Department of Education

Region VII, Central Visayas

DIVISION OF BOHOL
Isabel S.J. Gujol Memorial High School

LESSON PLAN IN SCIENCE 8

Section and Time: Date: 09/17/19

Learning Explain how earthquake waves provide information about the interior of the
Competency Earth. S8ES-II c-17
K: define a seismic wave.
(video clip on movement of seismic waves)
Learning
S: Trace seismic waves as it passes through the layers of the Earth.
Objectives
A: Relate scientific invention of waves to the human
advantage(ultrasound).
Duration:
Topic Seismic waves
60 minutes
Resources Needed Video clip, graphic organizer
PROCEDURE:
Element of
Suggested Activities
the Plan
Awareness Conduct a short review by asking the students, why are there different layers to the structure
of the Earth? (Different layers exist due to composition, density, temperature, and pressure.)
Activity Students will observe video/models of seismic waves. To guide students through the various
waves, make a graphic organizer on the board similar to the one below. Fill in the
information in italics as you progress through the demonstrations. You may require that
students record their own notes.

Seismic
Waves

Body Surface

Type of Wave: Compressional (P)

Description of motion: Type of Wave: Love
Compressions and dilations in the direction of Description of motion:
the wave’s energy path.
Example: Particles move perpendicular to the
Slinky or sending a wave down a row of people direction of the wave’s energy path across
standing tall. Earth’s surface.

Example:
Type of Wave:
Gelatin Rayleigh
shaken from side to side.
Type of Wave: Shear (S)
Description of motion:
Description of motion:
Particle motion is elliptical, similar to water waves.
Particles move perpendicular to the
direction of the wave’s energy path. Example:

Example: Gelatin

Rope, slinky, or sending a wave down a row of

people as they bend at the waist.

Analysis How do scientists know what’s inside the Earth?

Use the figure below to start a discussion of whats inside the earth.
The behavior of seismic waves reveals what the Earth looks like inside.
 The shaking starts from the focus and spreads out. You can get an idea
of how this happens by throwing a pebble into a pond. See the ripples
that move out in circles? The vibrations from the focus are something
like that.

The study of earthquake (seismic) waves tells scientists a lot about the inside of the Earth.
They can use real earthquakes or create their own seismic waves by setting off explosives
buried in the ground. The different types of rock that they meet inside the Earth cause the
waves to change speed and reflect in different ways. This produces a type of echo picture of
the Earth. The echo of your voice sounds different because it is changed by the surfaces it
reflects from. A seismic wave is changed in the same way and scientists can make
deductions about what the wave has travelled through by differences in the arrival times of
the waves.
Abstraction How are seismic waves used to provide evidence about Earth’s interior?
Seismic waves are waves that propagate through Earth’s interior. Much of what we know
about Earth comes from study of seismic waves and how they travel through different
materials (Waves velocity changes with density;Velocity changes give depth (pressure and
temperature) of layer changes.)
Studying these waves helps us understand earthquakes and how to build things to withstand
the different types of waves associated with earthquakes.
Seismic waves can be classified into two major groups: body waves and surface waves.
Body waves may be classified as compressional waves (P waves) or shear waves (S waves).
Body waves may also be used in identifying the epicenter of an earthquake.
Application You may ask the students what important inventions from waves do humans benefit?
(Ultrasound can do a whole lot more than create images of unborn babies. Since it first
became a near-indispensable medical tool in the 1930s, technology that produces sound
waves so high-pitched that humans can’t hear them has found use in almost every branch of
industry. The vibrations it creates can kill bacteria, weld plastics and even help to mature
brandies in a matter of days rather than years.
Today, ultrasound is finding its way into even more applications, powering inventions that
have the potential to make huge changes in their fields.
Assessment What are seismic waves caused by?
Where is the point within the Earth where seismic waves originate?
What do we use to record seismic waves?
If a P wave were to go from a solid to a liquid - what would happen to its velocity?
If an S wave were to go from a solid to a liquid - what would happen to its velocity?
How do rock particles move during the passage of a P wave through the rock?
How do rock particles move during the passage of a S wave through the rock?
In general, the most destructive earthquake waves are the __________ .
Assignment Research on other inventions made possible by waves.
Remarks