletin boards or as part of a student anthology, this engaging writing prompt fosters creativity and science literacy.

The WIKI Tickets© Earth/Space Science Set provides 33 engaging formative assessments for 3rd–5th grade science. Each topic includes five format options: a full-screen projection version, three printable handout sizes, and an interactive digital version compatible with PowerPoint and Google Slides.

Aligned with NGSS and TEKS standards, these assessments cover key earth, space, and weather science topics such as the water cycle, Earth's rotation, landscape changes over time, natural resources, and weather patterns. Some topics have multiple tickets, ensuring comprehensive coverage of all standards. A bonus table of contents file is included for easy alignment reference.

WIKI Tickets© can be used in both in-person and virtual learning environments. Students can respond on paper, interact digitally, or complete assignments remotely. These assessments work as exit tickets, bellringers, or quick checks, helping you gauge student understanding in a flexible and engaging way.

Year-Round Resources

These year-round activities will increase your students' understanding of many middle school science topics. All of these activities are also included in the Kesler Science Membership.

Visual Data & Graphing

You're not alone if your students struggle with understanding graphs, charts, and tables. It's a skill that takes an enormous amount of practice. This resource will help students build a strong foundation in analyzing data and creating their own data visualizations.

Learn More

Bell Ringers and Warm-Ups

These middle school science bell ringers are an excellent way to engage your students as soon as they walk into your classroom. This comprehensive FULL YEAR resource includes everything you need to start off each science class with an interesting warm-up activity.

Learn More

Review Board Games

Each game board has been carefully designed to keep students engaged. There are 10 different action spaces on each board and dozens of question cards. All of the actions are related to science concepts and keep the students motivated throughout the game.

Each game is ready to play. Simply print out the board and the cards and let the students enjoy reviewing nine different units.

Learn More

Essential Questions and Standards

Below are the essential questions and standards associated with the lessons and activities included in the landscape changes unit. This topic is only one of more than 100 middle school science topics included in the Kesler Science Membership.

Essential Questions

How do patterns in rock layers explain how the land has changed over time?
What can fossils in rocks tell us about the past?

Standards

NGSS - 4-ESS1-1 Landscape Changes